# About built-in objects

You can use built-in ActionScript objects to access and manipulate certain kinds of information. Most built-in objects have methods that you can call to return a value or perform an action. For example, the Date object returns information from the system clock and the Sound object lets you control sound elements in your movie.

Some built-in objects have properties whose values you can read. For example, the Key object has constant values that represent keys on the keyboard. Each object has its own characteristics and abilities that make it useful in a movie.

The built-in ActionScript objects are divided into several categories within the Objects folder in the Actions panel: Core, Movie, Client/Server, and Authoring.

- The Core objects are also core objects in the ECMA specification on which ActionScript is based. The ActionScript Core objects are Arguments, Array, Boolean, Date, Function, Math, Number, Object, and String.The Media objects are specific to ActionScript. They are NetConnection, NetStream, Sound, and Video.
- The Movie objects are specific to ActionScript. They are Accessibility, Button, Capabilities, Color, Key, Mouse, MovieClip, Selection, Sound, Stage, System, TextField, and TextFormat.
- The Client/Server objects are ActionScript objects you can use to communicate between a client and a server. They are LoadVars, XML, and XMLSocket.
- The Authoring objects are for customizing the Flash authoring application. They are CustomActions and Live Preview.

Movie clips are represented as instances of the MovieClip object; the MovieClip object is one of the most important built-in objects in ActionScript. You can call built-in movie clip methods just as you would call the methods of any other ActionScript object. For more information about the MovieClip object, see Working with Movie Clips.

For detailed information on each object, see its entry in ActionScript Dictionary.