One of the features that I have on my own Web site
(www.webryder.com) that gets
quite a bit of comments is the random quotes shown above. It adds
some originality to the site. I am going to give you the code
that is used to create it so that we can all enjoy it.
It is really straight forward and can be set-up quickly. To
begin, start a new Flash file. On the very first frame of the
file define the quotes you are going to use on the site, using an
array to store the variables. You may want to have it on a layer
called "Actions" to keep things a little better organized. Also
note that the "//" simply precedes a comment about
the function. The number of quotes is defined by the total quotes
we are going to use. Remember that the array actually starts with
zero ("0") and not one ("1"). Click on the first keyframe of the
movie and input the following script using the Frame Actions that
is available.
// It is up to you how you stick the quotes into the array
numQuotes = 17;
quoteArray = new Array();
quoteArray[0] = "'Give me a museum and I'll fill it.'
- Pablo Picasso";
quoteArray[1] = "'While we are postponing, life speeds by.'
- Seneca";
quoteArray[2] = "'We didn't lose the game; we just ran out of
time.' - Vince Lombardi";
quoteArray[3] = "'Knowledge speaks, but wisdom listens.'
- Jimi Hendrix";
quoteArray[4] = "'Make everything as simple as possible, but
not simpler.' - Albert Einstein";
quoteArray[5] = "'Forgive your enemies, but never forget their
names.' - John F. Kennedy";
quoteArray[6] = "'I don't know anything about music. In my
line you don't have to.' - Elvis Presley";
quoteArray[7] = "'The cynics are right nine times out of ten.'
- Henry Louis Mencken";
quoteArray[8] = "'I would have made a good Pope.' - Richard
M. Nixon ";
quoteArray[9] = "'It is dangerous to be sincere unless you
are also stupid'. - George Bernard Shaw ";
quoteArray[10] = "'A man can't be too careful in the choice
of his enemies. '- Oscar Wilde ";
quoteArray[11] = "'Logic is in the eye of the logician.'
- Gloria Steinem ";
quoteArray[12] = "'Everything has been figured out, except
how to live.' - Jean-Paul Sartre ";
quoteArray[13] = "'In the end, everything is a gag.'- Charlie
Chaplin ";
quoteArray[14] = "'He who hesitates is a damned fool. '- Mae
West ";
quoteArray[15] = "'Behind every great fortune there is a
crime. '- Honore de Balzac ";
quoteArray[16] = "'I am not young enough to know everything.'
- Oscar Wilde ";
// A dynamic textbox variable to display the text....
QuoteText = quoteArray[Math.floor(Math.random()*numQuotes)];
The very last part of the function is to pick a random number
which is defined as a pseudo-random number between 0.0 and 1.0.
Then it multiples that result by the numQuotes
variable. In this example the number is 17. Using the
Math.floor function it then takes the result and
turns it into the closest integer. From here it simply takes the
corresponding array number and stores inside of the
QuoteText variable, so that this can be viewed in
Flash file as the quote.
Next we want to set up a location for the quote to be viewed. It
isn't enough to simply define all of the variables and generate a
random quote, but it needs to be shown as well.
However, this is really easy to do! You simply use the text box
tool to draw a box across the stage of the movie big enough to
display all of the text for the quotes. You will also want to
change the font properties so that it fits nicely on the screen.
The most important aspect of the text box is to make sure that it
is designated as "dynamic text". (If you don't want visitors to
be able to copy the quotes, make sure the "selectable" option is
turned off. In the variable name option put in
QuoteText. This is where the quote will now be
displayed. Simply publish the Flash file and view the results! In
order to publish the file and html code, simply choose "File >
Publish" from the menu options or select [SHIFT]+[F12] on the
keyboard.
The techniques learned here can help to create other
applications. You can use the date variables to display personal
messages or games that blow up spaceships. The random quote
example could be changed to have random numbers selected, then
certain events occur based on the number chosen.
If you have any suggestions on Flash topics that you would like
to see covered in the future, please feel free to contact me at
sryder@webryder.com.
Next we want to set up a location for the quote to be viewed. It
isn't enough to simply define all of the variables and generate a
random quote, but it needs to be shown as well.
