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• MacDisk
• MacImage
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• Support
• FAQs
• Site Map

Flash 4 and Macintosh Executables

Since version 4, Flash allows the developer to create on the PC both a Windows program and a Macintosh executable.

Historical Binhex Files

Up to Flash version 8, the Macintosh files created by the program were BinHexed Files.
They need to be correctly managed to avoid losing their executable property. See our page on Macintosh File Forks for more information. Particularly, don't try to unpack this container.

Current Package Bundle

From Flash version 8, the Macintosh projector is produced as a projector put in a so-called package bundle. This bundle is a specific Macintosh convention, where a folder is managed by the Finder as a file.
As a matter of fact, the projector appears on the PC as a folder, with the classical folder icon and with *.app name suffix.

Solution With MacDisk

You simply open a Macintosh medium and copy the unit to the Macintosh volume.
If this is a binhex file, MacDisk detects the fact and decodes it on the fly to manage both forks and put things where they belong.
If this is the package bundle, MacDisk does nothing special and just copies the files and folders as they are on the source medium.
Put the disk in a Macintosh and you'll see a classical Macintosh application, with the common Flash icon, waiting for you, just a click away...

Solution With MacImage (Hybrid CD-ROM)

In the Project mode (default mode), just drag-and-drop the original unit to MacImage window, in HFS view (the ISO view can't do anything with this unit, which should not be shared).
If this is a binhex files, MacImage detects the fact and extracts the necessary information.
In the case of the package bundle, there is nothing special to do.
On the other hand, the swf files are dragged-and-dropped to the hybrid view, to share them between both views (between both executables).
When you compile the project to produce the CD-ROM image, the BinHex container is broken and both forks correctly copied.
After that, you burn the resulting image with your favorite CD-ROM authoring tool, telling it that this is an ISO image. See our CD-ROM FAQ for some comments on the different software packages.

Second Solution With MacImage (Mac-only CD-ROM)

In the second case (HFS only CD-ROM), switch to Partition Mode and create a new partition. Then copy the MacBinary file to the Macintosh virtual medium, as explained above about MacDisk.

A FAQ on Cross-Platforming With Flash Projectors

I've found another very interesting page on cross-platforming with Flash projectors, collected by Radina Matic from the messages exchanged on the former www.actionscripts.org forum.

Flash and Subfolders

The Flash documentation explicitly says that the data files (*.swf) should not be put in a folder tree, that is that they must be in the same folder as the projector. It seems that this restriction is not quite rigourous on the PC, but that it is applied strictly on the Mac. We have been told of presentations working with several swf files scattered on a folder tree on the PC and only showing the root files on the Mac.
Beware!