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Flash Media Handler

This chapter describes the Flash media handler, which was introduced in QuickTime 4. The Flash media handler allows a Macromedia Flash SWF 3.0 file to be treated as a track within a QuickTime movie. If you are a content author or developer and need to create interactive vector animations on the Web using QuickTime and Flash, you should read this chapter.

QuickTime 4 extended the SWF file format to allow the execution of any of its wired actions. QuickTime 5 includes support for the interactive playback of SWF 4.0 files by extending the existing SWF importer, as well as the Flash media handler.

The chapter includes the following major sections:

• “Flash Media” describes Flash, Macromedia’s popular authoring tool that lets content authors and developers create interactive vector animations. The section also discusses the Flash media handler, introduced in QuickTime 4, which allows a Macromedia Flash SWF 3.0 or SWF 4.0 file to be treated as a track within a QuickTime movie.

• “Flash Support in QuickTime” discusses support for the interactive playback of SWF 4.0 files by extending the existing SWF importer and the Flash media handler.

• “Adding Wired Actions To a Flash Track” discusses the code you need to add wired actions to a Flash track.

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