Introduction to Flash
· Macromedia Flash 1: First released on November 1996, Macromedia re-branded their FutureSplash Animator.
· Macromedia Flash 2: Released on June 1997 with Flash Player 2 and the object library.
· Macromedia Flash 3: Released on May 31, 1998 with Flash Player 3; new features were the movieclip element, JavaScript plug-in integration, transparency and an external stand alone player.
· Macromedia Flash 4: Released on June 15, 1999 with Flash Player 4; new features were internal variables, an input field, advanced ActionScript, and streaming MP3.
· Macromedia Flash 5: Released on August 24, 2000 with Flash Player 5; new features were ActionScript 1.0, XML support, Smartclips, and HTML text formatting added for dynamic text field.
· Macromedia Flash MX: Released on March 15, 2002 with Flash Player 6; new features were Sorenson Spark video codec, and ActionScript vector drawing API.
· Macromedia Flash MX Professional 2004: Released on September 9, 2003 with Flash Player 7; new features included: Actionscript 2.0 (more object-oriented programming model), behaviors, alias text support, timeline effects, web services integration, video import wizard, Media Playback components, Data components and data binding APIs, UI components, and Transition class libraries.
· Macromedia Flash Basic 8: Released on September 13, 2005 with Flash Player 8; new features included Filters and blend modes, easing control for animation, enhanced stroke properties, object-based drawing mode, run-time bitmap caching, FlashType advanced anti-aliasing for text, On2 VP6 advanced video codec, support for alpha transparency in video, a stand-alone encoder and advanced video importer, cue point support in FLV files, an advanced video playback component, and an interactive mobile device emulator.
· Adobe Flash CS3 Professional: Released on April 16, 2007 with Flash Player 9; CS3 introduced ActionScript 3.0, and supports better integration with other Adobe products.