Getting Familiar with SWiSHmax

Macromedia Flash is the weapon of choice for serious interactive animators, but the outstanding application SWiSHmax may be a better choice for those who need to get the job done with a minimum of fuss – or for those who like its $99.95 price tag better than Macromedia Flash’s $699.95.

Note: While SWiSHmax offers many of the same functions as Flash, the menus differ greatly, so these sections do not serve as a proper Flash guide. For help with Flash, check out the tutorial that Jane Stevens wrote for the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism Web site.

Creating a Basic SWiSHmax Animation

Begin experimenting with SWiSHmax by creating a simple animation.

Applying Effects in SWiSHmax

There are more than 300 effects you can apply to objects in your movie. Some of these are quite simple – zooms and fades – and others are fun, pre-designed effects you’ll enjoy applying.

Creating Buttons with SWiSHmax

Many animations are created around interactivity, and the most common interface to begin an animation or cause an action is a button. In this section we look at how to create a button in SWiSHmax.

Saving an SWF using SWiSHmax

Once you have created an animation you want to use on a Web page, you need to export an SWF file from SWiSHmax. SWF is the format supported by Web browsers that can be placed into any HTML page.

Creating a Simple Slide Show with SWiSHmax

You can use a program like SWiSHmax to create attractive photo slide shows. Begin by preparing your images at the size you want them to be in the slide show using a graphics program. 

Getting More Help with SWiSHmax

You’ve gotten started, but there is plenty more to learn. Here are a few good SWiSHmax resources.