( Create )
F7: make a new empty frame.
F6: duplicate the current frame.
F5: extend the current frame.

( Preserve )
F8: convert the current selection into a Symbol.
Command – F8 (Mac) or Control – F8 (PC): make a new empty Symbol.

( Destroy )
Shift – F5: delete the current frame, and close the gap on the timeline.
Shift – F6: delete the current frame, and leave the rest of the timeline in place.

Here’s a video tutorial on how to copy and paste blocks of frames on the timeline in Flash. This is a great way to move large amounts of content between FLA project files–and you don’t have to dig around in the Library panel, either.

Here’s a video tutorial on how to import and hand-trace a photo in Flash.

A potential drawback here is that less smoothing means more complex vector shapes, which make for bigger files and demand more CPU power during real-time playback. However, in many cases this shouldn’t make much difference to a modern computer–and if your project is going to end up exported to video anyway, there’s no excuse not to get the best-quality line possible.

So, while the Paintbrush is selected, open the Properties panel and adjust the Smoothing amount to taste. The default value is 50; I use 20.

Question 1. Are you working with non-interactive animation only—no Movie Clip symbols or ActionScript? Then export to a PNG image sequence. Sure, it may be tempting to skip the hassle of reassembling the resulting folder full of images in a program like After Effects or Final Cut. But this is the only way you’ll be guaranteed perfect frame accuracy (one image file for each frame on your timeline) and a working alpha channel, no matter what Flash version you’re using. In my experience, all versions, Windows and Mac alike, behave identically with this option.

However, if you do use Movie Clip symbols or ActionScript in your project, then your options depend on which Flash version you have.

Question 2. Do you use Flash 8 or earlier? Older versions have no built-in way of recording real-time events to video, which means Movie Clip symbols won’t display properly and ActionScript will be ignored. So you’ll need to publish to a SWF, then run the SWF and find a way to record the results. The simplest aproach is to use a screen-capture program like Snapz (USD $70, OS X) or Fraps ($40, Win).

You could also record out over analog video to a DV camera or similar device, but unless you have a specific reason to prefer this option, I wouldn’t recommend it—it’s a hassle to set up, and there are a lot more variables to contend with that could potentially affect image quality. A third alternative, also impractical for most purposes, is to set up a video camera on a tripod and record straight off your LCD monitor. (With a good camera and an experienced operator, this can be quite nice.) None of these methods, unfortunately, will preserve an alpha channel.

Question 3. Do you have Flash CS3 or later? In more recent versions, Adobe added a built-in screen capture option for recording realtime output, alpha channel included. Unfortunately, they made the terrible decision of hiding this important feature in the menu File / Export / Export Movie / Quicktime. In most other programs, a menu option like that will give you a frame-accurate copy of your project, and this is emphatically not the case here—remember, it’s a record of a real-time performance, not a rendering of each frame in your timeline. Why couldn’t they have just named it something else?

Step 1. Import an audio file. (For best results, use an uncompressed format like AIFF or WAV. Also, be aware that older versions of Flash may have trouble with audio sampling rates higher than 44.1 kHz.)

Step 2. Go to your Library window, where you should see the file you just imported:

Step 3. Drag and drop the file from your Library to the first frame of a new layer. The frame’s icon will change and display a tiny, oh-so-subtle horizontal line.

Step 4. That horizontal line is actually the very beginning of your audio waveform. But, as always in Flash, space only exists on the Timeline where you deliberately create it. Add more time to your sound layer with the Insert Frame command. (F5 is the shortcut for this; it’s worth learning, as this is something you’ll have to do a lot.)

Step 5. Add frames to your layer until the entire sound file is visible. (Remember that you can select multiple frames–you don’t have to make them one at at time.)

Step 6. Next, bring up your Properties window:

Step 7. Set the sync mode to Stream. Newer versions of Flash should do this automatically, but it’s worth checking. The other sync modes have their uses too, but this is generally easiest to work with. (I prefer to stick with this and do any additional sound editing in a dedicated program.)

Step 8. You might want to double-click on your sound layer and give it a helpful name, like “audio.” Then click the Lock to prevent any changes (you don’t want to accidentally shift your sound layer around later on).

Step 9. Make a new layer, and you’re ready to start drawing.

Step 1. The first thing you’ll need to do is choose a size for your document.

Flash uses vector graphics, so your finished movie can exported at any resolution you like. All you need to worry about right now is the aspect ratio, the width and height of your screen. I’d suggest using 640 x 480 for a 4:3 movie, and 640×360 for a 16:9 movie. You’ll notice that you can choose a frame rate too, although I usually leave that at 12 frames per second.

Step 2. Next, pick the Paintbrush tool from the tool palette. Unlike the Pencil tool, it responds to pressure from your tablet, painting thicker strokes the harder you press. (Be sure to click the use tablet pressure button to activate this feature. It’s so useful, I don’t know why it’s not on by default.)

Step 3. Now we get to a slightly tricky bit. You can’t just start drawing into empty spaces on the timeline in Flash. You have to create each blank frame you want to draw into. Fortunately, you can do a bunch at once. Select a group of frames:

Step 4. Choose the rather well-hidden Convert to Blank Keyframes command from the Modify menu. You’ll notice that it tells you the keystroke for this command is F7. That’s handy to know, because you’ll actually be using this obscure-sounding command a whole lot, to create more frames as you go.

The empty space you selected on your timeline is now filled with blank frames, ready to draw into:

Step 5. There’s one more helpful concept to learn before you get to work. Onion skinning lets you see an overlay of the frames in front of or behind you, so you can keep a previous or future image in mind as you draw. Handily, you can drag the handles of the onion skin viewer to choose how many frames ahead or back you want to see. (I usually just keep one previous frame in view, to use as a reference; otherwise, I start to get confused.) Turn this feature on and off by clicking the onion-skinning button.

Step 6. That’s it for the basics! Once you’re comfortable with the Paintbrush, try experimenting with the other drawing tools.