MACROMEDIA FLASH MX 2004 - FLASH LITE AUTHORING GUIDELINES FOR THE I-MODE..., Manuallines

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Performance Optimization 11
Performance Optimization
CPU speed in i-mode phones varies from model to model, and is typically much slower than
current desktop computers. Therefore, it is extremely important to consider movie performance
and optimization from the beginning of each project. The optimization recommendations for
creating any Flash movie also apply to Flash Lite movies created for i-mode phones. For the latter,
their importance is amplified.
Note: In Flash MX Professional 2004, you can find tips on optimizing Flash movies—select Help >
Using Flash -> Search and enter optimizing movies in the keyword search text box.
If you follow some simple guidelines, as described in this document, to author your movies, you
can create rich and compelling content despite CPU limitations.
Sound
Since Flash MX Professional 2004 does not natively support MFi, you must temporarily
substitute a proxy sound in a recognized format such as MP3. Details and procedures on sound
substitution for i-mode phones and Flash Lite are presented in
Chapter 3, “Sound,” on page 15 .
Animation
When creating animated content for an i-mode phone, it is important to keep in mind the
phone’s CPU limitations. The following guidelines can help prevent your movie from
running slowly:
•
If you need to provide intense or complex animation, experiment with changing the quality
setting of the movie. The default quality setting is Medium.
To change the quality setting in Flash MX Professional 2004, select File > Publish Settings,
then select the HTML tab. Select a quality setting from the Quality pop-up menu.
Because changing the quality setting may noticeably affect the visual quality of the movie, be
sure to thoroughly test the movie.
•
Limit the number of simultaneous tweens.
•
Alpha effects on symbols are very CPU intensive and should be used sparingly. In particular, it
is generally not a good idea to tween symbols that have alpha levels that are not fully opaque
(less than 100%).
•
Avoid intensive visual effects. These include large masks, extensive motion, alpha blending,
extensive gradients, and complex vectors.
•
Although animating with ActionScript may produce more desirable results, in general, you
should avoid unnecessary use of ActionScript.
•
Experiment with combinations of tweens, key frame animations, and ActionScript-driven
movement to produce the most efficient results.
•
Test animations frequently on your target phones whenever possible.