Webmaster Forum / Flash / General Flash Topics / July 2008

Craig,

   It can be baffling at first.  For me, the breakthrough came when I
realized that -- for the most part -- the Language Reference is organized
around something called classes.  Classes define objects, and generally
(though not always) have three categories:  properties (characteristics of
the object), methods (things the object can do), and events (things the
object can react to).

   So if you're looking up movie clips, consult the MovieClip class entry.
If you're looking up text fields, consult the TextField class, and so on.
In the case of video, you have a few choices.  You might be using the
FLAPlayback component, in which case you'll have to consult the FLVPlayback
class.  If that's your ticket, you'll find that class -- as with all
component classes -- in the ActionScript 2.0 Components Language Reference.
Same goes for the Media components, if by chance you're using those.

   On the other hand, if you're dealing with an actual video object, you'll
want to consult the Video class entry of the ActionScript 2.0 Language
Reference (it's not a component).  The Video class is a bit different from
most of the classes you'll find, because video objects work in cahoots with
two other objects:  one instance apiece of the NetConnection and NetStream
classes.  There's a hint -- admittedly not an easy one to spot -- in the
listing for the Video.attachVideo() method.  Click on that, and you'll see
that a video instance can be attached to a NetStream instance, a Camera
instance (for webcams), or null.

   It sounds like you're after pre-recorded video, so your next stop will
be the NetStream class, which features a number of properties, methods, and
events you're after (play(), pause(), etc.).

   The FLVPlayback class features a playheadTime property.  Remember,
though, the FLVPlayback class is listed in the Components Language
Reference, which might be why you didn't immediately find it.

   It may be that all you're missing a leg up.  It's tough if you don't
know how to get started.  For what it's worth, I wrote an article on
tackling the AS2 Language Reference (free article) at CommunityMX.com.
Maybe it can help you get your bearings.

   http://www.communitymx.com/abstract.cfm?cid=01B54

   It was written for Flash 8, but the principles still apply.

David Stiller
Co-author, Foundation Flash CS3 for Designers
http://tinyurl.com/2k29mj
"Luck is the residue of good design."