In response to the many PMs I get asking for help with the new NG API, I have decided it would be nice to have a single place people could go for general help until we have a proper FAQ on the API section itself.
If you have any questions about the API that are not answered below, post a comment and I'll try and get your question included on here.
NG API FAQ Holy acronyms Batman!
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Q: I just want to run ads, what do I need to do?
A: From the main API Page, add your movie. When the settings page loads, scroll to the 'Flash Ads' panel and make sure they are enabled. Leave all the other options disabled or blank and hit 'save changes'. Follow the installation help for your version of flash.
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Q: I have the flash ad in my movie but nothing is happening, what do i do?
A: First, make sure you have the NewgroundsAPI.as file in the same folder as your game or movie. Flash 5 and MX users, you need to have the NG_API_OBJECT (not to be confused with the NG_AD_OBJECT) on a layer that spans your entire movie. View the API help page for your movie to obtain the files you need.
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Q: When I test my movie, the flash ads cover everything up, what's the deal?
A: The ad unit movieclip should only appear on the frame you want the ad to run on. If it covers your whole movie, you probably have it on a layer that spans your full movie. If you are using Flash 5 or Flash MX, chances are you simply confused the NG_AD_OBJECT with the NG_API_OBJECT.
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Q: I want to use version control... how do I hard code the version number into my movie?
A: You need to set your version number on the same keyframe you have the API installation code. Using the appropriate AS version, replace "1.0.3" with the correct version number.
ActionScript 1 users:
_root.NewgroundsAPI_movieVersion = "1.0.3";
Actionscript 2 & 3 users:
NewgroundsAPI.setMovieVersion( "1.0.3" );
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Q: How do the ads work? How much money will I make?
A: The ads run on several platforms... CPM, CPC and CPA. What that means is that different ads pay for different things. Some ads pay based on how many views they get, some by how many click-throughs they get and some by how many customers buy something from the advertiser. Because much of the ad inventory is dependent on user interaction there is no way to say for sure how much money you will make. From your stats pages you can guess as to how much you will make by looking at your eCPM rates.
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Q: What does eCPM mean?
A: eCPM stands for "estimated cost per mille", or in layman's terms, the average amount of money you earn for every 1000 ad impressions.
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Q: Why is my eCPM so low?
A: The amount of money you earn depends directly on 2 things. The quality of your work and the level of distribution. If your work is of low quality, less people will play it and you will not have much success with ad revenue.
If your work is high quality, but you only have it on one or two sites, you limit the amount of exposure your ads get and will also earn less revenue.
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Q: Can I use the ads and/or API if I have a sponsor?
A: We have no problem with that, but you should always check with your sponsor first.
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Q: I want to submit my game to a site that doesn't allow in-game ads, what can I do?
A: When you install the ads in your work, you have the ability to disable them from loading on any site. Lets say you want to submit to www.adfreegames.com but they don't allow in-game ads.
Go to the settings page for your game and scroll down to the 'Flash Ads' Panel, and locate the text bar labeled Add a New Host.
Type "adfreegames.com" in the box and hit the 'add host' button.
Now, if your game is hosted by www.adfreegames.com, the ads will not load. Your ads WILL load on any sites that swipe your swf file from this site!
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Q: Can I change the tank image and the black border on the ad unit?
A: The ad unit was designed so authors could customize how they look. You can change any of the artwork in the ad movieclips, just avoid altering any of the scripting or instance names. If you break the ad unit you may get limited support, so this is not recommended for novice users of Flash.
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Q: Why am I getting a "There is no method with the name 'isInstalled'" error?
A: Your copy of NewgroundsAPI.as is out of date. Re-download the API for your version of flash to replace it with the latest version.
