Flash glossary: Transform
You can transform graphic objects—as well as groups, text blocks, and instances—in Adobe Flash Professional by using the Free Transform tool or the options in the Modify > Transform menu. Depending on the type of element you select, you can transform, rotate, skew, scale, or distort the element. You can change or add to a selection during a transformation operation.
When you transform an object, group, text box, or instance, the Property inspector for that item displays the changes made to the item's dimensions or position.
A bounding box appears during transform operations that involve dragging. The bounding box is rectangular (unless it was modified with the Distort command or the Envelope modifier) with its edges initially aligned parallel to the edges of the Stage. Transformation handles are located on each corner and in the middle of each side. As you drag your mouse, the bounding box allows you to preview the transformations.
To rotate an object, hover the cursor near one of the corner handles. When the rotate cursor appears, click and drag in the direction you want to rotate the object. If you hold down the Shift key while rotating, the rotations are limited to 45° angles.
To scale an item without changing its proportions, press and hold the Shift key while dragging one of the corner transformation handles in the bounding box.
You can group multiple objects in order to transform them as a single unit.
Scaling and transforming bitmap graphics is not recommended; for optimal results, scale or resize bitmap graphics in an image-editing program such as Adobe Fireworks or Adobe Photoshop before importing them into your Flash project.
To learn more about manipulating objects, see the section titled Transforming objects in the Flash documentation.
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