Not Bummed About AIR’s HTML Component: Javascript and Actionscript Integration
So I've had a change of heart. Big whoop! It happens to everyone at some point in there life. Its kind of like when your girlfriend starts to really get on your nerves but then out of no where she...oh nevermind, I think you know what I mean. At any rate, I've been working on an HTML/CSS editor program for the book and I have to say that the Javascript/Actionscript integration is simply amazing! Maybe I'm getting excited over nothing, but I can't begin to tell you how awesome it is to be able to loop through stylesheet and css related objects all inline with my actionscript. Sure, there's a few things you have to take into consideration, but it has allowed me to make this application in almost no time. I just have to brush up on my Javascript and bam! CSS editor! Needless to say, I'm stoked. Over and out.
Bummed out over AIR’s HTML component
For perhaps obvious reasons, I've been trying to make a web browser using AIR's HTML component. I made some really quick assumptions about how this component was going to work and how much functionality Adobe would be putting into it. My assumptions are partly based on an entry in the AIR Developer FAQ. It reads:
Q: Is Adobe AIR a web browser?
A: No. Adobe AIR is a cross-operating system runtime that runs outside of the browser. Theoretically you could build a web browser on top of Adobe AIR.
Naturally I thought: "Wow, what a sweet possibility!" I could make a cool little custom browser with some rad built in features. But it wasn't until after hours and hours of trying to create a general purpose browser, I've come to a breaking point. I should have realized this earlier, but its just not made for general web browsing yet. I mean, a quick Google search reveals that no one else out there seems to be trying to make a browser on top of AIR. Not to mention you can't open links that use an "_blank" target or open Javascript created windows.
It's my own fault really for making the assumption this was possible. So now I can only hope that we get something more robust in the future.
FlashForward & Books
We've been wickedly busy over the past couple of months. Outside of rocking our day jobs ( at Schematic & Rokkan ), we've been co-authoring a book on Adobe AIR with Todd Anderson ( of Schematic ).
On top of this, we're presenting at FlashForward, Boston in September. Our presentation is entitled, "Designers vs. Developers: How to Avoid Fights on the Playground." As the name implies, it's going to be focusing on how Designers and Developers can work together better by understanding some helpful tips and tricks of each of the disciplines. Matt & I are originally from a design education, but as it turns out, we've both weaseled our ways into programming/development roles in our respective companies. As such, we constantly rack our brains on how the two different sides of the office can work together better, or how designers could learn the basics of programming easier.
We'll hopefully talk more about these things in the upcoming months, as we get closer to launch dates.
Boston CyberArts Lecture
Everyone who showed for tonights CyberArts lecture, thank you.
Hopefully it wasn't too boring or too fast. There was a lot of material to cover and a pretty broad topic. Either way, I hope you all enjoyed learning about Flex tonight (Joey's lecture included).
As promised, here are the links I was talking about at the end of the presentation.
Please email me (mleuchner [ a t ] schmatic com) if you have any questions.
As promised, here is the project files for the music player (a work in progress) :
Lecture Files
~enjoy.
But It Looks Too Much Like Flex
First, I must digress. I have to admit, I've been really reluctant to get into Flex and MXML and all that jazz. Although, I do think Actionscript 3 is a huge improvement over the previous version. But Flex just doesn't feel like Flash to me. Maybe I'm ignorant, or maybe its because of my design schooling, or maybe its because I don't really build applications but rather consumer "experience" websites. However, the more and more Actionscript I write and the more I get into OOP concepts, the more it is starting to appeal to me. So recently I started familiarizing myself with Flex and what not just so I know what I'm missing out on.
Now to get on with the point of my post. I've checked out a few Flex applications online and some of the functionality displayed in these apps is awesome. My only gripe is that everything looks like Flex! Granted, I'm a total n00b when it comes to Flex and I'm sure there are ways to skin stuff, but right now it seems like a total pain in the ass. BUT! I did do some searching around today and just happened to stumble across what seems to be the start of a really awesome website: scalenine.com.
ScaleNine is a collection of themes created for Flex. It also serves as a source for interface options that expand beyond Flex's default theme. Some involve graphical skinning and others are purely CSS.
So this is starting to get me a little more interested, which is a good thing, because I certainly can't make consumer sites my whole life. Now its time to dive deeper into all of this and maybe have Marc teach me a few things.
Flex 2 Cookbook
I totally missed this, but Adobe, in cooperation with O'Reilly, launched the Flex 2 Cookbook Beta site. I believe they put this up around the New Year ... so it's not all that old.
The point of this site is to post solutions to problems that you may have encountered with Flex 2. If you're familiar with O'Reilly's existing Cookbook series... Adobe is essentially looking for people to mimic the structure of that series. If the editors like your solutions, they will add them to the printed edition of the Flex 2 Cookbook, by Joey Lott (and apparently you).
After a couple months of having the site live... it's pretty disappointing ... there are only Flex related questions but no real 'solutions.' Hopefully it picks up and straightens itself out.