MACROMEDIA FLASH 8-FLASH Service manual

Flash Lite 1.x ActionScript Language Reference

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Macromedia, Inc. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the owner or authorized user of a valid copy of the software with which
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Acknowledgments
Project Management: Mary Leigh Burke
Writing: Guy Haas, Denise Green, Mike Krisher
Managing Editor: Rosana Francescato
Editing: Linda Adler, Geta Carlson, Evelyn Eldridge
Production Management: Patrice O’Neill, Kristin Conradi, Yuko Yagi
Media Design and Production: Adam Barnett, Aaron Begley, Paul Benkman. John Francis, Geeta Karmarkar, Masayo Noda,
Paul Rangel, Arena Reed, Mario Reynoso
Special thanks to Lisa Friendly, Bonnie Loo, Erick Vera, the beta testers, and the entire Flash Lite engineering and QA teams.
First Edition: September 2005
Macromedia, Inc.
601 Townsend St.
San Francisco, CA 94103

3
Contents
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Sample entry for most ActionScript elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Samples folder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Typographical conventions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Chapter 1: Flash Lite Global Functions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
call() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11
chr(). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
duplicateMovieClip() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
eval () . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
getProperty(). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
getTimer() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
getURL() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
gotoAndPlay() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
gotoAndStop() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
ifFrameLoaded() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
int() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
length() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
loadMovie() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
loadMovieNum() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
loadVariables() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
loadVariablesNum(). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
mbchr(). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27
mblength() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
mbord(). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
mbsubstring() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
nextFrame(). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
nextScene(). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Number() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
on() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
ord() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
play() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
prevFrame() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
prevScene(). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
random() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
removeMovieClip() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37

4Contents
set() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
setProperty() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
stop() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
stopAllSounds(). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .40
String() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
substring(). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
tellTarget() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
toggleHighQuality() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
trace() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
unloadMovie() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
unloadMovieNum() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Chapter 2: Flash Lite Properties. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
/ (Forward slash) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
_alpha. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
_currentframe. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
_focusrect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
_framesloaded . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
_height . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
_highquality. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
_level . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
maxscroll. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
_name . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
_rotation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
scroll. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
_target . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
_totalframes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
_visible . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
_width. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
_x. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
_xscale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
_y. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
_yscale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Chapter 3: Flash Lite Statements. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .63
break . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
case . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
continue. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
do..while . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
else . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
else if . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
for . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .71
if . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
switch. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
while . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74

Contents 5
Chapter 4: Flash Lite Operators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
add (string concatenation). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
+= (addition assignment). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
and . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
= (assignment). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
/* (block comment) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
, (comma). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
// (comment) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
?: (conditional) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
–– (decrement). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
/ (divide) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .87
/= (division assignment) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
. (dot). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
++ (increment) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
&& (logical AND) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
! (logical NOT). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
|| (logical OR). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
% (modulo) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
%= (modulo assignment) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
*= (multiplication assignment) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
* (multiply) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
+ (numeric add). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96
== (numeric equality) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .97
> (numeric greater than) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
>= (numeric greater than or equal to) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
<> (numeric inequality) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
< (numeric less than) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
<= (numeric less than or equal to) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
() (parentheses) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
" " (string delimiter) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .102
eq (string equality) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .103
gt (string greater than) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .103
ge (string greater than or equal to). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .104
ne (string inequality) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .105
lt (string less than) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .106
le (string less than or equal to) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .106
– (subtract) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
-= (subtraction assignment) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .108
Chapter 5: Flash Lite Specific Language Elements . . . . . . . . . . . 111
Capabilities. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
fscommand(). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .122
fscommand2() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .124
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157

6Contents

7
Introduction
This manual describes the syntax and use of ActionScript elements as you use them to develop
applications for Flash Lite 1.0 and Flash Lite 1.1, collectively referred to as Flash Lite 1.x.
Flash Lite 1.x ActionScript is based on the version of ActionScript that was used in Flash 4. To
use examples in a script, copy the code example from this manual, and paste it into the Script
pane or into an external script file. The manual lists all ActionScript elements—operators,
keywords, statements, commands, properties, functions, classes, and methods.
Sample entry for most ActionScript
elements
The following sample entry explains the conventions used for all ActionScript elements.
Entry title
Entries are listed alphabetically within a chapter. The alphabetization ignores capitalization,
leading underscores, and so on.
Availability
Unless otherwise noted, the Availability section tells which versions of Flash Lite support
the element.
Usage
This section provides correct syntax for using the ActionScript element in your code. The
required portion of the syntax is in code font. Both the code that you provide and data type
information are in italicized code font. Data types can be distinguished from code that
you provide by the colon (:) that always precedes data type information. Brackets ([]) indicate
optional parameters.

