Summary
You sure covered a lot of ground this hour without actually creating any finished work. Rest assured you'll get your hands dirty next hour. Besides, the information covered this hour should be useful throughout your Flash career.
In this hour you were introduced to Flash's main workspace, including the Stage, the Timeline, and the Tools panel. You learned how to change the Stage size (through the Document Properties dialog box) and how to zoom in (by using the Zoom control). You got to see the Tools panel (which you'll use next hour to create artwork) and how the Properties panel lets you modify graphics onscreen. Although you didn't do much with the Timeline, you learned to pay close attention to clues, such as the red current-frame marker and the pencil icon, which indicate the active frame and active layer, respectively.
In this chapter you learned about other interface clues and navigation tools that help you track your current location at all times. The edit bar at the top left always tells you where you are, and the two menus at the top right let you navigate to other scenes and symbols (provided that you have some).
Finally, you learned about the file formats you'll likely create in Flash. It's important to take the time to understand all the files you create. You'll probably create many files, so it's also a good idea to keep your files and folders organized so that you can track what's going on. The old saying "Haste makes waste" is especially true when you have a million files to track. So, just take it easy, pay attention to how the Flash interface changes, and have fun.
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