Connecting with External Sources > Sending messages to and from the Flash Player > Using fscommand |  |

Using fscommand

Use the `fscommand` action to send a message to whichever program is hosting the Flash Player. The `fscommand` action has two parameters: `command` and `arguments`. To send a message to the stand-alone version of the Flash Player, you must use predefined commands and arguments (parameters). For example, the following action sets the stand-alone player to scale the movie to the full monitor screen size when the button is released:

    on(release){
    	fscommand("fullscreen", "true");
    }

The following table shows the values you can specify for the `command` and `arguments` parameters of the `fscommand` action to control a movie playing in the stand-alone player (including projectors):

Command | Arguments | Purpose
--- | --- | ---
`quit` | None | Closes the projector.
`fullscreen` | `true` or `false` | Specifying `true` sets the Flash Player to full-screen mode. Specifying `false` returns the player to normal menu view.
`allowscale` | `true` or `false` | Specifying `false` sets the player so that the movie is always drawn at its original size and never scaled. Specifying `true` forces the movie to scale to 100% of the player.
`showmenu` | `true` or `false` | Specifying `true` enables the full set of context menu items. Specifying `false` dims all the context menu items except About Flash Player.
`exec` | Path to application | Executes an application from within the projector.

To use `fscommand` to send a message to a scripting language such as JavaScript in a Web browser, you can pass any two parameters in the `command` and `arguments` parameters. These parameters can be strings or expressions and will be used in a JavaScript function that "catches," or handles, the `fscommand` action.

An `fscommand` action invokes the JavaScript function `moviename``_DoFSCommand` in the HTML page that embeds the Flash movie, where `moviename` is the name of the Flash Player as assigned by the `NAME` attribute of the `EMBED` tag or the `ID` attribute of the `OBJECT` tag. If the Flash Player is assigned the name `myMovie`, the JavaScript function invoked is `myMovie_DoFSCommand`.

To use the fscommand action to open a message box from a Flash movie in the HTML page through JavaScript:

1 | In the HTML page that embeds the Flash movie, add the following JavaScript code:
    function theMovie_DoFSCommand(command, args) {
    	if (command == "messagebox") {
    		alert(args);
    	}
    }
| If you publish your movie using the Flash with FSCommand template in the HTML Publish Settings dialog box, this code is inserted automatically. The movie's `NAME` and `ID` attributes will be the file name. For example, for the file `myMovie.fla`, the attributes would be set to `myMovie`. (For more information about publishing, see Publishing.)
| Alternatively, for Internet Explorer applications, you can attach an event handler directly in the `<SCRIPT>` tag, as shown in this example:
    <Script Language = "JavaScript" event="FSCommand (command, args)" for= "theMovie">
    ...
    </Script>
2 | In the Flash document, add the `fscommand` action to a button, as shown in this example:
    fscommand("messagebox", "This is a message box invoked from within Flash.")
| You can also use expressions for the `fscommand` action and parameters, as in this example:
    fscommand("messagebox", "Hello, " + name + ", welcome to our Web site!")
3 | Choose File > Publish Preview > HTML to test the document.

The `fscommand` action can send messages to Macromedia Director that are interpreted by Lingo as strings, events, or executable Lingo code. If the message is a string or an event, you must write the Lingo code to receive it from the `fscommand` action and carry out an action in Director. For more information, see the Director Support Center.

In Visual Basic, Visual C++, and other programs that can host ActiveX controls, `fscommand` sends a VB event with two strings that can be handled in the environment's programming language. For more information, use the keywords Flash method to search the Flash Support Center.