Quark Forums

I have just created a nice little Flash file using Illustrator (well, I like it!), exported as SWF. It works well in SAFlashPlayer, but when I import it into a Quark web page (not created in QID), all I see is a large black area. No preview of the animation. And when I preview the web page in my browser (Safari) I just see the same black rectangle - no animation. Am I doing something wrong? (I'm new to Quark web design and Flash animation!) Can I not use Flash animation in Quark web pages? Have I made an error in the output from Illustrator? I'm using Quark 7.5, Illustrator CS3 on an Intel Mac. Any help is very much appreciated, and will assist me in keeping my boss off my back!!

There is indeed a not-so-obvious operation that you need to perform in order to keep the Flash® files interactive:

Once you have imported the .SWF file into a picture box inside a Web Layout, you have to Ctrl-click the item and apply "Fit Box To Picture". Else it will be rendered into a static image.

Thanks for that, but I had tried that already (I do that as a matter of course for all pictures). The SWF file created by Illustrator just refuses to be imported into a picture box on my Quark Web page as anything other than a solid black rectangle. Not even a preview of the graphic. Nothing but the solid black. I have tried other SWF files that were knocking around in my system (from a training video for Macromedia Dreamweaver) and those work just fine on the Quark web page. Anyone got any suggestions as to what I can do now?

I have just been playing around with the graphic - I have cut the graphic down to simply a series of three differently colour squares in a row with (roughly) a 5mm gap between them. No animation. Just one layer with the squares. When I export to SWF from Illustrator, then import the SWF in Quark, i still get the solid black preview. However, if I move the coloured boxes so that they overlap, I get a proper preview in Quark. If I then move the right hand box further away so that is not touching, and export etc. I get the proper preview. Then, if I move the the second box away from the first, I get the solid black preview!! Why???

Had the same thing happen....with the black box. Tried the following and it worked... Click on the SWF File, go to Item/Modify. In the dialogue tabs (which in print always have Box, Picture, Frame, Runaround, Clipping etc) and click the tab that says Export. Under Exporf make sure the drop down for Export As: says SWF and Export to: image