KB: Sizing Application to Specific Dimensions

[Desmond]

Sizing my Application to Particular Screen Dimensions

Document ID: IR10007

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The information in this article applies to:

• AutoPlay Media Studio 5.0 Standard Edition
• AutoPlay Media Studio 5.0 Professional Edition

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SUMMARY

This article describes how to resize your application based on the user's screen resolution.

DISCUSSION

The easiest way to ensure that your project plays on everyone's computer is to design it to the lowest common denominator. Every computer system capable of running an AutoPlay generated file can support 640x480 resolution.

Our default project size is compatible with a 640x480 resolution.

If you desire to have a project that makes use of the user's entire screen, no matter what their resolution, the easiest way is to design a separate project for each resolution. Also create one 'master' project that determines the user's resolution (System.GetDisplayInfo), and have it launch the appropriate sized application automatically.

If both of these options are unacceptable, AutoPlay does include actions to resize and reposition objects on your page. It is possible to determine the user's resolution, and then appropriately position and size every object in your page. Obviously this is not the preferred method due to the sheer time the application would take to design. Please note that resize and reposition actions are available in the Pro Edition Only.

KEYWORDS: Size, Resize, Screen, Resolution, Maximize

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Last reviewed: September 22, 2003
Copyright © 2003 Indigo Rose Corporation. All rights reserved.

[azmanar]

Hi,

Ok, I have made 2 executable files, one 800x600 and another 1024x800.

So, how do I use System.GetDisplayInfo and trigger either files accordingly.

I would appreciate very much if there are ready scripts to use.

Thanks

Azman

[eric_darling]

You need a third application, which should be the one that autostarts - that app is tiny - use it to check for screen resolution, then have it automatically start the appropriate executable, then have it terminate itself. That way, the only application left running is the one that is appropriate for that screen resolution.

[Brett]

Or you could have the 800x600 one launch all of the time and then just have it startup the bigger one and close itself down in the On Startup actions. I think that this is what the KB article was suggestiong.

[eric_darling]

Yeah - that would work too... Always more than one way to skin a cat in AMS, and what with your most recent changes to the code to speed up the startup of the AMS runtime, it's probably six-in-one, half-dozen the other.

Sorry, that was cheap stringing two trite euphamisms into the same sentence like that...

[Worm]

Here's a little launcher app I've used myself. The way I've used it was to create a Project for as many resolutions as I wanted to support, then put them in subfolders.

Anyhow, put the contents of this zip on the root of the CD, edit the AUTORUN.INI

DEFAULT is the resolution that will run if you don't have a matching res in the INI.

[Corey]

Here's another way, build the attached example but ignore the build warnings. It works at 640X480, 800X600, 1024X768, 1152X864, 1280X1024, but you can easily set it for any resolution.

Since Flash content is vector based, it is a very good choice for use in variable resolution applications.

Corey Milner
Creative Director, Indigo Rose Software

[TJ_Tigger]

There is a project I made that shows how to to this as well. I think Intrigued has it on http://amsuser.com . It is called ScreenRes-others-TJ-Tigger.zip