Foundation Flash MX

by Sham Bhangal, Kristian Besley, Amanda Farr

If you've never used Flash before, this is the book for you. It uses a series of structured exercises to give you the broad, solid foundation knowledge you need to start your exploration of Flash from scratch. Foundation Flash MX uses a proven sequential, detailed, and accessible tutorial style to ensure that you'll retain your learning and be able to draw on it throughout your Flash career.

Macromedia Flash MX is an exciting product, providing...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1590592298
• ISBN13: 9781590592298
• Release Date: July 2003
• Publisher: Apress
• Length: 600 Pages
• Weight: 2.31 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 7.6" x 8.9"

Customer Reviews

Humble Beginnings

The reasons that the other reviewers found as cause for complaint about this book are the very qualities that I needed: Bite-sized lessons and lots of explanation. These are the things that were missing in my other Flash MX tutorial book (Flash MX Training from the source) that got me really stumped! I don't mind this humble approach at all. I didn't expect Foundation Flash MX to take me to the details of Action Script or other technical stuff or turn me into a guru like some of your guys. (In my dreams!) That would be work enough for other books and very propitious events like the next ice Age. Just like in baseball, I just needed to swing my bat, hit the ball right, get on the first base and be ready for the next run. Exactly what Foundation Flash MX does for me. I recommend this book to those who are learning on their own and can't seem to come to grips with the software.

Outstanding! Best beginner book for FLASH MX!

If you are looking for an easy to read, comprehensive, and practical book, and you've never used FLASH before, this is it! I've read through first 13 chapters in 1 week (including computer practice time). Great on-hands exercises with very practical assignments. Best of all, it's not an "OEM software manual" - hence it's written in layman's language, so you don't get bored as easily. I like the book so much I've ordered other "Foundation" books from these guys (Friends of ED) for the rest of my MACROMEDIA MX STUDIO software.As the name implies, this book is for beginners, so if all you want to use FLASH for is to create "static" movies with limited user interaction, than what you'll learn in this book will be plenty enough. However, if you are planning on building complete websites entirely out of FLASH, you'll need to learn Action Script - this book only gives you the basics on that.

From 0 to 60 in just a few chapters!

I've started ordering Friends of Ed books right and left. They know what they're talking about and know how to teach it. Overall this is a great book if you are new to Flash. Each time I read a chapter, I went out and looked at other flash sites. Each time I said, "Oh THAT'S how they did it." Now on to the critique!There are a few points to keep in mind. This book is full of wonderful, clear tutorials that take nothing for granted. Every time my project didn't work, I went back and sure enough, I had skipped a line!. Now when I say full of tutorials, I mean, FULL. If you like to sit and read a while, you're out of luck. You won't go more than 2 pages without typing or clicking along with the examples. This is actually a good thing. =PBy the end of this book you will be able to make stunning Flash movies. Be aware however, that it only has a baby guide to ActionScript. If you're interested in the coding side of Flash, you should get a book specificly for that. Also note, because there arn't a lot of people with Flash 6 Plugin(MX) installed on their browsers yet, the Flash 5 ActionScript guides are still applicable. Anything cutting edge probably wont play in 60% of browsers anyway (per usual).

Very clearly written...excellent start

Not knowing much about flash beyond making text fade in and out, I needed a book that would take me a long way as well as start off slowly. Sometimes tutorial books can make you do the same stuff over and over. This book assumed you paid attention, yet didn't over 'test' you. Quite possibly one of the best how-to books on anything that I have read. After finishing the book last week, I am already integrating what I learned into 3 sites that I am doing for clients and look forward to what Flash MX has to offer. I was impressed enough that I will buy the book on Action Scripting by the same publisher...

Exceptional, concise, and understandable

The book is organized in a way that makes sense- from the basics to the more advanced aspects. The explanations of tools, etc. are straight forward. I am able to read this and follow the step-by-step procedures for the various examples without having to wonder what the authors are trying to convey(always a good sign). I have tried to use Flash for a few months, without much success beyond animation. The book helps me to more easily understand the basics of actionscript and to put scripting to use for the first time. The authors also leave out some of the handholding in some of the examples, letting me work it out on my own. Overall, an outstanding job by the authors.