
RC Sliders are EDAPT Objects, which can transform various properties of multiple symbol instances simultaneously and independently, without treating them as a selection group.
The slider is operated by dragging its handle with KineFlex.
There are two general categories of sliders:
- Attached, identified by its diamond-shaped handle
- Unattached, identified by its circular handle (only available in Flash)
Attached Sliders require each controlled instance to be placed on its own layer, and identify those instances via metadata, therefore after the initial tagging they can operate without the need of a selection, even when the controlled layers are locked.
Unattached Sliders require a stage selection, but they can control multiple symbol instances on the same layer.
These types of sliders (secondary action after the slash) are available in each category:









* Scale and Squash & Stretch sliders are available in EDAP Premium only.
Functionality
Object creation:
1. Attached Slider
After making a selection of one or more symbol instances on Stage, the command is executed with a Shift modifier Shift+F6. This will present the user with a dialog, where he can choose the type of slider and a few other self-explanatory features. Upon confirmation the slider is created and placed on a special layer, called RC_Sliders.
This slider category has two small buttons on the left and right of the rail:
The [ ··· ] button on the left (or below for vertical sliders), when clicked with KineFlex, allows adding or removing instances to the slider's group of controlled elements, and adjusting its settings.
By default Attached Sliders are Multifunctional, but via Settings their behavior can be restricted to either the Primary or the Secondary action.
The [ ] button on the right (or above for vertical sliders), when clicked, will create keyframes for elements belonging to the slider's group.
2. Unattached Slider (only available in Flash, but not in Animate)
When there is nothing selected on the Stage, the execution of the command with a Shift modifier Shift+F6 will result in the creation of an Unattached Slider.
RC Sliders can also be created via the dedicated button in SMR Helpers panel or the Create And Manage RC Sliders button in EDAPT Commands panel clicked when Shift is held down.
Interactions, while operating a slider with KineFlex:
No modifier (when not customized via Settings): Dragging the handle without holding down any modifier keys on the keyboard will produce the slider's primary action. Each instance will be transformed around its own Transformation Point. (See the table below.)
Alt-down (when not customized via Settings): Holding down Alt and dragging the handle will produce the slider's secondary action.
Shift-down (when not customized via Settings): Holding down Shift and dragging the handle will switch the pivot of transformation to either group's center or the top-most T‑point for both the primary and the secondary actions.
T‑point layer stack order can be overridden via a Pose Anchor, snapped to any T‑point in the group.
Alt+Shift-down will combine the two modifiers.
For specifics, see the table below.
No modifier – primary action | Alt-down – secondary action | Shift-down – unified pivot |
---|---|---|
Change First Frame | Symbol Swap (Next/Prev in Library) | Only show frames with labels |
Move Horizontally | Taking flipped state into account | Using the group's center or T‑point |
Move Vertically | Taking flipped state into account | Using the group's center or T‑point |
Rotate | Taking flipped state into account | Using the group's center or T‑point |
Scale Horizontally | Scale Vertically | Using the group's center or T‑point |
Scale Vertically | Scale Horizontally | Using the group's center or T‑point |
Scale Uniform | Squash & Stretch | Using the group's center or T‑point |
Squash & Stretch | Scale Uniform | Using the group's center or T‑point |
Visibility Switch | n/a | n/a |
Click on the [ ··· ] button with KineFlex: This will invoke the Slider Settings dialog, which allows the user to add or remove controlled instances, and to alter slider's default behavior by explicitly choosing only Primary or Secondary action.
Click on the [ ] button with KineFlex: This will create keyframes, even in the middle of a tween, for all elements that belong to the slider's group.
Defining a Frame Range
In order to exclude a portion of the timeline from the Change First Frame slider loop, you can use the Create Frame Range command.
Visibility Switch 
Visibility Switch is a special type of slider.
Its purpose is to make the controlled elements virtually invisible by swapping them with a transparent Proxy Object.
Visibility Switches do not have secondary action or settings.
Instead of that the Slider Settings dialog provides a button for Realignment of the controlled Duplicates with their parents.
This function can also be invoked by Alt+Shift-clicking on the Switch with KineFlex.
Object management
When called without a modifier F6 the command toggles off or on the visibility of the RC_Sliders layer.
Upon re-showing the sliders, if it is necessary, their size and geometry will be adjusted to match the current view.
(The position of the slider can be adjusted by simply moving it with the Selection or the Free Transform tools.)
Customization
Upon creation, users can choose color, size, orientation and settings for the slider. They can also tint it later, should they wish to change its look.
Settings can be adjusted later by clicking on slider's [ ··· ] button.
Users can also make sliders easier to identify by labeling them with text or icons. To do so, double-click on a slider with the Selection or Free Transform tools to enter the symbol. Type text or draw a picture on the your stuff layer.
When inside a flipped container, press the Straighten Controllers button in SMR Helpers panel to make text easily readable again.
Suggested use
Applying transformations to multiple elements, without treating them as a selection group. This allows to transform (scale, skew, rotate, etc.) multiple instances each one around its own Transformation Point, which is impossible to achieve with the default Flash/Animate tools.
Also: Facial rigs and character animation.
Also: Visibility Switches are extremely useful in character animation in all situations where re-layering used to be needed in the past. Now Duplicates can be created and switched on or off with a Visibility Switch. An example would be an arm that is normally behind the torso in 3/4 view, but sometimes the hand and lower arm need to appear in front.
Where does it work?
Stage
EDAP Tools shortcut
F6 (toggles on and off the visibility of the RC_Sliders layer and adjusts the slider geometry)
Notes
RC Sliders will not work if the current frame is not a Keyframe.
Unattached Sliders are not available in Animate.

Do not rename, move or delete this folder. It should always stay in Library's root.

Known issues
System Clipboard interference
A known issue with all versions of Flash and Animate is that data stored temporarily in the System Clipboard can be exposed to interference by other programs running at the same time as Flash/Animate. This can cause an error during EDAPT Object creation or insertion.
If you see any error messages or if you experience problems with creation or insertion of RC Sliders, please, follow this link.
Video demonstration
hey nick, this is really great, but can you adding sensitivity to the slider, that would be perfect