Professional Adobe® Flex 3

With Professional Adobe Flex 3, put your prior experience with Flash, Actionscript and XML-based language to good use and learn how to use the Flex 3 platform to create rich Internet and Apollo applications. Understand the potential of the Flex 3 platform through practical examples and hands-on advice on topics like developing applications in MXML, creating custom flex components, charting, targeting Apollo runtime, and data interconnectivity. In addition, this book addresses the ways that you can contribute to the development of Flex 3, which is open source.

In recent years, Flex has become the leader in rich Internet application (RIA) development technologies based on the Flash platform, and excitement continues to build around the potential of what Flex 3 has to offer. This comprehensive, in–depth resource provides you with the foundations of Flex 3 and shows how you can maximize your use of Flex 3 to create unique experiences on the Internet and the desktop.

The team of authors distinguishes the relationships between various aspects of Flex 3 and the Flash platform, while also offering extensive coverage of client–side Flex applications development and development best practices. They explain what Flex® Builder can do, how to develop simple Flex 3 applications, and ways to use the Flex 3 framework classes and components. You'll also take a look at more advanced topics such as data integration, architectural frameworks, and advanced tools.

Packed with detailed examples throughout, this authoritative guide will get you up and running with Flex 3 quickly, regardless of your level of Flex experience.

What you will learn from this book

• Techniques for skinning and styling Flex 3 components

• Ways to integrate Flash–built assets into Flex 3 applications

• Various components in the Flex 3 framework that manipulate or display data in the application

• The Cairngorm micro–architecture framework

• Best practices for building efficient, high–performance Flex 3 applications

• Components of the Flex 3 toolset, including the debugger, profiler, unit testing framework, logging framework, and automation framework

• Ways to migrate to Flex from other languages

Who this book is for

This book is for programmers and developers who are looking to leverage the Flex 3 platform to create RIAs. Experience with Flash, ActionScript, and an XML–based language is assumed.

Wrox Professional guides are planned and written by working programmers to meet the real–world needs of programmers, developers, and IT professionals. Focused and relevant, they address the issues technology professionals face every day. They provide examples, practical solutions, and expert education in new technologies, all designed to help programmers do a better job.

Introduction.

Part I: Introduction to Flex 3.

Chapter 1: Why Flex?

Chapter 2: The Flex 3 Ecosystem.

Chapter 3: ActionScript 3.0 Fundamentals.

Chapter 4: Using ActionScript 3.0.

Chapter 5: Introduction to Flex Builder 3.

Part II: Developing with Flex 3.

Chapter 6: Using Flex Builder 3.

Chapter 7: MXML Fundamentals.

Chapter 8: Developing with Flex Builder 3.

Chapter 9: Customizing Flex Builder 3.

Part III: Working with Components.

Chapter 10: The Component Life Cycle and Class Hierarchy.

Chapter 11: Using Data Binding and Events.

Chapter 12: User Interface Controls and Containers.

Chapter 13: Layout Strategies.

Chapter 14: User Interface Integration.

Chapter 15: Getting Started with AIR.

Part IV: Advanced Component Development.

Chapter 16: Custom ActionScript Components.

Chapter 17: Custom MXML Components.

Chapter 18: Extending Flex Components.

Chapter 19: Advanced Event Programming.

Chapter 20: State Management.

Chapter 21: Using Libraries.

Part V: Visual Effects and Multimedia.

Chapter 22: Styles.

Chapter 23: Skinning and Themes.

Chapter 24: Visual Effects.

Chapter 25: Dynamic Skinning and the Drawing API.

Chapter 26: Flash Integration.

Chapter 27: Loading External Assets.

Chapter 28: Video and Sound.

Chapter 29: Advanced Flash Integration.

Part VI: Data Management.

Chapter 30: Working with Data.

Chapter 31: Formatters and Validators.

Chapter 32: Using the List Components.

Chapter 33: Advanced Data Controls.

Chapter 34: Drag and Drop in Flex.

Chapter 35: Drag and Drop in AIR.

Chapter 36: Using the Charting Components.

Chapter 37: Resource Bundles and Data Localization.

Part VII: Client Communications.

Chapter 38: Browser Communication in Flex.

Chapter 39: HTML Mashups with AIR.

Chapter 40: Deep Linking.

Chapter 41: System Interactions in Flex.

Chapter 42: Native Desktop Support with AIR.

Chapter 43: LocalConnection and Shared Objects.

Chapter 44: File Management with Flex.

Chapter 45: Local File Management with AIR.

Part VIII: Server Integration.

Chapter 46: Introduction to RPC Services.

Chapter 47: Error Handling.

Chapter 48: Flex and Flash Media Server.

Chapter 49: RESTful Web Services with Flex and the Zend Framework.

Chapter 50: Integrating Flex and Java.

Chapter 51: Web Services with .NET and Flex.

Chapter 52: Offline Data Access with AIR.

Part IX: Data Services.

Chapter 53: Introduction to LCDS.

Chapter 54: LCDS and ColdFusion.

