Swish template FAQ
General
- Can I edit the Swish movie in
FrontPage/Dreamweaver/GoLive?
- Can I edit my Swish movie in
Flash?
- What version of Swish do I have
to have?
- Where can I get Swish?
- How much does Swish cost?
- Can everybody see my movie?
- What happens if someone doesn't
have a Flash plug-in?
- How can I accommodate those who
might not be able to see my movie?
- What is a .swi?
- What is a .swf?
Changing the Words
- How can I make the Swish movie show
my company name or other words I want instead of what
is there now?
Changing Pictures
- How can I insert my logo or another
picture I want in place of another image?
- I opened my movie and where
there should be graphics - I only find letters. What
happened?
Splash Pages
- I just bought one of your cool
Swish intros. How do I get it into my website?
- How do I change the links?
General
Can I edit the Swish movie in
FrontPage/Dreamweaver/GoLive?
No, you must use the Swish program
to make modifications to the movie.
Can I edit my Swish movie in Flash?
No, you may import a finished movie into flash, but
can edit the actual Swish file only in Swish 1.5 or
higher.
What version of Swish do I have to have?
Usually version 1.51 is sufficient,
though an upgraded version is now available and will
also work.
Where can I get Swish?
http://www.swishzone.com/
How much does Swish cost?
As of this writing, the cost
for Swish is approximately $50 and less if you are upgrading,
however, you should go to the Swish site for the most
current price and information.
Can everybody see my movie?
Like Flash, in order for site visitors to see a Swish
movie they must have the Flash browser plug-in.
Also take note that for best
results in all major browsers, the entire HTML code
generated by Swish should be inserted into the HTML
of your web page.
What happens if someone doesn't
have a Flash plug-in?
They will either see a notice that a plug-in is required,
or they may just see a blank page. The same thing can
occur if part of the Swish HTML is missing.
How can I accommodate those who may not be able to see
my movie?
This is an important issue if
you are using Swish for a splash page or navigation!
In the case of a splash page, you should insert a text
link into your web page, above or below the Swish movie.
If you have used Swish for navigation, you should also
include textual navigation somewhere on the page.
What is a .swi?
The .swi file is the editable file for Swish.
What is a .swf?
The .swf file is the file that is shown in a browser.
This is the one that must be in your web, on the same
level as the page file in which the movie resides.
- Back to top
Changing the Words
How can I make the Swish movie show my company name
or other words I want instead of what is there now?
1. Open Swish and find the .swi
file for your movie. File > Open > browse to find
the file on your hard drive. Tip: look where you downloaded
the template. Highlight the .swi file > Open. The
movie will open in Swish.
2. On the left side of the Swish window you will see
a list of all the elements contained in the movie. Find
one of the pieces of text you wish to replace and click
on it.
3. Click on the Text tab. Here you will find the tools
needed to change the appearance of the text you have
selected. Type in the words you wish to have appear
in the movie, replacing what is there. Make any size
and color adjustments.
4. Save.
5. Repeat steps 2 and 3 for any other portions of text
you wish to change. Don't forget to save them as well.
6. To preview your modified movie, click on the Play
Scene or Test in Browser button. If you wish to make
further changes and you chose Play Scene, you must first
click the Stop Movie button.
7. To save the .swf file, click the Export to SWF button.
I highly recommend naming your new movie file with the
old movie file name. If you do this, you will not need
to change the HTML in your web page if you are working
with a template that includes a Swish movie.
If you are using FrontPage, you should delete the old
.swf file from your web before importing the new one.
Even though they have the same name, the new one may
not override the old one.
- Back to top
Changing Pictures
How can I insert my logo or another picture I want in
place of another image?
1. Open Swish and find the .swi file for your movie.
File > Open > browse to find the file on your
hard drive. Tip: look where you downloaded the template.
Highlight the .swi file > Open. The movie will open
in Swish.
2. Images and text will appear on the screen notice
the size of the elements you wish to change and keep
in mind that the ones you insert should probably be
about the same size.
3. Import the image(s) you wish to use. Content tab
> Import
4. Add to scene.
5. Click the Timeline tab and find the image you want
to replace.
6. Copy (control +c) and paste (control + v) the effects
from the old image, one at a time, and place them in
the line for the new image.
7. Delete the old image from the window on the left.
Save.
8. To preview your modified movie, click on the Play
Scene or Test in Browser button. If you wish to make
further changes and you chose Play Scene, you must first
click the Stop Movie button.
9. To save the .swf file, click the Export to SWF button.
I highly recommend naming your new movie file with the
old movie file name. If you do this, you will not need
to change the HTML in your web page if you are working
with a template that includes a Swish movie.
If you are using FrontPage, you
should delete the old .swf file from your web before
importing the new one. Even though they have the same
name, the new one may not override the old one.
I opened my movie and where there should be graphics
- I only find letters. What happened?
Swish users generally use ding bat fonts as graphics
sets to decrease the load time of their movies. We have
used only ding bat files commonly used in Windows but
if you are seeing letters, the ding bat font used is
not installed on your computer. You can either write
to the designer and ask which font was used and where
to get it or use a similar ding bat font already on
your machine.
- Back to top
Splash Pages
I just bought one of your cool intros. How do I get
it into my site?
1. First you will want to modify it so it says what
you want it to. Follow the directions above. Modify
and test it until you are happy with it.
2. Before leaving Swish, on the Export tab, click Copy
HTML to clipboard.
3. Import the .swf into your website (into the folder
for Dreamweaver or GoLive, or into the Folder List of
FrontPage).
4. If your index.htm page contains content you wish
to keep, rename it something like home.htm.
5. Open a new page and name it index.htm.
6. In HTML view, paste (control + v) the Swish HTML
between the body tags...<body></body>. Save.
How do I change the links?
If your Swish movie has links to internal pages and
you wish to change them, click on the word or image,
then the Actions tab. There you will find the place
to enter a different url.
- Back to top
|
