How to use TimelineLite on nested symbols and in conjunction with buttons?

[pocketrockets]

Hi everyone!

 

So I asked a question similar to this one before, but I think it was too broad so this is my attempt to clarify. I'm using Adobe Animate CC for a college project where I'm creating an "Interactive Comic."  I'm very new to all this stuff and I've been confused about a lot of things. 

 

So I have several different scenes in this project. Each scene is a movie clip Symbol with several other movie clips that play in a certain order once the scene is initiated. To put it simply, the general idea is the user will click a button on the to make the scene play, and then click the "next" button to switch to the next page. There might be some additional buttons within each scene, but I'll work on that later.

 

I'm assuming that most developers don't use Fla files anymore because it's been IMPOSSIBLE to find examples of how to do this on the internet, even though it seems like a pretty basic idea. So when I found TimelineLite I was hoping it could help me out because timing all these events manually with keyframes has been really challenging.

 

So my question is how can I use TimelineLite to create an outer timeline that is controlled by buttons, which inner timelines that have events playing one after another? Can anyone give me an example of how to do this? The only examples I've seen of TimelineLite so far are with simple symbols and I'm wondering what changes when there are nested symbols and timelines.  Also, does the fact that I'm using Actionscript instead of JS mean I can't use the code for TimelineLite that I've seen in examples?

 

As always, any help is tremendously appreciated. Thanks!

[Carl]

I'm having a hard time wrapping my head around exactly what you need to do. From what I understand though, what you need is way more than what we can provide to support our out-dated ActionScript tools. Even when ActionScript was alive and well there was a certain level of ActionScript / Flash experience that was needed before diving into the GreenSock tools. 

 

I really wish I could help you more, but it would just take way too much time to figure everything out and explain it. 

I would say that unless TimelineLite is part of the curriculum at your school, it isn't really worth the effort trying to figure it out. I know you mentioned that you had a tough time finding any info. For us we had to pull down most of the links to all the tutorials that were once super popular just because they were so out-dated and poorly maintained. If the AS3 version of TimelineLite is being taught at your school, my only good suggestion is to request extra time with your professor.

 

I have an old personal blog with nearly 100 Flash / GSAP tutorials on it. It pains me to recommend it to you as it is so out-dated but perhaps this tutorial might help a little, at least for the purpose of getting through your class: http://www.snorkl.tv/2011/03/bullet-proof-timelinemax-transitions-part-1-jump-to-section/

However, I suggest that you don't commit anything you learn there to long-term memory. It will only mess you up. 

 

My best advice: Join us on the HTML5 side!

[pocketrockets]

Thanks again for your input Carl. Well, that certainly does explain a lot about why I finding examples was impossible, haha. So what you're saying is that Actionscript really isn't used anymore? Are you speaking about in the GreenSock community or just in general when it comes to front end development? I find it very interesting because the professor who teaches this class is big on cutting edge technology, so I'm really surprised that our final project is this outdated. 

 

So what are some of the more up-to-date tools that people use to combine animation with coding? It seems that Adobe Flash/Animate is fading away, which also surprises me because when it comes to drawing and making movies it's got pretty much everything you would need, and I haven't come across a comparable program yet. Granted, I'm still really new to all of this. But I spent quite a bit of time browsing CodePen and while the programming was fantastic, the animation was simplistic. Is that the norm? 

 

Even I'm having a hard time wrapping my head around what my actual question is, haha. I'm just surprised that with all the technology we have that makes animation so easy, we still don't see very many people using it. GreenSock has tools that make tweening easier, but still, it must be way harder to drawl an object through code than to just drag and drop it with Animate. So why aren't people using it more? Why don't we see more interactive ads, or comic books, or interactive blogs? I guess I'm just surprised that there's not more media that falls in between the category of movies and games.  

 

Thanks for the link to your blog, I will definitely be checking that out later when I have more time.

[Carl]

Hey PocketRockets,

 

These are all very good questions and I could probably write a short novel addressing them all, but I'll do what I can in the time that I have.

 

So what you're saying is that Actionscript really isn't used anymore? Are you speaking about in the GreenSock community or just in general when it comes to front end development? 

 

Yup for both. In the GreenSock community it is very true with some data to back it. Our analytics show our Flash tools getting a mere fraction of the traffic and just by looking at this forum compared to the HTML5 / jS one it's like comparing Times Square in NYC to a ghost town  (even before we decided to bury it in this "archive").

 

Going outside the GreenSock world it's important to note that once thriving Flash communities and marketplaces like ActiveDen have completely closed their doors: http://inside.envato.com/farewell-activeden/

 

And of course, the word Flash was so tarnished that Adobe had to rename it Animate CC.

 

For anyone promoting the view that ActionScript is a viable technology for front-end development I would offer this fun challenge:

1. Try to find tutorials on adobe.com that were written in the past 3 years that focus on teaching ActionScript to beginners
2. Create a list of front-end blogs that focus on ActionScript and produce new content regularly
3. Find an award-winning site on http://www.thefwa.com/ or http://www.awwwards.com/sites/ that uses Flash Player to deliver the experience. If you right-click on any site you will know if its Flash if you see the Flash Player menu come up.

And yes arguments can be made that there is a short list of things that ActionScript can do inside Flash Player that you can't do natively or as well in the browser BUT that list has very little value when you consider all the devices Flash does not run on and how it is generally shunned across the entire industry. In other words just because Flash can do something does not mean that it is a good idea for people to pay you to create something with it or that you should build a career on it.

 

The one remaining string of hope for ActionScript-based content is in mobile app building with AIR. It clearly does some things very well and people really love using it. However, I still hear that selling AIR development to clients is an uphill battle due to the Flash stigma. And anecdotally the majority of news I hear coming from Adobe about Animate CC is all focused on HTML5 animation, not app development with AIR.

 

My suggestion is to not be discouraged. Make the most of this class you are taking. You will learn things about Animate that will cross over to HTML5 and hopefully just enough ActionScript 3 to help you warm up to JavaScript. 

 

 

--- regarding what tools people are using, why you don't see more stuff with Animate and why aren't their more "interactive comic book" things. I have some ideas but will have to come back later.