An important
point relating to scrolling text fields
The scrollbar utilizes the field's
instance name. If you fail to give your
field an instance name, Flash
will automatically assign one such as InstanceName_0. That works, but it can
be awkward. So, using the Properties panel, change the instance name to "Field1".
Finally: Tell Flash what to do
In the first frame of your movie, place the following script:
//tell Flash to display special characters
System.useCodepage=true;
// set the text field to use HTML tags
Field1.html=true;
//create a new "LoadVars" object
myLoadVar = new LoadVars ();
//load the contents of the text file into the
LoadVars object
myLoadVar.load("textfile.txt");
//check to see if the loading is completed and, if so,
put the contents in the text field
myLoadVar.onLoad = function (success){
if (success == true) {
Field1.htmlText=myLoadVar.myText;
}
}
Let Me Sum Up
By combining Flash features with HTML tags, we've made it possible to use
dynamic text fields in a much more powerful way. This tutorial has explained
some of these techniques... I hope it's a launch pad for some creative ideas
of your own!
I work in the training section of a non-profit agency. Being the only Flash user in my organization, I've used the techniques in this tutorial to avoid having to make constant edits to our training materials!