12.+Sound

So you are ready to import audio into your Flash project. This process is quite simple and should go fairly quickly. The first step of this process is to prepare the audio file you will be importing. Flash is most compatible with uncompressed audio formats such as WAV and AIFF files, and automatically compresses the audio to MP3 when you publish your movie. If Flash returns an error when you attempt to import an MP3 file, convert it to either WAV or AIFF in a 3rd-party audio conversion application and try again. Zamzar is an online conversion website. []
 * Sound**

For this tutorial, you will be importing an MP3 file. If your audio requires substantial editing, you should do so in a 3rd-party application because of Flash's limited editing options. We will use Audacity for that, which is free downloadable audio editing software.

Once your audio file is ready, the next step file will be to make a new layer and name it audio. This naming system is of course only a suggestion, but having clear names will help you locate yourself within your project as it expands with more layers. Make sure there is a blank Keyframe where you want the audio to start, and at least a few blank frames after that Keyframe if not more (doing this will allow you to see the audio file once it is on the layer).

In the next step we will locate the file we wish to import. Go to 'File>Import>Import to Library' and browse to your audio file. Selecting it once it is located will import the file into the library and a new audio icon will appear with your other files. I am importing a file named "SuperMarioBrothers-Coin.mp3." If you do not see your library just go to Window in the menu options at the top of the screen and select Library, it appears. You can see the waveforms (the two spiky lines which indicate the levels of the left and right audio channels) with play and stop buttons appear in the library preview window when the new audio file is selected in the library.

Once the audio file has been imported into the library, select the audio layer in your timeline, and drag your file from the library directly onto the work area of your main stage. You should see a thin waveform appear in those few frames in the audio layer of your timeline. Now select the end frame and drag it further down the timeline, this should reveal the rest of the waveform in the audio layer. These waveform spikes will assist you timing to your audio to your animation. If you want to move the beginning of the audio around in the layer, you can select the first frame, and drag it to the frame where you would like the audio to begin. Then just grab the last frame and drag it to where you want your audio to end.

One thing to know is that the audio file on the layer cannot have a Keyframe between the beginning and the end of the waveform. If you insert one it will stop the audio at that point and clear any audio after it. You can still move the frame at the end of the audio to reveal the waveform again however. Also it would likely make it easier if you reserve this layer only for the audio you have applied to it.

media type="file" key="MArioblakely.swf" align="center" width="360" height="270"

AUDACITY []

**Objective**:


 * Add a theme song to the last animation that you created that used sprites. Search the internet until you find a sound file for your animation (MP3,WAV,AIFF,or AU). Insert the song into your flash animation. If it is too long take it into Audacity to edit it
 * Upload this video to your wikipage and replace it with your sprite video.

[|Vote Koons]