8Introduction
Operands
This section describes any parameters listed in the syntax.
Description
This section identifies the type of element (for example, operator, function, and so on), what
values if any that the element returns, and then describes how to use the element.
Example
This section provides a code sample demonstrating how to use the element.
See also
This section lists related ActionScript dictionary entries.
Samples folder
A set of sample files can be found in the /Samples and Tutorials/Samples/FlashLite/ directory
within the Flash 8 installation directory.
Typical paths to this folder are as follows:
■Windows: /Program Files/Macromedia/Flash 8/Samples and Tutorials/Samples/FlashLite/
■Macintosh: HD/Applications/Macromedia/Flash 8/Samples and Tutorials/Samples/
FlashLite/
The FlashLite folder contains a set of FLA files that are complete Flash Lite projects that have
working ActionScript code.
Typographical conventions
The following typographical conventions are used in this book:
■Italic font indicates a value that should be replaced (for example, in a folder path).
■Code font indicates ActionScript code.
■Code font italic indicates an ActionScript parameter.
■Bold font indicates a verbatim entry.
■Double quotation marks (" ") in code examples indicate delimited strings. However,
programmers can also use single quotation marks.

9
1
CHAPTER 1
Flash Lite Global Functions
This section describes the syntax and use of the Macromedia Flash Lite 1.1 ActionScript
global functions. It includes the following functions:
Function Description
call() Executes the script in the called frame without moving the playhead
to that frame.
chr() Converts ASCII code numbers to characters.
duplicateMovieClip() Creates an instance of a movie clip while the SWF file plays.
eval () Accesses variables, properties, objects, or movie clips by name.
getProperty() Returns the value of the specified property for the specified
movie clip.
getTimer() Returns the number of milliseconds that elapsed since the SWF file
started playing.
getURL() Loads a document from a specific URL into a window or passes
variables to another application at a defined URL.
gotoAndPlay() Sends the playhead to the specified frame in a scene and begins
playing from that frame. If no scene is specified, the playhead moves
to the specified frame in the current scene.
gotoAndStop() Sends the playhead to the specified frame in a scene and stops it. If
no scene is specified, the playhead is sent to the frame in the
current scene.
ifFrameLoaded() Checks whether the contents of a specific frame are available locally.
int() Truncates a decimal number to an integer value.
length() Returns the number of characters of the specified string or
variable name.
loadMovie() Loads a SWF file into Flash Lite while the original SWF file plays.
loadMovieNum() Loads a SWF file into a level in Flash Lite while the originally loaded
SWF file plays.

10 Flash Lite Global Functions
loadVariables() Reads data from an external file, such as a text file or text generated
by a ColdFusion, CGI ASP, PHP, or Perl script, and sets the values
for variables in a Flash Lite level. This function can also update
variables in the active SWF file with new values.
loadVariablesNum() Reads data from an external file, such as a text file or text generated
by a ColdFusion, CGI, ASP, PHP, or Perl script, and sets the values
for variables in a Flash Lite level. This function can also update
variables in the active SWF file with new values.
mbchr() Converts an ASCII code number to a multibyte character.
mblength() Returns the length of the multibyte character string.
mbord() Converts the specified character to a multibyte number.
mbsubstring() Extracts a new multibyte character string from a multibyte
character string.
nextFrame() Sends the playhead to the next frame and stops it.
nextScene() Sends the playhead to Frame 1 of the next scene and stops it.
Number() Converts an expression to a number and returns a value.
on() Specifies the user event or keypress that triggers an event.
ord() Converts characters to ASCII code numbers.
play() Moves the playhead forward in the timeline.
prevFrame() Sends the playhead to the previous frame and stops it. If the current
frame is Frame 1, the playhead does not move.
prevScene() Sends the playhead to Frame 1 of the previous scene and stops it.
removeMovieClip() Deletes the specified movie clip that was originally created using
duplicateMovieClip().
set() Assigns a value to a variable.
setProperty() Changes a property value of a movie clip as the movie plays.
stop() Stops the SWF file that is currently playing.
stopAllSounds() Stops all sounds currently playing in a SWF file without stopping
the playhead.
String() Returns a string representation of the specified parameter.
substring() Extracts part of a string.
tellTarget() Applies the instructions specified in the statement(s) parameter to
the timeline specified in the target parameter.
Function Description

