I h♥rt actionscript.

if() return;

Rob Gungor — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 19:00:24 +0000

I decided to write a quick little post about the advantages of using “return”. Return works in a really cool way (for those of you who don’t know).

Traditionally you use it like this:

// whatever comes after the colon determines which type to return (String, Number, CustomObject, ect.)
function returnAValue(foo):String
{
// in this case foo will be a String
return foo;
}

//outputs testing
trace(returnAValue(“testing”));

If you’ve never used return - it’s a really nice way to do calculations.

function add(num1:int, num2:int):int
{
var finalNum:int = num1+num2;
return finalNum;
}

var newNumber = add(5, 8);
trace(newNumber); //outputs 13

Basically - it runs the function - and then gives back the caller of that function a value. It’s built so that at the return - the function stops running and returns the value you tell it to. Another standard way of using return is to use it as a way to stop a function from running. This is a really streamlined way of using a conditional. (more…)

Replacing Strings in AS3

Rob Gungor — Tue, 09 Oct 2007 00:41:59 +0000

Although this may be pretty basic - when it comes to dealing with strings, one of the most valuable methods is no doubt the split().join().

So let’s first go over split().

This is from adobe’s live docs:

split(delimiter:String, [limit:Number]) : Array

Split has two Parameters:
delimiter:String - A string; the character or string at which my_str splits.

limit:Number [optional] - The number of items to place into the array.

Ok - don’t get confused. Essentially if you have the string:

var myString:String = “% B % C % D % E % F “;;

The first parameter (delimeter) is whatever character(s) you want to use for splitting the other characters up. So:

trace(myString.split(“%”)); // outputs the array , B , C , D , E , F

The second parameter basically tells split how many times you want to do it.
trace(myString.split(”%”, 4) // outputs: B , C , D

So a few really cool applications of this are:

1 - using it to parse out data.
2 - using it to replace or remove a string.
(more…)

Dynamic Masking using Tweener

Rob Gungor — Sat, 06 Oct 2007 06:25:51 +0000

Here’s a little experiment I did inspired by the new Adidas site. I totally loved their masking technique - Here’s my take:

You need the Flash Player to view this.

DOWNLOAD SOURCE (more…)

stage access out of DocumentRoot in AS3

Rob Gungor — Fri, 28 Sep 2007 02:28:18 +0000

One of my first challenges in understanding AS3 was the idea that Stage and _root are no longer global (and this is a good thing).

DISCLAIMER: In general, accessing root is considered a crap coding practice - I like to call it CCP. There are a few cases that using root may be helpful - but if you are questioning whether to use it or not - then the answer is probably, “NO!”

Essentially, Stage and _root can now be accessed as:

// accessing root is almost always a bad idea
_root = MC.root;
Stage = MC.stage;

(more…)

Disabling a button in AS3 (myMC.enabled in AS3)

Rob Gungor — Thu, 27 Sep 2007 08:57:18 +0000

I ran across the problem the other day of trying to disable a button without removing its MouseEvent listeners.

In AS2 you could simply disable a button by setting it’s “enabled” property to false.

AS2

myMC.enabled = false;

The new and improved way is:

AS3

myMC.mouseEnabled = false;

Note: this requires you have a button with its MouseEvent listeners already set.

This is different than AS2 in that you can actually disable all mouse events for any display object - not just buttons. So be careful what you disable!

useHandCursor on a MovieClip in AS3

Rob Gungor — Thu, 27 Sep 2007 08:45:05 +0000

To use a hand cursor on a MovieClip that already has event listeners - you simply need two lines of code to use a hand cursor:

myMC.buttonMode = true;
myMC.useHandCursor = true;

AS3 doesn’t automatically know a MovieClip is a button unless you:
1) Have already added mouse event listeners.
2) Tell myMC that its buttonMode = true.

Happy Scripting.

Loading an External .swf in AS3

Rob Gungor — Fri, 21 Sep 2007 21:42:54 +0000

Here’s a simple example of loading a .swf in AS3. I had a typo before but now it’s fixed - sorry about that. Also, I updated it so you don’t have to strictly use it in an Class setting.

Happy Coding…
(more…)

Coding MovieClips as Buttons in AS3

Rob Gungor — Tue, 18 Sep 2007 09:42:29 +0000

I would like to start off my posts with a simple one but really painful if you are used to AS2 - creating buttons in AS3.

I remember the good old days when you could just say, “Hey Actionscript, onRollOver = function(){ doThis!};”.

(more…)