Hey,
Since the new HTML5 Canvas tools do not support masks you may need to get creative with different gradient PNG files and layering. For example, you put you text on a layer, then on the layer above it you position a box with a gradient that starts at 0% opacity and moves to match the background color, then animate a move from left to right sliding the gradient off the text to "reveal" it. This works well enough on a solid background but becomes un-useable when you use it on an image or gradient background.
If you are working in AS3 versus the HTML5 canvas you can apply a mask to the text layer that reveals on a timeline, check out the tutorials on masking.
If you want some serious text animation tools that will really knock your socks off check out AfterEffects. The text tools there are really powerful and can be outputted as small video files that you can then add to the AS3 version of the timeline. I am just getting into the HTML5 canvas version in Flash and thus far I have not found a way to use video files within the animations. I have that question in the Forum too.
If you want the project to be viewable on the iOS operating system (iPad/iPhone) then you are limited to using the new HTML5 canvas and therefore the masking and video limitations are in effect. I guess since this tool is so new they were not able to get all the functionality into the new platform.
If all you are looking to do is create Slideshows that you play from your laptop and/or videos that are posted on YouTube then the AS3 tools will make easy work of the text effects you are looking to accomplish, just learn as much as you can about masking and using gradient PNG files. If you have the Creative Cloud and are a little adventurous, check out AfterEffects and the text tools there, they will help you create any text effect you have ever dreamt of.
2 more things you may be interested in:
First, in AfterEffects you have the ability to program a timed reveal of the strokes on handwritten fonts. That means that if you set it up correctly you can automatically set up a handwriting reveal that looks like actual handwriting with pen strokes, again take a look at the tutorials, The function is called animating a stroke and I have seen several in the Adobe tutorial videos over the years.
Secondly, one of the hurdles in using Flash as a slideshow generation tool is how to get the remote in your hand to animate the frames in the show. Unless you are standing at the keyboard hitting the buttons you program in to advance to the next slide you will want a remote to handle this functionality. The bluetooth remote for the Mac and the IR remote for PCs will not do this automatically, you will need to program in that functionality and to do that you need the computer to recognize the remote's button presses as a certain key press so you can trigger the function on that key press. For the Mac I have had success with the Better Touch Tool ap. It allows for assigning the button press on the Mac Remote to do specialized keypresses that I then insert into the AS3 of my slideshow to trigger the next frame or previous frame. I was even able to program the up button to go to the beginning of the presentation and the down button to go to the end.
I hope some of this helps.