About Classroom in a Book

Adobe Animate Classroom in a Book (2023 release) is part of the official training series for Adobe graphics and publishing software developed with the support of Adobe product experts. The lessons are designed so that you can learn at your own pace. If you’re new to Animate, you’ll learn the fundamental concepts and features you’ll need to use the program. Classroom in a Book also teaches many advanced features, including tips and techniques for using the latest version of this application.

Although each lesson provides step-by-step instructions for creating a specific project, there’s room for exploration and experimentation. You can follow the book from start to finish or do only the lessons that correspond to your interests and needs. Each lesson concludes with review questions to reinforce what you’ve learned.

What’s new

The 2023 release of Adobe Animate provides significant new controls for animation with modern rigging that includes bone control with Bezier precision, envelope deformation, and rig editing of warp assets.

The lessons in this book provide opportunities to use some of the updated features and improvements in Animate, including the following:

• A Flexi bone option in modern rigging that allows you to use Bezier controls for bone positioning

• Animation with envelope deformation using the Asset Warp tool

• Rig editing of warp assets and organizational control in the Library panel

• Refinements to the Paint Bucket fill options for active layers

Prerequisites

Before you begin using Adobe Animate Classroom in a Book (2023 release), make sure your system is set up correctly and that you’ve installed the required software. You should have a working knowledge of your computer and operating system. You should know how to use the mouse and standard menus and commands and also how to open, save, and close files. If you need to review these techniques, see the printed or online documentation included with your macOS or Microsoft Windows software.

Installing Animate

You must purchase the Adobe Animate application as part of Adobe Creative Cloud. The following specifications are the minimum required system configurations.

Online content

Your purchase of this Classroom in a Book includes online materials provided by way of your Account page on adobepress.com. These include the following:

How to use the lessons

Each lesson in this book provides step-by-step instructions for creating one or more specific elements of a real-world project. All the lessons build on one another in terms of concepts and skills, so the best way to learn from this book is to proceed through the lessons in sequential order. In this book, some techniques and processes are explained and described in detail only the first few times you perform them.

You will create and publish a variety of final project files, such as animated GIFs, HTML files, and videos, in the lessons in this book. The files in the End folders (01End, 02End, and so on) within the lesson folders are samples of completed projects for each lesson. Use these files for reference if you want to compare your work in progress with the project files used to generate the sample projects.

The organization of the lessons is also project oriented rather than feature oriented. That means, for example, that you’ll work with symbols on real-world design projects over several lessons rather than in just one lesson.

Additional resources

Adobe Animate Classroom in a Book (2023 release) is not meant to replace documentation that comes with the program or to be a comprehensive reference for every feature. Only the commands and options used in the lessons are explained in this book. For comprehensive information about program features and tutorials, refer to the following resources, which you can reach by choosing commands on the Help menu or by clicking links in the Start screen.

Adobe Animate Learn & Support: You’ll find and browse Help and Support content at helpx.adobe.com/animate.html. You can also reach that page by choosing Help > Animate Help or by pressing F1. On the Learn & Support page, click User Guide for documentation on individual features, or visit helpx.adobe.com/animate/topics.html.

Animate in-app tutorials: For a range of interactive tutorials on Animate, choose the Learn tab from the Start screen, or choose Help > Hands-on Tutorial. The short tutorials let you follow step-by-step instructions in the app itself so that you can quickly learn how to animate with graphics already provided for you.

Animate web tutorials: Explore the extensive list of video tutorials on the web by choosing the Learn tab from the Start screen. The video tutorials appear below the hands-on in-app tutorials. You can also choose Help > Online Tutorial. You can sort the tutorials by Beginner or Experienced, and sample files are provided for you to practice with.

Adobe Creative Cloud tutorials: For inspiration, key techniques, cross-product workflows, and updates on new features, go to the Creative Cloud tutorials page, helpx.adobe.com/creative-cloud/tutorials.html. Available to all.

Adobe Animate Assets panel: The Assets panel comes loaded with finished animations using a variety of techniques, such as frame-by-frame animation, tweens, and inverse kinematics with the Bone tool.

Simply drag the asset from the Assets panel onto your Stage. Take your time to explore how the animation is put together, customize it, and feel free to use it in your own projects. Studying other artists’ work is a great way to learn as well as to get inspired. New assets are always being added, so check the Download Assets icon at the bottom of the panel for updated content.

Adobe forums: Tap into peer-to-peer discussions, questions, and answers on Adobe products at forums.adobe.com. The Adobe Animate forum is accessible by choosing Help > Animate Community Forum.

Adobe Create: The online magazine Create offers thoughtful articles on design and design issues, a gallery showcasing the work of top-notch designers, tutorials, and more. Check it out at create.adobe.com.

Resources for educators: www.adobe.com/education and edex.adobe.com offer a treasure trove of information for instructors who teach classes on Adobe software. Find solutions for education at all levels, including free curricula that use an integrated approach to teaching Adobe software and can be used to prepare for the Adobe Certified Professional exams.

Also check out these useful sites:

• Adobe Extensions: https://exchange.adobe.com/creativecloud.html is a central resource for finding tools, services, extensions, code samples, and more to supplement and extend your Adobe products.

• Adobe Animate product home page: www.adobe.com/products/animate.html.

Adobe Authorized Training Centers

Adobe Authorized Training Centers offer instructor-led courses and training on Adobe products. A directory of AATCs is available at training.adobe.com/trainingpartners.

About the Author

Russell Chun is an associate professor at the Lawrence Herbert School of Communication at Hofstra University, where he teaches multimedia storytelling, data journalism, and information design. His research examines effective visual communication and has been published in Journal of Visual Literacy, Proceedings of the New York State Communication Association, and Visual Communication Quarterly, where he serves as an associate editor. He has been writing books on Adobe Animate and its predecessor, Flash, since 2001. He lives in Brooklyn, New York with his wife and three children.