Starting out in Flash for the new user can be a little daunting. There are a load of amazing tools and tricks, which to begin with can be quite daunting and difficult to fully grasp. Enter Dynamic Learning: Flash CS3 Professional, part of the new Dynamic learning series from O'Reilly that is focussed on being a comprehensive learning system for either individuals or the classroom. The book is produced by the Aquent Graphics Institute Team, a group of Web Developers, trainers and professionals, many of whom have created Adobe training manuals themselves. This time round, the team is led by Fred Gerantabee, a certified Adobe instructor with more than a decade of Web publishing experience under his belt. Being Adobe trainers, you can expect this group to know their Flash, and as such provide the user with a firm understanding on the program's basics.

The Flash CS3 Professional manual is part of the O'Reilly 'Dynamic Learning' series, a complete and comprehensive learning system that utilises videos, tutorials and lessons on DVD as a way of effectively teaching to individuals or classrooms. The theory is that it should feel like your own personal tutorial lesson, with the author guiding you through the learning process step by step, in a clear and easily understood manner. A lot of books these days usually have internet tutorials or file downloads to assist in your learning. These are great, mainly because there is no need to worry about losing or scratching a disc, but there's something about having the disc with the book that makes things easier for me and I always appreciate when titles such as this do include the additional disc resource. That said though, the video content is great, presented as Shockwave files, the videos show the author conducting the lesson on screen, making sure to explain in-depth every aspect of what is being demonstrated. And the great part is if you miss something or need a step repeated, it's just a simple matter of rewinding that particular section of the video.

In my opinion, visual examples and images within a text are vital in helping better understand a lesson or concept. If I have a guide with which to compare what I'm doing on my screen to what's being taught, it makes keeping up with a lesson a whole lot easier. Dynamic Learning's method of being comprehensive certainly doesn't disappoint, as the publication contains great colour screenshots of both PC and Mac interfaces, making the learning and understanding process for users of both systems a much simpler experience.

This manual comes in at a bit over 400 pages containing fifteen chapters that deal with various aspects of Flash CS3. These chapters are organised from 'getting started' through to finally publishing your movie, and covering all areas in between. This makes life easy for anyone, as all chapters and their featured lessons are clearly identified, and all content simple to locate and follow through. Each section begins with a 'starting up' page that identifies what lesson files are needed as well as encourage the user to view the relevant tutorial video, to help show what training will be involved. Some of the lessons involved include:

• Getting Started With Drawing Tools
• Modifying and Transforming Graphics
• Creating Basic Animation and Diving Deeper into Animation
• Working with Imported Files
• Introducing Actionscript
• Introducing Movieclips
• Working with Video

The Adobe acquisition of Flash has produced some great benefits for designers, and there is no better place to find this than in Flash CS3. Greater communication between different design programs, such as Photoshop and Illustrator, allows Flash to use graphic files specific to these programs without the need of modification like in the past. This means that layers are retained as well as faster loading times and a greater number of editing options. Flash CS3 also contains the new Actionscript 3.0 as well as improved video options and player abilities. Most of these changes are covered in the manual, though the sections on the new Actionscript 3.0 are quite light and don't really delve into what it's really capable of.

The Dynamic Learning series book lives up to its name as being an effective learning tool that makes understanding new content a simple and enjoyable experience. This book is essentially a trainer for those new to Flash or with little experience, so those that have been using the program for a while, will most likely not get much out of the tutorials. Most of the lessons covered are introductions to Flash's functions and abilities, starting at the very basics and demonstrating (in great detail I might add) a good working knowledge of what can be achieved with the program. If I have any negatives about the book, it would be the depth of these lessons covered. Opening the cover, I was expecting a little more insight into Actionscript 3.0 and incorporating it into my Flash movies. However the lessons touch on some basic script navigation, before moving on to the next chapter. The new updates to Flash CS3 are covered, but again, not in as much detail as I would have hoped.

I would recommend this training manual to those that are new to Flash or wish to brush up on there skills, as more advanced users will not glean a whole lot more new information. The learning system was fantastic though, and quickly running through the tutorials was an enjoyable and easy experience. This is a great base from which to build your knowledge of Flash CS3, and it is on this point, I thoroughly recommend Dynamic Learning: Flash CS3 Professional as a great training resource. Two thumbs up.