Flash preloader... SQF page forwarding...

I'm wincing and ducking my head as I imagine an anti-flash-websiter going towards my noggen with a ruler for asking this... :D

But what the heck, pro has flash built in now, and I"m just on a drunken idea-rampage. Figuratively. Mostly.

I made a small EGG-like website, ALA flashsite.R.crap.xar posted a bit back. It's all pretty with colors and buttons, with seven whole navigation pages.

I notice since there are a couple of photos in it too, that it loads a bit slowly on the web. The photos are optimized, and I really dont want to remove them, so there's a 3 second wait til the page loads.

Even so, 3 seconds is a lifetime on the web, and Id like to have a little preloader. So that means I need to design another animation sfw, but also get both to load at the same time, somehow. The loader first, displaying its little "just a second" message, graphically, and my exported SWF at the same time, in the background, then display when its ready.

How the heck do I do that, get 2 swf to load at once.

My html is simply a page that references the swf I exported, gives it dimensions, give the page a background color, that's it as far as html is concerened.

Any ideas?

LOL ...

I'm not going to weigh in on THIS one! :rolleyes:

I hate Flash web sites as much as I actually love Flash animations.

Can you do a web site in Flash? Of course you can. But just because you CAN do something is no reason why you SHOULD!

The preloader you would use would, of necessity, take even more time to download, so it would have to be something really entertaining to make a visitor to your site want to watch it while something else is loading.

Have fun...
---
Will

Prob.not possible in Pro,needs some conditional statements

You could use javascriptpreloader or
make actions on one swf to call different ones using iframes or _levels
then the items would only load when called for.

Gr.Hans

"make actions on one swf to call different ones using iframes or _levels"

When you have a bit more time, may I ask you to flesh this out a bit? I searched the help file, figuring I'd get something as the _levels looks like something I'd put in the Web Address dialog for a button, in the Target Frame for this URL area, but no.

Maybe it's in the "undocumented features" chapter of the help file like the "_frame" parameter used in the "Target Frame" line, also not documented ( but a lovely surprise to learn about...) ?

;) You can find free javascript preloaders at:
http://www.dynamicdrive.com

_levels was described in the pro flash forum today
iframe is something in html(like a target frame instead of _self,_blank)
so give a webadress action to load a swf in to an iframe you premade in a htmleditor
Gr.Hans

Well, blow me down.

Never even knew there was a flash forum...

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Tallis

Well, blow me down.

Never even knew there was a flash forum...

---

Until a month ago, there wasn't, so don't feel bad that you didn't know about it!

There are some real Flashers ;) in this group, sharing a ton of information with the rest of us. Check out a Flash Bible by Xhris. A lot of work went into it, and I learned SO MUCH from it!
---
Will

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Tallis

Well, blow me down.

Never even knew there was a flash forum...

---

Until a month ago, there wasn't, so don't feel bad that you didn't know about it!

There are some real Flashers ;) in this group, sharing a ton of information with the rest of us. Check out a Flash Bible by Xhris. A lot of work went into it, and I learned SO MUCH from it!
---
Will

Quote:

---

Even so, 3 seconds is a lifetime on the web, and Id like to have a little preloader.

---

Agreed. However the image will take no longer (or shorter) to download than via conventional html. It's just that surfers are used to seeing "image place holders" prior to the image loading (or call it an image preloader if you wish).

You don't need any fancy preloader scripts. SWF files Stream. They continue to load the whole swf file even if the first frame has a stop action.

So when you know that you're loading an image that might take some time, in the frame prior to loading the image place a MOCK image place holder. A simple gif or even better a vector drawing will suffice. This will load before your image and will remain on screen whilst the image is downloading. However once the image is downloaded the swf will then continue to play, displaying your photo and then persumably stop due to a stop command.

I attach a swf file that simulates the effect everybodys used to.

In the xar file I've simulated the delay. In reality you would set the frame with the image place holder on it to display for 0.001 sec. It would therefore only display until the photo is loaded.

Another faux pre-loader ...

"SWF files Stream. They continue to load the whole swf file even if the first frame has a stop action"

EGG, The 1st page of my seven page "site" in SWF has a photo, 550x350, some 57k. You're saying I should make that my second page, and put a 1st page with a fake rectangle on it that says generically, "here comes the picture!"?

