# Specific components to draw lines

**URL:** <https://forum.kirupa.com/t/specific-components-to-draw-lines/324340>\
**Category:** flash\
**Created:** [August 15, 2011, 11:01pm UTC](https://forum.kirupa.com/t/specific-components-to-draw-lines/324340 "2011-08-15T23:01:36Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![dimabilar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/977dab/32.png) [@dimabilar](https://forum.kirupa.com/u/dimabilar)\
**Post date:** [August 15, 2011, 11:01pm UTC](https://forum.kirupa.com/t/specific-components-to-draw-lines/324340/1 "2011-08-15T23:01:36Z")

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Hi,  
I will try to explain what I have to develop with Flash and AS3, even if it is hard for me to do it in English ! (At the end, I will certainly use Adobe Air to have a desktop application).

The Flash App that I have to develop is a view of a “network” that will be animated dynamically and connected to an external C++ application. Fig 1):

Each pipe has a specific name (or tag name = Pipe1,…) and have its own color, this color can change during time and it is given by another external application coded in C++.  
This is an example; the reel image that I have to draw is about 300 Pipes with of course different shapes (But always vertical and horizontal pipes).

As I have to change the color of the 300 pipes dynamically I am not going to create 300 Movie Clips Classes ? is this can be done with only one class and 300 instance of that class ?

As I have to draw the image of the image with the Flash Pro Editor, I thing that components must be the solution for me?

I have some common knowledge with AS3 and Flah and I have no problem to code in OPP.  
I can easily manage the interface between my Flah application and the external C++ dll, but I I have some questions about the approach and the good practices.

My question: is there a way to developed a flash component that represent a pipe and can act like a PowerPoint connector where I can modify each instance to make it look like for example (fig 2) :

Of course I need the component to have a live preview as I went to use the Flash Ide as an editor of my image.

I am only asking of some advices for the best way to accomplish my needs and I will code and test everything after this.

May be I am getting it all wrong and the only way to achieve what I went is to create 300 Movie Clip Classes. And the conclusion is Flash Editor is not PowerPoint or Visio alike editor ?

Thanks a lot

Dima