--- Forwarded Message from Dennie Hoopingarner <[log in to unmask]> ---

>User-Agent: Microsoft-Entourage/10.1.1.2418
>Date: Sat, 19 Apr 2003 11:25:45 -0400
>Subject: Unicode in Flash MX
>From: Dennie Hoopingarner <[log in to unmask]>
>To: Language Learning and Technology International Information    Forum   <[log in to unmask]>
>In-Reply-To: <[log in to unmask]>

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Here is a summary experience in using Unicode characters in Flash MX. I have
developed for Spanish, Portuguese, Vietnamese, Japanese and Chinese, but the
bulk of my experience in this matter has come from Portuguese and Chinese. I
also use both Windows 2000 and Mac OS X with similar if not identical
results. I take care to ensure that what I develop is cross-platform and
cros-browser consistent, so sometimes I as the developer have to accept a
lower level of comfort to keep my users' comfort level higher.

There are three different issues in using Unicode characters in Flash. The
first issue is that it is difficult (but not impossible) to type Unicode
characters into text fields or scripts within Flash (while authoring). It's
easier to do this on a Mac. In Windows 2000 it requires that you set the
default language to the language that you are using. It's messy and
uncomfortable for me, so I avoid it.

I overcome this obstacle by including my non-roman characters in external
files with the .as extension. The first line of the external file indicates
to Flash that it's a Unicode file. I make sure that I'm using a Unicode text
editor (there are some nice freeware tools out there. I also have used
Dreamweaver MX for this task), and that I save the file as a Unicode file.
In my Flash file, I add a line of Actionscript to include the external file.
When creating the Shockwave movie, Flash reads the external file, and
incorporates it into the movie. The Flash player then can treat the Unicode
text from this external file as part of the regular script. I can then
dynamically put the text into text fields, compare it to text that is typed
by the user, and do other fun text manipulation tasks like CLOZE.

The second issue is displaying Unicode in Flash. My experience is that if
your computer's operating system can display Unicode, then the Unicode that
you prepared for your Flash movie will display correctly in the Flash
player. I have achieved good results doing this both in Windows 2000 and Mac
OS X. I have also been able to display Chinese in Flash files under Windows
98 with the correct browser and plugin. I've had problems with Mac OS 9, but
I haven't had the chance to track down the source of that problem.

The third, and thorniest, issue is typing Unicode characters in your Flash
movie at runtime. Macromedia asserts that the Flash player is Unicode-aware,
while the Flash authoring environment isn't. But again, my experience is
that if your computer can type the language in question in other
applications independent of Flash, then the input will work correctly in
your Flash movie.

Hope this helps.

Dennie Hoopingarner
Language Learning Center
Michigan State University

P.S. Another shameless plug for the Flash workshop that I am conducting at
CALICO this May. I am also holding a week-long Flash workshop on the campus
of Michigan State University in July. We focus on using Flash for
interactive multimedia solutions for language teaching. Contact me if you
want more info.