Chapter 55: The Message Service.

Chapter 56: The Data Management Service.

Chapter 57: Advanced Data Management Services.

Chapter 58: The Data Services Stress Testing Framework.

Chapter 59: Using BlazeDS.

Part X: Using Cairngorm.

Chapter 60: MVC Frameworks.

Chapter 61: Introduction to Cairngorm.

Chapter 62: Applied Cairngorm.

Chapter 63: Advanced Cairngorm.

Part XI: Application Development Strategies.

Chapter 64: Best Practices.

Chapter 65: The Security Model.

Chapter 66: Modular Application Development.

Chapter 67: Application Performance Strategies.

Chapter 68: Project Documenting with ASDoc.

Chapter 69: Desktop Deployment with AIR.

Chapter 70: Dual Deployment for Flex and AIR.

Part XII: Testing and Debugging.

Chapter 71: Debugging Flex Applications.

Chapter 72: Using the Flex Profiler.

Chapter 73: Unit Testing and Test–Driven Development with FlexUnit.

Chapter 74: The Logging Framework.

Chapter 75: The Automation Framework.

Appendix A: ActionScript Language Comparison.

Index.

Joseph Balderson has been fascinated by computers and programming since picking up LEGOs and disassembling nearly every appliance he could find as a child, progressing on to electronics, microcontrollers, and robotics as a teen. This interest took a detour in his college years, when he attended art school and studied poetry, philosophy, and graphic design. When he discovered Flash 4 in 1999, Joseph found his true vocation, one that would allow him to combine his passions for art and science, design, and programming under one roof.

Peter Ent is a Computer Scientist at Adobe, working with the LiveCycle team. Prior to this, Peter worked for Adobe Customer Care as a Flex support engineer and then as a technical account manager. Before joining Adobe, Peter worked in the financial services industry at State Street and Fidelity Investments. He also has experience at two startups, building software applications doing imaging and molecular modeling. Peter holds a BS in Computer Science from Syracuse University.

Jun Heider is a senior developer and technical trainer with RealEyes Media, an Adobe partner company based in Denver, Colorado, with a focus in rich Internet applications. Jun graduated from Regis University with a BS in Computer Networking and has a number of technical certifications.

Todd Prekaski has been building software since 1993 (not including his youthful days programming an Apple IIc and TRS–80). He s been leading application development and strategy for Web–based startups and Fortune 100/500 enterprises ever since, using a panoply of technologies and platform, including Java, .NET, and LAMP. Todd is currently the chief technical architect at Beacon Street Software, based in Boston, Massachusetts. Occasionally, his thoughts show up in his blog at www.simplifiedchaos.com.

Tom Sugden is a technical architect for Adobe Professional Services. His interest in computers began in the 1980s, programming sport simulators and beep–music on the ZX Spectrum 48k. When the keyboard broke from too much Dailey Thompson, Tom upgraded to the Commodore Amiga and continued to create amateur games (but with multi–channel sound) in AMOS, before dabbling in the black art of Assembly language.

Andrew Trice is the principal architect for Flex and AIR for Cynergy Systems, based in Washington, DC. He specializes in data visualization, client/server architectures, object–oriented principles, and rich application development. He has been developing for the Web for more than a decade, with more than eight years in development for the Flash platform. Andrew has developed with Flex since version 1.5, and thrives off the creativity and rich experience that the Flex/Flash platform enables. Andrew is also a regular author for Adobe Devnet and other industry weblogs. He is known not only for Flex expertise but is also a Microsoft Certified Application Developer and possesses a wide range of knowledge regarding relational databases, AJAX/JavaScript, ColdFusion, .NET, and Java–based Web applications.

David Hassoun is the founder of RealEyes Media, LLC, a digital media firm based in Colorado that focuses on interactive motion media and advanced Flash and Flex platform applications. David has always had a passion for motion media, the power of video, and the challenges of usability and interactivity. David is an Adobe Certified Master Instructor, teaches advanced RIA classes at the University of Denver, serves as the Rocky Mountain Adobe user group manager, and has taught and developed advanced Flash and Flex application courses. As a consultant or while employed with other firms, he has worked for a wide range of companies such as American Express, Chase Manhattan, Qwest, Boeing, Macromedia, Adobe, the U.S. Air Force, Bechtel/Bettis, and many more. David regularly performs advanced code and technical best practices reviews, and has provided directional advice for international industry leaders over the past years including many technical, courseware, and application reviews as an industry expert.

Joe Berkovitz is president of Noteflight LLC, maker of the world s first online music notation editor, and is a senior software architect with consulting shop Infrared5. With almost three decades of designing and building world–class software, Joe brings creativity and discipline to his work in Flash and Flex. He is a frequent speaker at conferences and is the originator of the popular MVCS architecture for complex Flex applications. Joe has published several ambitious open–source projects, most recently the Moccasin graphical editing framework and Flexcover, a code coverage tool for AS3. Joe is an active pianist and composer, and performs frequently in the Boston area.