STC Blog

Just wanted to drop in and share this: If you open a Microsoft Access file (2000-2007 I believe), and you are presented with the application “switchboard” and cannot access the tables, queries, reports, etc., you can exit Access, and then hold the shift key and double-click the file, and it will open into the administrative pane! Nice! Also, apparently if a database was created in Windows 2000 or on a secured XP/Vista network, and you move it to another computer and start having errors, check the detailed NTFS file sharing settings, because apparently you are allowed to open and seemingly manipulate the database if it was previously secured, but none of your changes will persist.

When first transitioning to Actionscript 3.0 and the new Flash CS3 O-O model, a lot of things became cleaner and easier to accomplish with code. One notable exception to that however, was calling methods in a timeline, specifically those in an externally loaded .SWF.

The short answer to this is: when calling a method in this scenario, the external SWF must be cast as a MovieClip prior to interaction occurring. I know that sounds strange- “cast a MovieClip as a MovieClip ..??” -but with the new 3.0 object hierarchy, there is a reason:

To grab an external Movie (.SWF), you’d probably use a loader (it’s the cleanest way IMHO):

public var swfMovie:Loader = new Loader();
swfMovie.load(new URLRequest(”movieclips/mc1.swf”));

Once this happens, your main (parent) clip sees this .SWF as a Loader’s content. So it looks at the clip as essentially a child object contained within the instance of the swfMovie loader - specifically it’s .content property.

var externalSWF = MovieClip(swfMovie.content);
externalSWF.startMe();

So to cast it, use the syntax illustrated to create a new MovieClip (you may have to import the MovieClip class def.) variable, and cast the swfMovie’s content property. From there just call the method!

As a side note: the external movieclip’s playhead must be on the frame(s) with the method you’re calling to function properly. E.g. this external .SWF was stopped in the first frame, which also had the startMe() definition in it.

What does success mean to you? I think most people want to be successful, but how many really have given thought to what that entails?

Do you aspire to become a millionare? Or live on the beach in Hawaii? Or simply to be the best Father/Mother you can be? Success doesn’t have to be a singular goal at the end of a long tunnel, but people seem to think that’s what it is.

So, what if I want to make a million dollars? Is that for my annual salary, or over my lifetime? Must I possess it all at once, or can it be divided up into assets and savings and life’s little luxuries. How should I get there, how long will it take and what do I need to do to achieve it. No, not down the road, pie-in-the-sky to-do’s either - what do I need to do TODAY?

Wrestling with these questions has been a point of contention for me in the past, but I’ve learned to see them as tools for determining what the means are to meet my goals, and if they really justify the ends. When an opportunity comes along, exciting as it may be, I try to just step back and look at if it will really get me where I want to go, or if it’s just going to lead me off-course. It may not be easy turning down the 7-figure salary, but if my goal is to be a great parent and the job means 21 days/month in Tokyo, it’s much easier to decide when I’ve got a road-map to refer to.

This morning I was greeted by a single blinking LED on my modem, and no cable either. Oy. Luckily I had a meeting elsewhere in the AM, and assumed the problem would be brief. Upon my return 2 hours later, however, every cable box on my block was thrown open and a repair crew was working it’s way down the road. Double-Oy. The way my mouse gravitated to the crippled Firefox icon was incredible.

After I finished toiling over the emailing and uploading I could be doing, I settled in to do a little design on a side project that got pushed back on my list a few too many times. 2 hours later, I was smacked in the face by how much of a blessing-in-disguise losing the Internet was. I never realized how much the little side clicks or gReads really added up to leech away productivity.

Today’s lesson: Got Connectivity? Leave the browser alone once in a while.

I’m excited to get back into the blogosphere after an extensive absence. I’ve been inspired to start writing again by many different people and I hope to keep to it.