flash (macromedia): I'm doing an online ad and for the first time really have to worry about file
size (their limit is 35k!), so I spent a while in Photoshop saving the images
I'm using to very small sizes without hurting the images noticably (one jpeg,
one gif), such that they don't even add up to 10k. But when I export the flash
it makes a 66k file (the flash itself is only 2k minus the images). I never
realized before that flash recompresses everything itself, even if the files
you're importing are already jpeg. I can't for the life of me see where to stop
it from doing this?? It seems it leaves GIF's alone but wants to recompress
jpegs.

I don't understand ... you do want the file smaller right? so in that case you
would want it compressed as small as possible, let it do it's thing.

two other things here:

1) is (66k) the size of the FLA? the SWF should be much, much smaller, which
is the one you'll be using online anyway.

2) try a 'save and compact' function for the file menu.

No, it's not a huge deal. I am talking about the SWF being 66k (the FLA is
288k). It's just that I like to use photoshop to save the jpeg because you get
more options and easier, and that works most of the time when you get the "use
imported jpeg data" option in Flash like Walter says (if you don't then flash
could actually make the jpeg bigger when it recompresses) but for some reason I
don't get that option with every jpeg... just strange.

hmmm .. yeah weird. and OK swf big, got it. Are you using the 'save for web'
command in PS, and optimizing as well as quality will allow? Also you might be
better off with a png image file, using the same method, especially if you
don't need transparentcy, but png24 isn't bad.