call() 11
call()
Availability
Flash Lite 1.0.
Usage
call(frame)
call(movieClipInstance:frame)
Operands
frame The label or number of a frame in the timeline.
movieClipInstance The instance name of a movie clip.
Description
Function; executes the script in the called frame without moving the playhead to that frame.
Local variables do not exist after the script executes. The call() function can take two
possible forms:
■The default form executes the script on the specified frame of the same timeline where the
call() function was executed, without moving the playhead to that frame.
■The specified clip instance form executes the script on the specified frame of the movie
clip instance, without moving the playhead to that frame.
toggleHighQuality() Turns anti-aliasing on and off in Flash Lite. Anti-aliasing smooths the
edges of objects but slows down SWF file playback.
trace() Evaluates the expression and shows the result in the Output panel in
test mode.
unloadMovie() Removes a movie clip from Flash Lite that was loaded using
loadMovie() loadMovieNum(), or duplicateMovieClip().
unloadMovieNum() Removes a movie clip that was loaded using loadMovie()
loadMovieNum(), or duplicateMovieClip() from a level in Flash Lite.
NOTE
The call() function operates synchronously; any ActionScript that follows a call()
function does not execute until all of the ActionScript at the specified frame has
completed.
Function Description

12 Flash Lite Global Functions
Example
The following examples execute the script in the myScript frame:
// to execute functions in frame with label "myScript"
thisFrame = "myScript";
trace ("Calling the script in frame: " add thisFrame);
// to execute functions in any other frame on the same timeline
call("myScript");
chr()
Availability
Flash Lite 1.0.
Usage
chr(number)
Operands
number An ASCII code number.
Description
String function; converts ASCII code numbers to characters.
Example
The following example converts the number 65 to the letter Aand assigns it to the
variable myVar:
myVar = chr(65);
trace (myVar);// Output: A
duplicateMovieClip()
Availability
Flash Lite 1.0.
Usage
duplicateMovieClip(target, newname, depth)

duplicateMovieClip() 13
Operands
target The target path of the movie clip to duplicate.
newname A unique identifier for the duplicated movie clip.
depth A unique depth level for the duplicated movie clip. The depth level indicates a
stacking order for duplicated movie clips. This stacking order is much like the stacking order
of layers in the timeline; movie clips with a lower depth level are hidden under clips that have
a higher depth level. You must assign to each duplicated movie clip a unique depth level so
that it does not overwrite existing movie clips on occupied depth levels.
Description
Function; creates an instance of a movie clip while the SWF file plays and returns a reference
to the duplicated movie clip. The playhead in a duplicate movie clip always starts at Frame 1,
regardless of where the playhead is in the original (parent) movie clip. Variables in the parent
movie clip are not copied into the duplicate movie clip. If the parent movie clip is deleted, the
duplicate movie clip is also deleted. Use the removeMovieClip() function or method to
delete a movie clip instance created with duplicateMovieClip().
Example
The following example duplicates a movie clip named originalClip to create a new clip
named newClip, at a depth level of 10. The new clip’s xposition is set to 100 pixels.
duplicateMovieClip("originalClip", "newClip", 10);
setProperty("newClip", _x, 100);
The following example uses duplicateMovieClip() in a for loop to create several new
movie clips at once. An index variable keeps track of the highest occupied stacking depth.
Each duplicate movie clip’s name contains a numeric suffix that corresponds to its stacking
depth (clip1, clip2, clip3).
for (i = 1; i <= 3; i++) {
newName = "clip" add i;
duplicateMovieClip("originalClip", newName); }
See also
removeMovieClip()

