Links - basic question

Question

Flash newbie quesiton - please bear with.
A simple Flash intro, with 3 text buttons appearing toward
the end of the movie that should allow navigation to other pages in
the site.
I'm not sure where to place the actionscript for the
buttons... do I select the layer that contains each button, then
click the keyframe where the button first appears (buttons do not
appear until frame 250). I've also read that a separate layer for
actionscript should be created, and all scripts placed there.
Here is the basic script I'm using:
enter_btn.addEventListener(MouseEvent.CLICK,
enterbuttonClickHandler);
function enterbuttonClickHandler(event:MouseEvent):void {
navigateToURL(new URLRequest("
http://www.danceartscentreatl.com/main.htm"));
}

Answer 1

JillTW,
> Flash newbie quesiton - please bear with.
This is the place for it. :)
> A simple Flash intro, with 3 text buttons appearing
toward
> the end of the movie that should allow navigation to
other
> pages in the site.
I'm with ya.
> I'm not sure where to place the actionscript for the
buttons...
Think of the timeline in terms of a grid. In this analogy,
frames are
your vertical columns and layers are your horizontal rows.
Your buttons
appear on frame 250, so imagine a column going up and down in
frame 250.
Your ActionScript needs to appear along this column
somewhere. It doesn't
matter what "row" (layer) its in, so long as the code the
buttons appear in
the same "column".
If you put your code in frame 1, for example, Flash will
look for a
button with the instance name enter_btn in that "column," but
won't find it.
Conversely, if your buttons appeared in frame 1, and ended in
frame 100,
then stopped ... and your code appeared in frame 250, it
still wouldn't find
the button reference.
> I've also read that a separate layer for actionscript
should be
> created, and all scripts placed there.
Technically speaking, it makes no difference which layers
hold your code
... but from a practical standpoint, it makes a lot of sense
to put all your
code in a dedicated layer named "scripts", or "actions", or
some other name
that fits. That way you'll quickly be able to find it,
instead of having to
hunt and peck.
> Here is the basic script I'm using:
>
> enter_btn.addEventListener(MouseEvent.CLICK,
enterbuttonClickHandler);
> function enterbuttonClickHandler(event:MouseEvent):void
> navigateToURL(new
> URLRequest("
http://www.danceartscentreatl.com/main.htm"));
> }
That covers a button symbol currently on the Stage or
pasteboard whose
instance name is enter_btn. Note: instance names must be
unique per
*intance* of a symbol. You can create a single button symbol,
with whatever
Library name makes sense, and then drag numerous copies of it
to the Stage.
To speak to each instance separately, each instance needs its
own instance
name (assigned in the Property inspector).
> enter_btn.addEventListener(MouseEvent.CLICK,
buttonClickHandler);
> function buttonClickHandler(event:MouseEvent):void {
> navigateToURL(new URLRequest("
http://www.danceartscentreatl.com"));
> }
This second event handler, assuming it also exists on frame
250 with
your other buttons, will fail because it's also being
assigned to enter_btn.
That might have been a typo, I realize, but just to be clear,
make sure each
button has its own instance name.
David Stiller
Adobe Community Expert
Dev blog,
http://www.quip.net/blog/
"Luck is the residue of good design."