Welcome Into The Suite: Introducing Adobe Flash CS3 Professional

The new Suite-mate brings new features, new look, and new capabilities for the mobile realm AdobeÂ® FlashÂ® CS3 Professional (image courtesy Adobe) The announcement of the Creative Suite 3 constellation has settled a great many user questions about the near term, and perhaps arguably one of the most wondered about was simply which Macromedia products would be admitted to the Suite. (…)

The new Suite-mate brings new features, new look, and new capabilities for the mobile realm

AdobeÂ® FlashÂ® CS3 Professional (image courtesy Adobe)

The announcement of the Creative Suite 3 constellation has settled a great many user questions about the near term, and perhaps arguably one of the most wondered about was simply which Macromedia products would be admitted to the Suite.

Now we know that Dreamweaver and Flash will be on board. The addition of two of the most popular digital, mobile, and web content creators opens up a new world of possibility for the Web-enabled creative, and Adobe’s signature integration style means creatives already familiar with the well-known Adobe vector drawing, photo editing, and layout applications Illustrator, Photoshop and InDesign now have a Suite-level all-access pass to world-class animation power with Flash.

Why Flash?

Adobe CS users who are coming into the Web world from Print or are looking into expanding their repertoire to the Web and Mobile content-delivery world might reasonably wonder why they should look into Flash when they can design and deliver content in the non-Flash modes reasonably well.

The short answer is that from its humble beginnings as FutureSplash Animator in 1996, Flash has taken the world by storm. Now, a decade since its origins, Adobe estimates that Flash content is viewable by 96.9 percent of Internet users, and is the most pervasive platform in use in the world todayâ€“more so than even Java (in 2nd place) and Microsoft Windows Media Player (in 3rd).

For Websters and those interested in the Web, the implication is clear; for the maximum reach in interactive content, Flash ought to be one of your trusted tools. Subjectively speaking, when notable animated content hits the web, chances are that content is Flash, as the immense popularity of content from sites such as HomestarRunner.com and JibJab.com will attest.

Flash, in ironic counterpoint to its name, is here to stay.

New Name, New Look

Until last year, Flash was well known as a leading product for Macromedia; then, of course, Adobe opened the pod bay doors. Now, Flash is still Flash, but it has a new name, new attitude, and snappy new duds.

Now known as AdobeÂ® FlashÂ® CS3 Professional, the application succeeds Macromedia Flash 8 and is a proud member of the Adobe CS3 Family, appearing in no less than 5 of the 6 CS3 Editions (only the CS3 Design Standard edtion, aimed at print specialists and print production environments, lacks the application).

The new face of Flash CS3 Professional, showing an action being saved in ActionScript 3 (click to enlarge)(Images courtesy Adobe)

Experienced Flashers will still feel at home; all the usual tools are in all the usual places. CS3 users will feel welcome; Adobe has adapted all the screen elements into the Panel paradigm and they work just as they do in the rest of the Suiteâ€“docking and undocking, icon-driven minimzation and all, and, of course, the Adobe UI polish is in full effect.

New Creative Pathways

Naturally, the integration does not end with merely the look and feel.

Flash CS3 Professional touts new entry paths from the other CS3 apps which open the door to native importation of content from Illustrator as well as Photoshop. In the case of Photoshop, Adobe tells us that integration provides layer-level control in imported PS files including a host of options for treating that content, including leaving information editable, and configuring the stage size to match the imported document size, and you can import all, some, or just one layer, even converting them to movie clips.

We’ve also learned the case of Illustrator, layer-level control is also maintaned, preserving layer folder organization and allowing specification of how the imported content is treated; separate Flash layers, keyframes, or single Flash layers. All along, Flash CS3 aims to preserve the object fidelity of the imported Illustrator content, preserving live effect and blending modes as it goes

New Flash Attitude

The essential application itself also sports impressive improvement according to what we’ve been told.

Perhaps one of the most notable is the Pen tool. The integration between Adobe and Macromedia has allowed Adobe to import Illustrator-style Pen tool functionality in; the tool is said to now draw and manipulate BeziÃ©r curves with that familiar feel. Graphic primitives have also joined the repertoire.

Those wishing to save and collaborate may be most impressed with ActionScript 3.0. Now tweenings can automatically be saved as ActionScript 3.0 codeâ€“this should eliminate the need to actually code it oneself as well as function as a valuable tool for those wanting to learn it.

Acting as the hook to enabling provision of mobile content is Adobe Device Central. This is meant to provide for a wide range of emulation for display on mobile devices, giving the programmer instant feedback on what they can expect to see when their product is released into the wild.