14 Flash Lite Global Functions
eval ()
Availability
Flash Lite 1.0.
Usage
eval(expression)
Operands
expression A string containing the name of a variable, property, object, or movie clip
to retrieve.
Description
Function; accesses variables, properties, objects, or movie clips by name. If expression is a
variable or a property, the value of the variable or property is returned. If expression is an
object or movie clip, a reference to the object or movie clip is returned. If the element named
in expression cannot be found, undefined is returned.
You can use eval() to simulate arrays, or to dynamically set and retrieve the value of
a variable.
Example
The following example uses eval() to determine the value of the expression "piece"+ x.
Because the result is a variable name, piece3, eval() returns the value of the variable and
assigns it to y:
piece3 = "dangerous";
x = 3;
y = eval("piece" add x);
trace(y);// Output: dangerous.
The following example demonstrates how an array could be simulated:
name1 = "mike";
name2 = "debbie";
name3 = "logan";
for(i = 1; i <= 3; i++) {
trace (eval("name" add i));// Output: mike, debbie, logan
}

getTimer() 15
getProperty()
Availability
Flash Lite 1.0.
Usage
getProperty(my_mc, property)
Operands
my_mc The instance name of a movie clip for which the property is being retrieved.
property A property of a movie clip.
Description
Function; returns the value of the specified property for the my_mc movie clip.
Example
The following example retrieves the horizontal axis coordinate (_x) for the my_mc movie clip
in the root movie timeline:
xPos = getProperty("person_mc", _x);
trace (xPos); // output: -75
See also
setProperty()
getTimer()
Availability
Flash Lite 1.0.
Usage
getTimer()
Operands
None.
Description
Function; returns the number of milliseconds that elapsed since the SWF file started playing.

16 Flash Lite Global Functions
Example
The following example sets the timeElapsed variable to the number of milliseconds that
elapsed since the SWF file started playing:
timeElapsed = getTimer();
trace (timeElapsed);// Output: milliseconds of time movie has been playing
getURL()
Availability
Flash Lite 1.0.
Usage
getURL(url [ , window [, "variables"]])
Operands
url The URL from which to obtain the document.
window An optional parameter that specifies the window or HTML frame that the
document should load into.
You can enter an empty string, or the name of a specific window, or choose from the following
reserved target names:
■_self specifies the current frame in the current window.
■_blank specifies a new window.
■_parent specifies the parent of the current frame.
■_top specifies the top-level frame in the current window.
variables A GET or POST method for sending variables. If there are no variables, omit this
parameter. The GET method appends the variables to the end of the URL and is used for small
numbers of variables. The POST method sends the variables in a separate HTTP header and is
used for sending long strings of variables.
Description
Function; loads a document from a specific URL into a window or passes variables to another
application at a defined URL. To test this function, make sure the file you want to load is in
the specified location. To use an absolute URL (for example, http://www.myserver.com), you
need a network connection.
NOTE
The window parameter is not specified for Flash Lite applications, because browsers on
cell phones do not support multiple windows.

getURL() 17
Flash Lite 1.0 recognizes only the HTTP, HTTPS, mailto, and tel protocols. Flash Lite 1.1
recognizes these protocols, and in addition, the file, SMS (short message service), and MMS
(multimedia message service) protocols.
Flash Lite passes the call to the operating system, and the operating system handles the call
with the registered default application for the specified protocol.
Only one getURL() function is processed per frame or per event handler.
Certain handsets restrict the getURL() function to key events only, in which case the
getURL() call is processed only if it is triggered in a key event handler. Even under such
circumstances, only one getURL() function is processed per event handler.
Example
In the following ActionScript, the Flash Lite player opens mobile.macromedia.com in the
default browser:
myURL = "http://mobile.macromedia.com";
on(keyPress "1") {
getURL(myURL);
}
You can also use GET or POST for sending variables from the current timeline. The following
example uses the GET method to append variables to a URL:
firstName = "Gus";
lastName = "Richardson";
age = 92;
getURL("http://www.macromedia.com", "_blank", "GET");
The following ActionScript uses POST to send variables in an HTTP header:
firstName = "Gus";
lastName = "Richardson";
age = 92;
getURL("http://www.macromedia.com", "POST");
You can assign a button function to open an e-mail composition window with the address,
subject, and body text fields already populated. Use one of the following methods to assign a
button function: Method 1 for either Shift-JIS or English character encoding; Method 2 only
for English character encoding.
Method 1: Set variables for each of the desired parameters, as in this example:
on (release, keyPress "#"){
subject = "email subject";
body = "email body";
getURL("mailto:[email protected]", "", "GET");
}

