Producing Flash CS3 Video: Techniques for Video Pros and Web Designers [Paperback]

John Skidgel (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 3, 2007 | ISBN-10: 0240809106 | ISBN-13: 978-0240809106 | Edition: 1

* Best practices for production, encoding, and integration
* Build custom video players for web and mobile use
* Apply transparency and effects with After Effects

Design and develop video applications with Flash Professional CS3. In quick primer chapters, you'll get the best practices for shooting video for Flash distribution and the basics of how to design Flash applications for compelling user experiences. Subsequent chapters demonstrate the integrated use of Flash Professional with Dreamweaver, Device Central, and After Effects in practical tutorials. Annotated ActionScript 3 code gives you the facility to build your video applications.

In 27 progressive tutorials, you'll acquire practical experience in the cutting edge techniques for:

* Encoding single files, batch files, and embedding cue points in video.
* Customizing FLVPlayback components
* Building Flash Video players from scratch to include cue points, full screen events, and current playback time
* Applying transparency, masks, and effects to enhance Flash Video.
* Looping Flash Video continuously or in creative combinations
* Embedding Flash Video in HTML pages for web deployment
* Integrating Flash Video with XML, closed caption text, and JavaScript
* Preparing video for streaming servers and mobile devices including a Flash Lite application with device video

The companion DVD-ROM contains project media for all 27 tutorials that teach the nuts and bolts of implementing video in Flash applications on web pages and on alternative devices.

* Google video, YouTube and others are fueling a boom in video over the Web.
* Author is a qualified video pro and Flash developer that can speak to both Flash content designers and video professionals.
* Tutorial projects put the theory into practice with media provided on the companion DVD.

Editorial Reviews

Review

John has hit it out of the park. bringing the power and flexibility of Flash CS3 to bear alongside industry-proven video production know-how. If you want to get productive quickly with video in Flash CS3, this is your book. Scott Fegette, product manager, Adobe Developer Relations


Someone just emailed me a rather obscure, but great, question about Flash video and transparency.I found the answer on the very page I happened to be reading. Nice. Producing Flash CS3 Video includes a full set of need-to-know Flash video production topics and options for delivery. Dan Carr, Owner, Lead Developer, & Trainer at Dan Carr Design

About the Author

John Skidgel is an award-winning user interface designer who designed the Flash Video Kit that shipped with Macromedia Dreamweaver. Having designed several products at both Adobe and Macromedia, he has great insight into producing Flash Video with the Creative Suite. He is currently a senior designer at Google where he designs tools for Web designers and developers. He is the author of two books in the Focal Press DV Expert Series entitled 'Producing 24p Video' and 'Designing Menus with Encore DVD.'

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Focal Press; 1 edition (September 3, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0240809106
• ISBN-13: 978-0240809106
• Product Dimensions: 9.7 x 7.4 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,178,643 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars What you need to know before considering purchasing this book., December 31, 2008

By 

RfromP (Pittsburgh, PA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Producing Flash CS3 Video: Techniques for Video Pros and Web Designers (Paperback)

I've been buying from Amazon for years and have purchased dozens of books and not once have I felt as compelled to write a review as I do for this book.

The book starts in Chapter 1, as many others do, by reviewing what will be presented in each chapter of the book. Ironically, the title of that section is called "How This Book Is Organized". It then has each chapter in a bulleted list with the chapter number and brief description. So I'm reading and as I get to Chapter 4 there is no description, just whitespace and then the next line continues with Chapter 5. A little weird but okay, I'm not that picky, I really just care about the real content of the book. But further investigation of the Table of Contents reveals the description for Chapter 5 in the bulleted list is actually Chapter 4, Chapter 6 is listed for Chapter 5, Chapter 3 is actually for Chapter 6, and Chapter 3's description is the one actually missing. Big deal right? Sure, not really a big deal but in fact it foreshadows the rest of the book.

I thought maybe the author in wanting to really make sure the code examples and instructions in the book were absolutely correct that he missed the minor errors in Chapter 1. Wishful thinking. The book is rife with errors and although the author does a great job and goes in great detail at the beginning of a tutorial, by the end of the tutorial crucial steps have been omitted resulting in all work done in vain and the reader is left scratching his head. Chapter 5, "Creating A Flash Video Text Banner" is a great example of this. It starts off great and then completely falls apart at the end and you're left with absolutely nothing that's useable.

What you should also know is that the author states in Chapter 1, that Adobe Dreamweaver CS3 is required for one of the tutorials and Adobe After Effects Professional is required for the tutorials in Chapter 5 (when really he means Chapter 7). So unless you download the free trials of those programs, one whole chapter of the book is useless to you.

I had to put this book down and stop using it. $40 down the drain. If the author can't even get the simple things correct, how can the instructions and code examples be accurate and as I found out were painfully wrong. I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone.

Oh yeah, the two 5 star reviews of the book just happen to be from S.F., right next door to where the author lives. Take that for what it's worth.

1 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The BEST Flash book I've ever read!!, September 13, 2007

By 

Mark LaRosa (San Francisco, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Producing Flash CS3 Video: Techniques for Video Pros and Web Designers (Paperback)

This is an AMAZING resource for Flash CS3. I was really impressed with how concise and well-organized this book is. A must have resource for any developer!!

0 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book on this topic, September 19, 2007

By 

design4use (sf bay area, usa) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Producing Flash CS3 Video: Techniques for Video Pros and Web Designers (Paperback)

Making web video involves a cross section of products and skills and "Producing Flash CS3 Video" puts it all together in one book both suitable a a good read and as a reference. While reading through this you'll also pick up on interesting facts about different video formats, After Effects tips and tricks and ways to tame Flash. All in all, this was a great buy for me.