This course is written for SWiSH2. If there is enough interest in a SWiSHmax course, it will be offered in the future. Please let Vikki know if you'd be interested in SWiSHmax.

Learning Objectives: This course will open up the world of SWiSH and SWiSH Sprites to you! Over the course of six weeks you will be introduced to the Basic Features and Tools in SWiSH, including the Workspace, Toolbox and Tools, Property Palettes, the Timeline and more. We'll explore the use of the Drawing Tools in creating animations, the difference between Shapes and Objects and exactly what IS a Sprite?! By the end of the course you will be able to create basic movies as well as some more interesting effects and will have an understanding of how to use these movies in a web page or in MacroMedia Flash programs.

Prerequisites: It is necessary to have a good understanding of how computers and the internet work. Basic HTML skills are required if you will be using your own website. Students have the option of using the Student Upload Area made available for LVS students. Details are provided in the classroom. If you prefer to use your own web space, you must know how to upload your files to a server.

Your storage space with your web host must be configured (MIME-Type) to handle Shockwave Flash files (.swf) and native SWiSH files (.swi). If you are unsure, check with your web host provider. If you don't have web space to store your files on, you can get free space at LVS Online or you can utilize the SUA. Details are provided in the classroom.

Requirements: This course requires SWiSH 2, we will not be addressing the limitations of SWiSHLite or the advances in the newly released SWiSHmax. You can download a 15-day Trial Version of SWiSH at http://www.swishzone.com; after the 15 days is up you must purchase the program in order to use it. A Trial Version will only get you through the first 2 weeks of this class, so plan on purchasing if you have not yet done so.

SWiSH runs on the Windows platform, under Versions Win 95/98, NT, Win2k and WinXP.

All lessons are available in both HTML and a printer-friendly PDF format. Adobe Acrobat Reader is required to view/print the PDF versions of the lessons.

Zip files with examples and files necessary to complete the assignments are provided each week. WinZip, PKZip, Stuffit or similar program is required to unzip these files. If you have WindowsXP it comes with a built-in utility to handle Zip files (called Compressed Folders).

It may be necessary to use Internet Explorer to download SWI files (SWiSH's native format). Some browsers do not handle every file format properly.

Plan to devote approximately 4 - 6 hrs per week on the lessons and assignment.