18 Flash Lite Global Functions
Method 2: Define each parameter within the getURL() function, as in this example:
on (release, keyPress "#"){
getURL("mailto:[email protected][email protected]&bcc=bcc@anywhere.
com&subject=I am the email subject&body=I am the email body");
}
Method 1 results in automatic URL encoding, while Method 2 preserves the spaces in the
strings. For example, the strings that result from using Method 1 are as follows:
email+subject
email+body
In contrast, Method 2 results in the following strings:
email subject
email body
The following example uses the tel protocol:
on (release, keyPress "#"){
getURL("tel:117");
}
In the following example, getURL() is used to send an SMS message:
mySMS = "sms:4156095555?body=sample sms message";
on(keyPress "5") {
getURL(mySMS);
}
In the following example, getURL() is used to send an MMS message:
// mms example
myMMS = "mms:4156095555?body=sample mms message";
on(keyPress "6") {
getURL(myMMS);
}
In the following example, getURL() is used to open a text file stored on the local file system:
// file protocol example
filePath = "file://c:/documents/flash/myApp/myvariables.txt";
on(keyPress "7") {
getURL(filePath);
}

gotoAndStop() 19
gotoAndPlay()
Availability
Flash Lite 1.0.
Usage
gotoAndPlay([scene,]frame)
Operands
scene An optional string specifying the name of the scene to which the playhead is sent.
frame A number representing the frame number, or a string representing the label of the
frame, to which the playhead is sent.
Description
Function; sends the playhead to the specified frame in a scene and begins playing from that
frame. If no scene is specified, the playhead moves to the specified frame in the current scene.
You can use the scene parameter only on the root timeline, not within timelines for movie
clips or other objects in the document.
Example
In the following example, when the user clicks a button to which gotoAndPlay() is assigned,
the playhead moves to Frame 16 in the current scene and starts to play the SWF file:
on(keyPress "7") {
gotoAndPlay(16);
}
gotoAndStop()
Availability
Flash 1.0.
Usage
gotoAndStop([scene,] frame)
Operands
scene An optional string specifying the name of the scene to which the playhead is sent.
frame A number representing the frame number, or a string representing the label of the
frame, to which the playhead is sent.

20 Flash Lite Global Functions
Description
Function; sends the playhead to the specified frame in a scene and stops it. If no scene is
specified, the playhead is sent to the frame in the current scene.
You can use the scene parameter only on the root timeline, not within timelines for movie
clips or other objects in the document.
Example
In the following example, when the user clicks a button to which gotoAndStop() is assigned,
the playhead is sent to Frame 5 in the current scene, and the SWF file stops playing:
on(keyPress "8") {
gotoAndStop(5);
}
ifFrameLoaded()
Availability
Flash Lite 1.0.
Usage
ifFrameLoaded([scene,] frame) {
statement(s);
}
Operands
scene An optional string specifying the name of the scene to be loaded.
frame The frame number or frame label to be loaded before the next statement can execute.
statement(s) The instructions to execute if the specified frame, or scene and frame,
are loaded.
Description
Function; checks whether the contents of a specific frame are available locally. Use the
ifFrameLoaded function to start playing a simple animation while the rest of the SWF file
downloads to the local computer. You can also use the _framesloaded property to check the
download progress of an external SWF file. The difference between using _framesloaded
and ifFrameLoaded is that _framesloaded lets you add custom if or else statements.