What happens is that on loading, you just get a white internet explorer page, like the site may not be up, and then seconds later, the site just pops up, fully loaded. From what youre saying, the site should load that 1st picture, ( which doesnt take 3 seconds to load) immediately, and load the rest in the background. In practice, it appears like it wants to load the whole swf into memory 1st, then play it. Of course, you know better than I.

In my experience ( again, I defer to you as I am probably wrong ), the whole flash site loads while you see the "loading" preloader, then in a few seconds, bang, everything is there and operational.

Anyway, your file is interesting. The drawing is behind the photo, and the photo takes longer than the drawing to load. Therefore, the drawing is loaded 1st, then when the photo finally loads, it covers the "preloader" drawing...

Shall try.

And now that I know there's a flash group, I'll post these there.

Egg, one day I'll need to get your mailing address so I can send you a bottle of Knockando or something.

EDIT: OK, I tried putting a rectangle under the picture that loads on the 1st frame of my SWF. ( I have a background with nav buttons, then frame 1 with a picture, then frames 2-7 with various text and 3 more pictures ). It did nothing for the loading-- you do not see my "loading" rectangle immediately, followed by the picture when all is loaded. Instead, after 3, 3.5 seconds, you just see -blam- the whole site all at once. It's almost as if it is not streaming, and, in fact, internet exporer is just downloading the whole swf, then when it's in cache, displayes page 1. Any other ideas? I think what I need to do ( and I dont know why your idea, EGG, is inefectual here) is do 2 separate SWF, no? I need to find out more about the _level command maybe.

aridzone:

I couldnt find through various mutations of search any javascript to preload swf at the site you mentioned.

I haven't gotten anywhere with Han's _level idea yet, so searched more on the javascript angle and did find this-

http://www.planetsourcecode.com/vb/s...t=Alphabetical

and the 1st choice seems believable-

http://www.planetsourcecode.com/vb/s...=3536&lngWId=2

I'll try it.

Hi Tallis,

It can soon become very difficult to follow what's happening with your mini site without viewing it or having the source xar files. If you pm me I'll send you my email address and perhaps you could send me your xar files?

Sorry about that. Got wordy in my excitement. Sure.

:D Here is a link to one of their preloaders that I have used and it works very well. It will preload all types of files. You can also build a page around it.http://www.dynamicdrive.com/dynamici...eloadimage.htm

thanks arid,

i tried the one you referenced, and also the II version under it in the list of picture effects... Neither seem to work after following the directions, but I'll tinker.

I think it's because I use a javascript to load the swf ( to avoid the ie7 -click here to activate this flash move- thing ), and now I'm trying to use javascript to preload something I already was loading with javascript....

I should just keep the javascript preloader you reference, and just load the swf through the code that xara's animation export html page gives.

------code i'm using to load swf, separate from the preloader topic


<script type="text/javascript" src="swfobject.js"></script>
<div id="id5699">
Loading Flash movie...
</div>

<script type="text/javascript">
var so5699 = new SWFObject("website.swf", "movie5699", "850", "550", "6", "#FFFFFF");
so5699.addParam("loop", "true");
so5699.write("id5699");
</script><!-- ***** END OF ANIMATION CODE ***** -->

http://www.talkgraphics.com/showthread.php?t=24874

take look here for another way to deal with IE(clicktoactivate)

If using more js.script(in the htmlfile) they might conflict and fail

Gr.Hans

thanks haakoo- will try. i will use that and revert to calling the flash via the html code produced along with the xara animation export.

i did indeed have 2 (competing?) xxxxx.js files referenced in my main html page, perhaps that's why the preloader never really worked-- neither version I,II of the above link.

either it would load ( after a blank page and a 3-4 second pause) , or the preloader would load and would never hook into the next page. i triple checked all the references to pages and calling javascripts...

thanks again, and will continue with the next attempt...

Conflict can and will be fixed.:rolleyes:
It's usually the body ONLOAD event handler.
Resolving this conflict is simple.

EXAMPLE #1:
SCRIPT 1: <body onload="dothis()">
SCRIPT 2: <body onload="dothat()">
RESOLUTION: <body onload="dothis();dothat()">

EXAMPLE #2:
SCRIPT 1: <body onload="dothis()">
SCRIPT 2: window.onload=dothat()
RESOLUTION: <body onload="dothis();dothat()">

EXAMPLE #3:
SCRIPT 1: window.onload=dothis
SCRIPT 2: window.onload=dothat
RESOLUTION: <body onload="dothis();dothat()">