Flash CS3 Documentation

ActionScript 2.0 Language Reference > ActionScript classes > Button > getDepth (Button.getDepth method)

getDepth (Button.getDepth method)

Returns the depth of the button instance.

Each movie clip, button, and text field has a unique depth associated with it that determines how the object appears in front of or in back of other objects. Objects with higher depths appear in front.

Availability: ActionScript 1.0; Flash Player 6

Returns

Number - The depth of the button instance.

Example

If you create myBtn1_btn and myBtn2_btn on the Stage, you can trace their depth using the following ActionScript:

trace(myBtn1_btn.getDepth());
trace(myBtn2_btn.getDepth());

If you load a SWF file called buttonMovie.swf into this document, you could trace the depth of a button, myBtn4_btn, inside that SWF file using another button in the main SWF file:

this.createEmptyMovieClip("myClip_mc", 999);
myClip_mc.loadMovie("buttonMovie.swf");
myBtn3_btn.onRelease = function(){
    trace(myClip_mc.myBtn4_btn.getDepth());
};

You might notice that two of these buttons, one in the main SWF file and one in the loaded SWF file, have the same depth value. This is misleading because buttonMovie.swf was loaded at depth 999, which means that the button it contains will also have a depth of 999 relative to the buttons in the main SWF file. You should keep in mind that each movie clip has its own internal z-order, which means that each movie clip has its own set of depth values. The two buttons may have the same depth value, but the values only have meaning in relation to other objects in the same z-order. In this case, the buttons have the same depth value, but the values relate to different movie clips. For example, the depth value of the button in the main SWF file relates to the z-order of the main timeline, while the depth value of the button in the loaded SWF file relates to the internal z-order of the myClip_mc movie clip.

See also

getDepth (MovieClip.getDepth method), getDepth (TextField.getDepth method), getInstanceAtDepth (MovieClip.getInstanceAtDepth method)

Flash CS3