Chapter 14. Flash for CD-ROM and Handhelds
In this chapter, you’ll explore two slightly less conventional distribution methods for Flash content. First, you’ll see how Flash projects can be created for standalone disc-based delivery without a browser, using projectors. In the second part of the chapter, you’ll learn a bit about Flash development for mobile devices, an up-and-coming design area with its own set of special considerations.
Flash on CD-ROM
Although many developers use Macromedia Director, another powerful multimedia authoring program, for CD-ROM development, Flash also offers very basic features suitable for CD-ROM delivery.
It is certainly possible to distribute a CD-ROM project using a browser-based structure to wrap around your Flash content. This requires little extra work or planning, and if your product heavily uses HTML (perhaps repurposed from a related online version), this may be the best way to go. However, if your product is primarily Flash content, the overhead of the browser and Flash Player is unnecessary.
In fact, the added weight of the browser can result in a lesser product, for several reasons (for the sake of this comparison, assume your product is Flash-only):
The performance of Flash assets in a browser window is worse than in a non-browser environment. When a browser is also running, it must have some attention from the computer, too, so it makes sense that removing it from the mix will boost your ...
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