Recipe 3.5. Creating Document Templates

Problem

You want to create a document template that specifies basic document properties and/or includes a number of reusable assets to jump-start production.

Solution

Use Flash's template feature, either by using a built-in template or by creating and using your own custom template.

Discussion

You can optimize the production of new Flash projects by using one of the several movie templates that are built into Flash. These include standard templates for ads, broadcast, menus, mobile devices, photo slideshows, presentations, and quizzes. Each template already has appropriate movie properties settings, including size, frame rate, and so on. Furthermore, each also has a number of other assets that you can use to jump-start movie production, including graphics, ActionScript (such as custom functions or classes), sounds, layers, symbols, and even visual cues, such as custom guides.

To access the built-in templates, choose File New, and click on the Templates tab in the dialog box. Select a template from the dialog box, and Flash creates a new document, which inherits the properties stored in the template.

You can also create your own templates. This technique is especially convenient if you create a number of movies based on the same properties, including dimensions and frame rate, that share graphic, audio, or script assets. Templates also enable programmers to create application or interface elements that designers and/or nonprogrammers can use as the basis of complex new movies.

To create a custom template, create the file to be used as a template, and choose File Save As Template. In the Save As Template dialog box, provide a name for the template, its category, and a brief description. The entire file is saved as a template, including all graphic and sound assets, ActionScript, and visual aids such as custom guides. Creating instructions on a guide layer is optional but recommended.