All of the Adobe CS5 applications have at least one, new killer feature, and my favorite one in Flash is the Deco tool. It lets people (like me) who have no drawing skills to draw basic, but decent illustrations.

Select the tool , then in the Properties panel, choose a drawing effect. My favorite is buildings.

Then simply draw on the stage.

Some of the Deco tool effects are self-animating. For example, you can draw fire that goes for 50 frames. The animations are all frame-by-frame, which means that you can remove the first few frames of the fire animation where the flame ignites.

Just be aware that “Deco” is an appropriate name for the tool. The illustrations aren’t meant to be photo-realistic or even high art. But there are still many instances where the tool will get the job done.

Inserting a Flash movie in PowerPoint 2003 and 2007 wasn’t very straightforward, but you could certainly do it. In 2007, go to the Developer tab on the ribbon (enable the tab in the Options, if necessary) and click the More Tools icon . From the pop-up that appears, choose the Shockwave Flash Object.
Draw a box on the slide, then use the Properties panel to set the file name of the movie.

PowerPoint 2010 either makes this easier or makes it impossible, depending on whether you’re using the 32 or 64-bit version of Office.

The problem is that even though 64-bit Windows has been around for several years, the Adobe Flash player is only a 32-bit plug-in. Office 2007 and older are also 32-bit, so for those applications, the plug-in isn’t a problem.

But Office 2010 is the first suite from Microsoft that comes in x32 and x64 versions. With the x32 version, you can simply go to PowerPoint’s Insert tab and click the Video button to insert a Flash object.

The problem is if you have the x64 version of PowerPoint, the video button won’t let you insert a Flash object, and neither will the Controls window in the Developer tab. You just can’t do it.

Keep in mind that if you have the 64-bit version of Windows 7 or Vista, you can still have the 32-bit version of Office, in which case you can still insert Flash movies. You’ll miss the plug-in only if you’re using the 64-bit version of Office, and that requires 64-bit Windows.

Tuesday, June 22 from 7:00 – 9:00 pm:

I will be doing a live presentation of advanced Flash techniques and new features of Adobe Flash CS5. Location will be at Mediatech, 118 Main Street in Flemington, NJ, above the library. There will be a raffle of the full Adobe Creative Suite (you must be present to win).

This event is sponsored by the Jersey Adobe Multimedia User Group. For more information, see www.jamug.com and the event flyer.

If you’re following World Cup Soccer (excuse me, I mean fútbol), here are two ways to enjoy it more:

1. Get some limes, ice, sugar and a bottle of cachaça, then shake up a couple of caipirinhas. It will almost feel like you’re in Brazil. Here’s a video of how to make the perfect caipirinha, just like they do in……Brooklyn.
2. Download Microsoft’s World Cup 2010 tracker worksheet. It’s a free template for Excel 2007 or 2010 that keeps track of the standings and your favorite teams.
   

My full-length Excel 2010 course is now available at Lynda.com: http://www.lynda.com/home/DisplayCourse.aspx?lpk2=61219.

It covers everything in Excel  2010 from beginner through advanced levels. Check out some of the movies!

Microsoft said it couldn’t be done, but yes, it can! I always need to keep two versions of Office on my laptop, because not everyone wants training in the same version. (I draw the limit at Office 2003.)

But here’s the problem: I’m running the 64-bit version of Windows 7 and the 64-bit version of Office 2010, which means I can’t also have Office 2007, which comes only in 32-bit. The installation programs of both versions will detect the other and simply refuse to run. Office will, however, let you have the 32-bit version of each suite at the same time, but I want (excuse me; I need) Office 2010 x64.

The solution? Windows Virtual PC to the rescue! If you have a licensed copy of Windows 7, you can download and install Virtual PC, which is a fully licensed instance of Windows XP that runs on your computer as an application. This is NOT a dual-boot solution, and it is NOT the same as editing the application’s properties to emulate XP. XP mode becomes available on your Start menu like it’s just another program, and when you run it, you’ll have a window with XP inside. It will look like you’re running a VPN or terminal service.

Once you have the Virtual XP PC running, you can install applications in it, and that includes the x32 Office 2007.

But wait! There’s more! Once you run an application inside the Virtual PC, you can run it the next time independently — you don’t have to run the Virtual PC again. Just run an XP Mode application that’s in the Virtual PC group of the Start menu, and it will run the VM for you in the background.

Learn more about the Virtual PC and download it from www.microsoft.com/windows/virtual-pc.