Test movie keeps chopping my head off 1

[PantherRun]

Hey out there;
I'm the one doing the scrolling work and i've run into a new problem. Whenever i create a movie that's longer (height) then 10 inches and then test movie it, it refuses to start at the top; instead it shows about 2 inches or so below the top. Example: I create a stage, 12 by 18 inches at 100%. I draw a face at the top. I hit ctrl+enter to watch it play and can only see the bottom of the face at 100% magnification. If i put in view - magnification - show all, there it is, just hidden away at the top. Needless to say this makes testing a movie a royal pain.
Anyone know what's going on? Is there a setting somewhere that's wrong? I use flash mx and any help would help
thanks
Hoss
hoss

 

[FlashDev]

I've had problems testing large movies, too. Didn't find a work around, except to test outside the authoring environment. Just wanted you to have the comfort of knowing you're not the only one.

Philip Keiter
Senior Flash Software Developer
Sphyrras

 

[PantherRun]

Thanks for getting back - i'm beginging to see the limits of flash. It feels like a lack of development in the direction of broadband become king.

Here's a stupid question if I may...

I've gotten the scroller to work the and i assumed that by default (stupid i know) that it would scroll everything in the movie, but it just scrolls the back ground image and everything else just sits there not playing nice.
So i guess i need to tell everyone to scroll when i scroll... how do i do that?

Hoss

 

[FlashDev]

in your other post you said you DON'T want everything to scroll when the background scrolls. is there a reason you can't just put the other items inside the clip being used as the scrollpane content? if so, you can make a listener for the scroll event and move everything there.

Philip Keiter
Senior Flash Software Developer
Sphyrras

 

[PantherRun]

my mistake there, than... I DO Want everything to scroll. Think of a page from Newsweek magazine - text all laid out with pictures (moving now cause I'm using flash), everything all locked together like a flattened Photoshop image and moving as one. And since the page won't fit on the screen, the reader must scroll. That's what I'm trying to make and am having a really hard time finding out how to do it. I've gotten a lot of kind, but vague responses - ( usually vague to me because half the time I don't understand what they're saying). What I really need is a specific 'how to' and I can't find it - I've already bought 2 books, nothing, read all the books in the bookstore, nothing, read countless online tutorials, nothing, asked at 2 major forums, nothing. Driving me up the wall. My whole work has come to a screeching halt as I race around trying to find someone that knows how to make this work.
All I want to do is make a Newsweek page that scrolls. Maybe I shouldn't even try for a chromeless window - that way I guess - by default - the browser will supply scroller that I have been so desperately looking for.
Is there anyway I can blow out the top and bottom of the browser and just ask it to keep its scroller - hell that would be fine, I'll take it!

Thanks as always.

PS - I did try to make the scroller pane work - I thought I’ll just make it the entire stage - say 12 by 18- and put everything on it, didn’t work.

Also I’m unfamiliar with a listener and will try to track that down to understand it better.
hoss

 

[FlashDev]

the browser will supply scroller that I have been so desperately looking for.

yes, if you make your swf too big for the browser the browser will scroll it. It's your simplest option.
And even tho it won't all show when you test movie, it will all show in the browser. Just be sure to test in the html rather than just the swf. Meaning, if you go to

http://www.mySite.com/myThing.swf,

the scroll bars won't show up. You must go to myThing.html for the scroll bars to show. Some newbies get caught up on that, not that I'm assuming you're a newbie.

Philip Keiter
Senior Flash Software Developer
Sphyrras

 

[PantherRun]

Hey Flashdev, I got it. You and another "listener' have helped me find the answer. Another Flashman even said that i can still create the chromeless window feeling, i just blow out the top and bottom (as i hoped) of the browser and tell my web designer to keep the scroll bar.
It is a simple and clean solution, and it makes me wonder why it took so long to find it. Thanks for taking the time to help.

on an off shoot subject...
Next thing i'm going to do is go to the flash site wish list and tell them it would be nice if testmovie would actually start pages longer that 10 inches in length at the TOP OF THE PAGE, instead of about 3 inches down.
thank again
hoss

 

[oldnewbie]

What's with this working in "inches"?
Only second project (in the last 2 weeks) I've seen done in inches, in over 5 years of flashing!

 

[PantherRun]

Why inches? Archaic yes. I guess it's a bit like the Energizer Bunny- metric couldn't kill it! Pixels couldn't kill it! It just keeps coming and coming and... Queue the theme from Jaws: Dada dada, daada...
Hoss