Macromedia Flash MX 2004 Killer Tips

I'm all for sharing my ideas, my work, and even my customized code from time to time. This is especially true when it comes to Flash. However, there are some things that are very specialized that I would like to keep private. If you feel the same way, make sure you do this.

In your Publish Settings (CTRL-SHIFT-F12 or OPT-SHIFT-F12), go to the Flash tab and make sure you check Protect From Import before publishing your movie. This will prevent other developers from loading your SWF into their project and claiming it as their own. It's not a perfect solution because there are a lot of people out there who buy SWF decompiler programs to steal your work, but there's no reason to make it easy for them. It's like a car. If a thief wants it, they'll get it, but you can make it harder for them. I recommend always having this option checked. After all, you can always share your FLAs with the public if you really want to.