23rd May 2000

Vector animations are pretty darn spiffy; they're easier to watch then they are to create. Owning a paint brush doesn't make you Michelangelo! That's not today's tip, however. How many times have you seen a killer Macromedia 'Flash' file? You can't right-click on one and save it, but there may be an indirect method (at least, with IE). While a Flash animation is in your browser window, fire up a Windows Find applet (select the Desktop and tap the F3 key). Look in your C drive for all files named: *.SWF (use this exact string). When one is found, go ahead and copy it to your Desktop (just drag & drop it). The file(s) will most likely NOT be associated with a program, but you should be able to open them in IE (regardless). Of course, they'll take up the entire area of your browser, so (when you're viewing a Flash file) you may wish to shrink the window.