Macromedia Director MX for Windows and Macintosh. Visual QuickStart Guide

In addition to standard viewing controls, such as the scroll bars, you have several viewing options in the Score. You can hide the effects channels to use more of your screen for the sprite channels, zoom in or out, or open multiple Score windows so you can easily drag sprites between different parts of the Score without excess scrolling. If you find the circular keyframe indicators distracting, you can hide those from view as well.

To center the playhead in the window:

• Click the Center Current Frame button to reorient the Score so that the frame that contains the playhead is displayed at the center of the Score ( Figure 3.78 ).

  Figure 3.78. Click the Center Current Frame button to center the frame that contains the playhead.

To hide or show the effects channels:

• Click the Hide/Show Effects Channels button to toggle the display of the effects channels ( Figure 3.79 ).

  Figure 3.79. Toggle the Hide/Show Effects Channel button to hide or show the six effects channels.

To zoom in or out:

• Click the Zoom Menu button, and choose a magnification percentage from the pop-up menu ( Figure 3.80 ).

  Figure 3.80. Click the Zoom Menu button and make a choice from the pop-up menu.

  Choose a percentage greater than 100 to zoom in and see more detail in each frame. Choose a percentage smaller than 100 to zoom out and see large portions of the Score.

To view multiple Score windows:

1. Select the Score window. If it is docked to other panels, undock it.

2. Choose Window > New Window to display an additional Score window ( Figure 3.81 ).

   Figure 3.81. Open extra Score windows to view and edit different parts of the Score at the same time.

3. Use the scroll bars to navigate in the new window.

   You can open as many additional Score windows as you need.

To show or hide keyframe indicators in the Score:

1. Click on the Score to make it the active window.

2. Choose View > Keyframes to toggle the display of keyframe indicators in the Score.

Working with sprite labels

The text that identifies each sprite in the Score is called a sprite label . Sprite labels make it much easier to work with sprites and edit your movie by providing key information, such as the name or number of the cast member on which a sprite is based ( Figure 3.82 ).

To view sprite labels in the Score:

1. Click on the Score to give it focus.

2. Choose View > Sprite Labels and then choose an option from the pop-up menu.

   The option determines where the sprite label appears ( Figure 3.83 ). The actual information displayed by a sprite label is determined by the display option.

   Figure 3.83. Sprite-label options.

To change the display option for sprite labels:

• Open the display options menu in the Score and make a choice ( Figure 3.84 ).

  Figure 3.84. Select sprite-label options in the Score.

  or

  Choose View > Display and then choose an option from the pop-up menu.

  Following are the display options:

  • Member displays each sprite's name and/or number (as they are displayed in the cast window).

  • Behavior displays the behavior assigned to each sprite.

  • Location displays the coordinates of each sprite's registration point, which Director uses to match up images in animation sequences.

  • Ink displays the ink effect applied to sprites.

  • Blend shows each sprite's blend percentage.

  • Extended lets you view any combination of display options specified in the Score Window Preferences dialog box ( Figure 3.85 ), which you open by choosing Edit > Preferences > Score (Windows) or Director > Preferences > Score (Mac).

    Figure 3.85. When you choose the Extended spritelabel option, you can specify which combination of display options appears by using the Score Window Preferences dialog box.

To turn a channel on or off:

1. Click the button at the left side of a channel to turn the channel off during movie playback ( Figure 3.86 ).

   Figure 3.86. Turn a channel off or on to assist with testing.

   Director ignores the contents of the disabled channel, allowing you to isolate other channels for testing.

2. To turn a channel back on, click the button again.

Tip

• By default, all channels in the Score are turned on, but you can turn a channel off to make it easier to test or work on a portion of the Score.