Applying anti-alias to loaded text

Would someone please explain to me once and for all how to apply anti-alias with actionscript to a loaded text ! Is all you have to do use textField.antiAliasType ? Do you have to embed the font ? Is it necessary to apply a text format as well ? Pls explain.

And another question about loaded text:
If I have a mask applyed to a dynamic text, do I need to embed the font outlines for it to be visible ? If wes, why ?