Actionscript Cookbook

Flash Naming Conventions

With the introduction of the MX family of products, including Flash MX, Macromedia abandoned a standard numeric versioning system for its Flash authoring tool. The Flash Player, however, is still versioned numerically. Table P-1 describes the naming conventions for Flash used in this book.

Table 1. Flash naming conventions used in this book

Name	Meaning
Flash MX	The Flash MX authoring tool (as opposed to the Flash Player).
Flash Player 6	The Flash Player, version 6. The Flash Player is a browser plugin for major web browsers on Windows, Macintosh, and Linux. The platform-specific versions of the plugin are referred to collectively as “Flash Player 6,” except where noted.
Flash Player x.0.y.0	The Flash Player, specifically the release specified by x and y, as in Flash Player 6.0.47.0.
Flash 6	Short name for “Flash Player 6,” used where the distinction between Flash MX (the authoring tool) and Flash Player 6 (the browser plugin) is irrelevant.
Flash 5 authoring tool	The Flash 5 authoring tool, which came before Flash MX (as opposed to the Flash Player).
Flash Player 5	The Flash Player, version 5.
Flash 5	Short name for “Flash Player 5,” used where the distinction between Flash 5 (the authoring tool) and Flash Player 5 (the browser plugin) is irrelevant.
Flash 2, Flash 3, and Flash 4	Versions of the Flash Player prior to version 5.
Standalone Player	A version of the Flash Player that runs directly off the local system rather than as a web browser plugin or ActiveX control.
Projector	A self-sufficient executable that includes both a .swf file and a Standalone Player. Projectors can be built for either the Macintosh or Windows operating system using Flash’s File → Publish feature.