The FXML Effect Language

FXML (The FX Meta Language) is a form of XML that is used to describe Flash animated graphics in a quick, easy, and dynamic way. You can use FXML to describe:

Slideshows (with limitless transition effects)
Rich text (with over 500 fonts available)
Motion graphics
Animated text effects
Video effects

Simple Example

Here's a simple example of some FXML:

<Effect height="150" width="150" bgcolor="#ffffff">
 <DropShadow>
  <TextLabel><![CDATA[
    <FONT FACE="Freshman" SIZE="28" COLOR="#CCFF00">BETA</FONT>
  ]]></TextLabel>
 </DropShadow>
 <Rotation endValue="360" event="In Rolling Loop" frames="400" startValue="0">
  <Star radiusRatio="0.71" fillColor2="#ff0000" borderSize="1" points="18"
               borderColor="#000000" fillColor="#cccc00"/>
 </Rotation>
</Effect>

and below is what happens when you run it. If you look at the source of this document, you will see that this effect has been built from a direct embedding of FXML in HTML, making it very easy to script, configure, copy and remix.

The root Effect tag describes the main properties of the effect - it's height, width and background colour. We add to the effect a TextLabel, with text 'BETA' and the Freshman font, enclosed in a DropShadow tag, to add instant shadow. Underneath this, we describe a Star enclosed in a Rotation effect.

Editing FXML

The best way to create and edit FXML is to use the online graphical editor, The Effect Generator. Here you can drag and drop text, video, and compositional Flash components to create a wide range of effects. Alternatively, you can simply edit the XML directly - full documentation is on its way.

Publishing FXML

You can also use The Effect Generator to publish directly to blogs, social networks, or get code for your effect as Javascript, HTML or FXML embedded in HTML. Alternatively, you can insert an FXML effect directly into your webpage using the template below:

<!--    _____ START FXML PLAYER: http://www.effectgenerator.com/doc/fxml.php ____ -->
<script class="fxml" type="text/xml">
  <!-- Insert FXML Here! -->
</script>
<div class="nofxml" style="visibility:hidden;"></div>
<script src="http://www.effectgenerator.com/1.0.6/fxml.js" type="text/javascript"></script>
<!--    ________________________ END FXML PLAYER ________________________ -->

You can use the 'nofxml' div tag to specify alternate content for broswers that do not support Flash.

The Effect Generator

Flash in a flash