The Flash Authoring Tool

Creating Flash video games is done using a tool that Macromedia provides. A fullfeatured 30-day evaluation version of this tool is included on the CD that accompanies this book. While working through this book, you will become quite familiar with this tool because nearly all your work will be done with it. Fortunately, it's a well-designed piece of software, and you should find it easy to work with after you've had some practice.

Before proceeding, install the Flash authoring tool demo from the CD if you do not have Flash MX 2004 installed already. All the Flash files on the CD that come with this book are in the Flash MX 2004 format. You will not be able to open the files with an earlier version. You can find the installation package on the accompanying CD in a directory called Flash MX Authoring Tool. There are two versions available: Macintosh and PC. Just choose the version that is appropriate and install it. If you encounter problems, you can receive tech support from Macromedia at the following Web site: http://www.macromedia.com/software/flash/.