Complete Novice

**glenngosack** · 23 November 2006, 02:42 PM

For as long as I've been using Xara, Xtreme and now Pro, I never created any animated gifs or flash animations. I looked at the files everyone here has created and can't figure out how to "tween" two images. I must really be slow today... can someone give a simple example tut on just creating an object that moves across the screen with emphasis on the tweening part?
thanks,

**stlewis** · 23 November 2006, 03:20 PM

Glenn

Have you had a look in the Help - it's the section "Creating Flash animations" - and has some really good, clear instructions.

If you want things to come onto and off the stage, make sure you read "Cropping and clipping" - I hadn't and should have done!

**Soquili** · 23 November 2006, 03:34 PM

Hi Glenn,

Have you read Gary's Workbook 53? Page 5 errr... maybe page 6 http://www.xaraxone.com/webxealot/workbook53/page_6.htm has step by step instructions for tweening a shape.

The object being tweened must be the same shape (no morphing to a different shape), it must have the same name in the Name Gallery. The color of the file but not the fill style can be different. Any Transparancy must be Flat Mix, you can tween the percentage of transparency (you can make a 100% transparent object become visible or vice versa).

**Mike Bailey** · 23 November 2006, 03:50 PM

What threw me for a loop the first time I tried it was that I didn't draw the rectangle, apparently you must draw a rectangle to serve as an animation frame and do all your animating within the rectangle.

**GeoBen** · 23 November 2006, 03:54 PM

Well, you will likely get better help from the more experienced among this group, but I can give you a simple beginning tute.

open an animation doc (NEW>ANIMATION)

create the beginning shape (in the example, the orange square)

create the ending shape (the dark red circle)

select the blend tool and click and drag from the beginning shape to the ending shape and you will get five intermediate shapes. You can change the number of intermediate steps to suit your needs.

unfortunately, you cannot blend across frames. It would certainly be a help if Xara would allow you to create 7 frames and blend from frame 1 to frame 7 with the intermediate steps falling into the appropriate intermediate frames, but.....

anyway, when blended, a new grouped object is created consisting of all the objects. to separate them, select ARRANGE>CONVERT TO EDITABLE SHAPES and then ARRANGE>UNGROUP.

you should be in the first (and at this point, only frame). In the frame gallery, turn on VIEW and EDIT all frames (click the arrow and eye boxes).

select NEW from the frame gallery and then select the second through last objects and ARRANGE>MOVE TO NEXT FRAME.

repeat, selecting the third to last, fourth to last etc until all your objects are on successive frames. For each frame, select the PROPERTIES button in the frame gallery, and set the speed and such.

your are done. turn off view and edit all frames.export as either an animated gif or flash.

EDIT: while I was putting this together, others have already answered... seems my instructions contradict some others... oh well, for what it is worth...

Oh, and obviousy, mine is running backwards. Xara reversed the direction of frames with PRO... 'scuse me... i think i need more coffee.

geo