These are the Instructions for the Tenth module of this course:


This week we are going to practice building a little Interactive program. We will call it an Interactive Map.
We will be using Frame Labels for Navigational purposes.

Framelabels

Framelabels help the crew working in a Flash project understand the structure of the Navigation with a quick look at the Timeline. They are also very helpful in complicated projects, since a change in the numeric frames (if one section needs to become shorter or longer after the programming has taken place) will not affect the accuracy of the script.
Inside the script, the command will ask to "gotoAndPlay" or "gotoAndStop" to a word (we call it a "string" in programming) and not to a frame number.
Remember that frame labels are always written inside quotes in the script:

gotoAndPlay("iceball");

File structure

We will use again the Stop action for articulating a NON LINEAR narrative, where the timeline no longer plays from the first frame to the last one.
The Play-head “jumps” from one part to the other of the Timeline, by user demand (depending of which button is the user clicking.

We are going to be creating transparent buttons that allow us to have a clear view of the map (this is a button with no artwork on the UP stage).

We will build buttons with remote rollovers (the Rollover information doesn't coincide with the UP or HIT area of the button, so it shows up in a different/remote location).
This term comes from html coders, it is not such a big deal for flash users to place the rollover content somewhere else on the Stage: you just place it wherever you want inside the OVER stage of the button.
The challenge here will be to envision which content you want to deliver on rollover of the button and which you will place later on the timeline, so its seen only after the button is clicked.

I am asking also to place (if it fits your design) all the rollovers from all the buttons, on the same area of the Stage.
To achieve this, you make a layer on the main timeline with a box. This way, when you double-click on the button on the stage,you will be able to edit the rollover artwork and place it in the right spot.


Complete this week's assignment with an Interactive Map project.

Download sample files.
Analyze carefully the sample file before you design an Interactive Map of your own.

Your Map could be a Geographical map, or a plan for a house, a graphic diagram of a body, an animal, a news or scientific event... You can use a photo as a map, a drawing divided in sections, or Flash made material.
The exercise is about organizing information: you choose the type of information that you want to use.

Post your comments or problems you think the rest of the group can share, advice ideas and more on the discussion.
You need to begin preparing content for your Final Project.