Getting on the Flex Highway - How to get up to speed with Flex

Raghunath RaoEngineer, Flex TeamBangalore, Indiahttp://raghuonflex.wordpress.com/

Introduction to Flex

Experience evolution: Building the new frontier

CLIENT/SERVERMAINFRAME

WEB APPLICATIONS

REA

CH

Local

Global

RICHText UI Integrated media GUI

1992

1998

2004

RICH INTERNETAPPLICATIONS

HTML Deficiencies• Page metaphor• Only 6 UI controls• Browser inconsistencies• Press n’ pray printing• Request-only data• No offline operation• Bitmaps from the server• A/V plug-in hell

HTML Deficiencies• Page metaphor• Only 6 UI controls• Browser inconsistencies• Press n’ pray printing• Request-only data• No offline operation• Bitmaps from the server• A/V plug-in hell

Client/Server Benefits• Screen metaphor• Extensible UI libraries• Online/offline + synch• WYSIWYG printing• Data visualization• Live data connectivity• Bitmap/vector graphics• Integrated A/V

Client/Server Benefits• Screen metaphor• Extensible UI libraries• Online/offline + synch• WYSIWYG printing• Data visualization• Live data connectivity• Bitmap/vector graphics• Integrated A/V

Why RIA?

“In Web1.0 Data was Dictator,

In Web2.0 User is King and Data is Queen”

Anatomy of a Rich Internet Application

Data Visualization

& Collaboration

Real Time Data

Push & Alerting

Chat

Offline

Data Synchronization & Conflict Resolution

Bi-Directional Audio & Video

Rich Data Entry

Menus & NavigationControls

Resizable Views/Effects/

Transitions

Mapping, Geo-Coding, Annotations

& White boarding

Where Flex is UsedProduct

Configuration

Rich Media Applications

Data Visualization

Complex, Multi-Step Processes

Product Selection

Line of Business Applications

How Flex works…

BrowserBrowser

Flash Player

Web ServerWeb Server

Flex Builder IDEFlex Builder IDE

Flex SDKFlex SDK

MXMLMXML ActionScriptActionScript

Flex Class LibraryFlex Class Library

.swf

Compile

.swf

Flex SDK

Flex/Ajax Bridge

What Do I need?

FREE

FREE

Flash Player 9FREE

Flex Builder

Design View

Code Hinting

Debugging

Component Skinning

Flex Data Services

Messaging Service

Data Management Service

RPC Services

Demos Dashboard Application Flex Store Home Locator FlexBook

Demo 1 Demo 2

Getting on the Flex Highway - How to get up to speed with Flex

flex.org One stop shop! Run by the community http://flex.org Online Compiler - http://try.flex.org Test Drives for Developers from

other technologies Many More…

Adobe -Flex Developer Center

http://www.adobe.com/devnet/flex/ Run by Adobe Quick Starts What to look out for?

Quick starts Tutorials

Flex CookBook (common coding problems)

Handy Apps

Flex Component Explorer Flex Style Explorer

Video Tutorials

http://video.onflex.org/

Flex Training

Online http://www.totaltraining.com/ http://www.lynda.com/

Custom Components

Flex Exchange Run by Adobe Contribution from both Adobe and the

Community Commercial, Free & Open Source

components 3dChart Component Auto Complete

Custom Components

as3corelib (on Google Code) Hashing Encryption JSON conversion Image Encoders Etc…

Doug’s Snapshot Creator

Custom Components

Others Flexlib (on Google Code) FlexBox (by Mrinal) RIAForge (Open source projects built

on Adobe technologies) as3crypto library

Where do I go with my problems and get them solved?

Public Bugbase Flex Coders on Yahoo Groups Regional Flex Groups

Flex-India on Google Groups Regional FUGs (Flex User Groups)

Blogs to Bookmark

Ely Greenfield Doug Mccune Alex Harui scalenine.com

Q&A