MACROMEDIA FLASH MX 2004 - ACTIONSCRIPT - Page 187

Sending messages to and from Flash Player 187
To use fscommand() to open a message box from a SWF file in the HTML page
through JavaScript:
1 In the HTML page that embeds the SWF file, add the following JavaScript code:
function theMovie_DoFSCommand(command, args) {
if (command == "messagebox") {
alert(args);
}
}
If you publish your SWF file using the Flash with FSCommand template in the HTML
Publish Settings dialog box, this code is inserted automatically. The SWF file’s
NAME and ID
attributes will be the filename. For example, for the file myMovie.fla, the attributes would be
set to
myMovie. (For more information about publishing, see “Publishing” in Using
Flash Help.)
Alternatively, for Microsoft Internet Explorer applications, you can attach an event handler
directly in the
<SCRIPT> tag, as shown in this example:
<Script Language = "JavaScript" event="FSCommand (command, args)" for=
"theMovie">
...
</Script>
2 In the Flash document, add the fscommand() function to a button, as shown in this example:
on(press) {
fscommand("messagebox", "This is a message box invoked from within
Flash.");
}
You can also use expressions for fscommand() and parameters, as in this example:
fscommand("messagebox", "Hello, " + name + ", welcome to our website!")
3 Select File > Publish Preview > HTML to test the document.
The
fscommand() function can send messages to Macromedia Director that are interpreted by
Lingo as strings, events, or executable Lingo code. If the message is a string or an event, you must
write the Lingo code to receive it from the
fscommand() function and carry out an action in
Director. For more information, see the Director Support Center at www.macromedia.com/
support/director.
In Visual Basic, Visual C++, and other programs that can host ActiveX controls,
fscommand()
sends a VB event with two strings that can be handled in the environment’s programming
language. For more information, use the keywords Flash method to search the Flash Support
Center at www.macromedia.com/support/flash.
About Flash Player methods
You can use Flash Player methods to control a SWF file in Flash Player from web browser
scripting languages such as JavaScript and VBScript. As with other methods, you can use Flash
Player methods to send calls to SWF files from a scripting environment other than ActionScript.
Each method has a name, and most methods take parameters. A parameter specifies a value that
the method operates upon. The calculation performed by some methods returns a value that can
be used by the scripting environment.