best error message

I was looking at my machine's logs. I do this now and then. I'm a geek, okay?

Oct 6 01:31:29 Cobweb /System/Library/Frameworks/ScreenSaver.framework/Resources/ScreenSaverEngine.app/Contents/MacOS/ScreenSaverEngine: The function CGSCreateDictionary is obsolete and will be removed in a Tiger update. Unfortunately, this app, or a library it uses, is using this obsolete function, and is thereby contributing to an overall degradation of system performance.

Best passive-aggressive error message ever. Unfortunately this shows up like ten times in a row, but doesn't say which screensaver module is using this.

(ps.

Flash(6655,0xa000ed88) malloc: *** Deallocation of a pointer not malloced: 0x21920d0; This could be a double free(), or free() called with the middle of an allocated block; Try setting environment variable MallocHelp to see tools to help debug

- generated while I was merging some stuff. My god, Flash actually recovered from a memory error. Amazing.)

cheap flash trick

Cheap and dirty Flash asset management:

1. each setup is one file*, to work around the way Flash chokes on large files
2. animate each setup. Do not bother naming symbols - "Symbol 497" is perfectly fine!
3. use the libAppend plugin to automatically append something like "Sc1_" to each symbol's name. Only select the generic-name "Symbol 39" symbols in the library; do not select reused symbols.
4. if you need to pull one symbol out of another setup, go to the library and name it before copying it over. This is optional; at least make sure you've done the libAppend bit.
5. drop each scene into a symbol in the master file (probably using 'New Anim Clip" from the same place as libAppend)and put it on the timeline, replacing your board sketches. I tell it to use the new versions of symbols, in case I've added more mouths.

I really, really hate giving each symbol unique names. Having to think what something should be named interrupts my flow when I'm working, and Flash does that enough already. This method lets me completely ignore the need for symbol names unique to each scene while I'm animating, and not worry about cross-setup reuse bloating the SWF needlessly.

if you're doing major library animation you probably want to be giving everything sensible names, like "mary-h-1-e1-s4" (mary's head #1 from episode 1, scene 4), but if you're doing more full, one-shot pieces? Screw that.

( Other tricks... )