Now let's look at the Timeline Effects grouped in the Effects category.
In a new Flash Document, create a static text field and type in a word using your favorite font.
Select Insert->Timeline Effects->Effects->Blur.
Adjust the settings to your liking and click the "OK" button.
Test your movie ( Control->Test Movie ) to see the results of your Blur settings. That was quick! That used to take way longer to produce by hand using the Timeline alone!
Now I'll show you a simple little trick you can do with your text that will save you time when you are using this in a project.
If you haven't already done so, close your Test Movie window.
In your Library panel, open the Effects Folder symbol folder and select the symbol that Flash created from your text field. I like to rename my symbol at this point to something more meaningful than "Symbol 1" so I can easily find it later. In this case, let's call it "HelloText".
Now, double-click the icon of the symbol to open the symbol in edit mode. Here, you can edit the text. If you change the text to something else, you'll want to make sure the text is centered in the symbol so the Blur effect still looks the same. The easiest way to do this is to select the field on the Stage, open the Info panel, set the Registration Gird to center, and adjust the clip's position to 0 x and 0 y.
Test your movie now to see the results of your changes, the effect should still look the same but now with your adjusted text.
The next Effect we'll look at is the Shadow effect.
In a new Flash Document, create a text field and enter some text i it.
Adjust the settings in the dialog box. I tend to keep the Shadow Offset numbers pretty low when applying this effect to text, it creates an easier to read result.
Click the "OK" button to apply the effect. That's it! If you need to edit the text you applied the Shadow Effect to, just use the same method we used in the Blue segment previously.
On to the Expand Effect.
In a new Flash Document, create a Static Text Field and type in some text.
Select Insert->Timeline Effects->Effects->Expand. Note that the Expand Effect only really works correctly when applied to a Static Text Field. You will notice that if you attempt to apply it to a shape, the option will be grayed out, and if you apply it to an existing Symbol, the Effect will have undesirable results. Also note that this effect is a destructive effect; after applying it to your Text Field, you will no longer have the ability to edit the text of the field. If you need to edit the text after you have applied the effect, you must remove the effect ( Modify->Timeline Effects->Remove Effect).
Click the "OK" button to apply the effect and Test your Movie.
The last Effect type Timeline Effect, Explode.
In a new Flash Document, create a static test field and enter some text in it.
Select Insert->Timeline Effects->Effects->Explode. This Effect works much like Expand in that it is destructive and you will not be able to edit your text without first removing the effect from the text symbol.
Click the "OK" button to apply the effect and Test your Movie.
You'll notice that each letter of the text field becomes a separate particle in the explosion. Unlike the Expand Effect, Explode can be applied to shapes and symbols. Here are the results of the Explode Effect applied to both a Text Field and a Shape:
That rounds off the Timeline Effects under the Effects submenu. Now onto
the Transform/Transition Timeline Effects.
Download Source Files (1MB) 
go to previous page 
