The Fade action allows you to fade objects in or out, to or from, a particular transparency.
1. Add the Fade action to your trigger, as described in adding actions. The Fade tab will automatically appear when you add the action.
2. At the top of the Fade tab is the Object List. Click the name of the object in the list that you want to fade. By default, This Object is selected (see Note).
Note:
Only one object can be selected from the Object list. The default option This Object refers to the object in which this action has been placed – this option is useful if you want to copy this action to other objects that will follow the same path because you do not have to re-select the new object name from the list.
3. Set the Transparency option to the percentage you want the object to be transparent by. Use the spin buttons to increase or decrease the percentage of transparency.
4. Use the Duration option to set the time over which the fade will happen. Use the spin buttons to increase or decrease the time.
Note:
If the duration is set to 0 seconds, the fade will happen immediately.
5. Set the direction of the fade in the Direction panel. The In option will increase the level of transparency from the current transparency level and the Out option will decrease the level of transparency from the current transparency level. By default, the In option is selected.
6. Click on the Fade By option to fade by the level set in the Transparency option.
Note:
For example, if the current transparency of the object is 70% and you fade by 20%, the new transparency will either be 50% (if the In option is selected in the Direction panel) or 90% (if the Out option is selected in the Direction panel).
Also note that the Fade By option works from the existing transparency setting so if your object is not transparent, fading it in by any amount will not work as it is already 0% transparent. Instead you must use the transparency slider to set its transparency to a level where the change will be relevant or use another Fade action to reduce the transparency before fading in.
7. Click on the Fade To option to fade an object to the level set in the Transparency option.
Note:
For example, if the current transparency of the object is 70% and you fade to 20%, the new transparency will be 20%.
8. Click on the …once option if you want the object to fade just once.
9. Click on the times box if you want to set a specific number of times the object should fade. Use the spin buttons to set a specific number of times.
10. Click on the …continuously option if you want the object to fade continuously.
Note:
Use the Stop Animation action if you want to stop an object fading continuously.
11. Click on the down arrow to the right of the Speed Control option to select how the object will fade over a length of time, e.g. at a regular pace or faster at the beginning or end of the path, and so on. By default, the Constant is selected.
12. Use the At End options to set the transparency level of the object when it completes its fade. There are three options: Stop, Return and Reset. By default, the Stop option is selected.
14. Use the Send "Synchronise to End" trigger if you want to start a Synchronise to Animation End trigger when the object reaches the end of the animation.
15. Click on the Apply button to save your changes.
Note:
A Fade action is automatically added to an object when you create a Fade animation using the Animation Wizard. This allows you to change the options you created in the wizard by opening the object’s Actions dialog and changing the options in the Fade action.
The Fade action is often used with the Mouse Over and Mouse Exit triggers to create a visual effect when selecting buttons – see Mouse Movement Triggers for more information.