How to Gain Access to the Flash Authoring Tool

• Purchase the software yourself. Make sure to take advantage of the educational discount price! Adobe Flash CS4 (the latest edition) currently costs around $200.
  If you are purchasing the software, you might want to consider buying the Adobe Creative Suite 4 (Web Premium Student Edition). This package cost around $400 but includes Adobe Dreamweaver CS4, Adobe Flash CS4, Adobe Photoshop CS4, and several other applications.

• Have access to the computer lab on the Tahlequah, Oklahoma campus.
  Adobe Flash CS3 has been installed on the computers in NET 307.

• Have access to the computer lab on the Muskogee, Oklahoma campus. Adobe Flash CS3 has been installed on four computers on the left hand side of the room in NSUM 116. There is never a lab attendant, but if anyone has any problems they can use the phone in the room and call Ext. 5023.

• Have access to the computer lab on the Broken Arrow, Oklahoma campus. Adobe Flash CS3 has been installed on four computers in lab 137 in Building B in Broken Arrow. One computer on each of the four rows has it, and are marked. If you are looking at the lab from the front of the room, looking left to right, the PCs are: 2nd machine on the 1st row, 5th machine on the second row, 4th machine on the third row, and the 3rd machine on the 4th row. These PCs are also labeled indicating they have Adobe CS3 installed on them. The labs in Broken Arrow have 24 hour access Monday-Thursday, and are open 8am-11pm Friday-Sunday. There should be a lab attendant on duty 12-9 Monday-Friday, and 4-9 Saturday and Sunday. However, a lab attendant is not guaranteed during all shifts.
• Download a free 30 day-trial version of the software from the Adobe website. This is not a guaranteed option - see the two warning messages below. I do not recommend taking this course, if you must rely entirely on the free trial-version of the software. If you do use the trial version, you might want to wait and install the software when you can devote a lot of time to this course.
  • Risk #1 - Adobe may disallow this option as it has done several times in the past. For example, Adobe typically does not allow trial versions to be downloaded - when they are close to releasing a new version of their software.
  • Risk #2 - The software you download may not be the same version as the software used on the training videos the instructor has created.

NOTE: Unless otherwise indicated, in this course the word Flash will refer to the Flash authoring/development environment. (This should not be confused with the Flash player which is free.) In the past few years, the following different version of Flash have been released. Adobe Flash CS4 - released October 2008 Adobe Flash CS3 - released May 2007 Macromedia Flash Professional 8 Macromedia Flash MX 2004 In April 2005, Adobe acquired Macromedia and thus the name change. The exercises in this class can be completed using either CS3 or CS4.