Whats the best way to pre-load an swf...

I'm working on a project where an flv will be embedded into the flash timeline and graphics will be animated overtop. My video is going to be around 3 minutes long, what's the best way to load this with out the view sitting idle while the entire piece loads?

Whats the best way to pre-load an swf...

I'm sure you hate people trying to answer your question with a question, but do you really need to embed it in the timeline rather than doing a progressive download as an external file?

Whats the best way to pre-load an swf...

straight forward.......progressive download or streaming is the best option......but If you must embed it......then build a really and I mean REALLY intense preLoader .....cus 3mins takes a long time to download unless you got a fast connection.....do yourself a favor and proggressively download if no streaming service available....

thelegendaryghost

Ok so, you guys are right - the vid shouldn't be embedded in the timeline. However, how will I be able to sync my timeline animations to the video if it's dynamically loaded?

I'm not quite sure how to approach this so I guess I'm looking for a best practice.

Thanks for the guidance, I'm new to AS3 and video in flash.

you have to use event listeners to trigger the timeline animation when the flv is loaded and ready to play/playing.....in my opinion there are no rules....it just depends on what you're trying to do......your best option is to code even the animation and not use the timeline because you'll have more control over the swf.....but you may not be ready to jump fully into coding everything as of yet......there's alot of ways to get around everything.....i make em up as I go along ......if you use code to trigger your animations...then it'll be easy for you to do what it seems like you're trying to accomplish......

but as of right now your best option may be to use eventlisteners on the movie to trigger the animations on the timeline.

thelegendaryghost

If you have a full control over video your best bet would be to embed cuepoints into the video --%26gt; listen to these cuepoints --%26gt; execute animations that relate to the points. Alternatively you can time the video and link to it other things that happen.

I'd have to agree. The tough part is suggesting something that doesn't totally become a time sync for you. If you have Premiere, I'd investigate embedded cuepoints. If not, I would explore adding AS cuepoints in the compent panel properties of the flvPlayback. There are actually a lot of options but it totally depends on where you're at in AS3 programming and what you feel comfortable doing. Personally, I tend to use AS cuepoints in scripting, loading the cuepoints from an xml file upon entering the file. However, it can be made much simpler depending upon what you're doing. How 'synched' or precise do the animations need to be in relation to the video playing back.