Cross dissolves can have a smoothing effect on a sequence, but other transitions can jazz it up. The more complex a transition is, the more parameters you can adjust in the Transition Editor. Most of these transition effects can be played in real time; some may have to be rendered, which you will learn to do in the next exercise.
To make sure you see as many real-time effects as possible, click the RT pop-up in the Timeline and choose Unlimited RT from the shortcut menu. Click the RT pop-up again, and make sure Dynamic is checked in both places it appears. You will learn more about these options in the next exercise.