20 January 2003 - FlexiDev Corporation Pty Ltd today announced the release of Asset Mover, a Flash development tool that both optimizes preload indicators and improves file size within Macromedia Flash 5 and Flash MX movies.

Asset Mover allows Flash developers to move a Flash movie's linked assets to a frame of their choice. This feature is not provided in Macromedia Flash 5, and has limited control in Flash MX.

Linked assets are automatically located in the first frame. By reassigning linked assets to a later frame in the movie, developers may gain more control over the apparent speed with which their Flash files download.

'End-users may abandon your Flash download if the preloader gets held up on the first frame', explains Asset Mover's creator, Glenn Mitchell. 'The movie may be loading, but if this isn't indicated, users could cancel the download and potentially leave the site. Files most at risk are component-rich applications and online games'.

'Other preload solutions tend to be complex, or just plain cumbersome', adds Glenn. 'We wanted to continue producing flash files and have all the preload issues taken care of by somebody else. Asset Mover takes care of these issues and does it conveniently.'

Asset Mover also identifies and removes redundant linked assets to reduce file size.

'A surprisingly wide variety of Flash 5 and Flash 6 movies can be reduced in size, including games, applications and even banner ads', says managing director Peter Crandall. 'We've seen upwards of 15% savings in file size for some popularly downloaded files. The time and bandwidth savings can be significant.'

Asset Mover retails for US$24.95 and is available at www.flexidev.com. A free demo version is also available.

Flexi Software Corporation Pty Ltd is an Australian-based company producing tools and services for the Flash development market.