Transcript What is Fusebox? - MD ColdFusion User's Group

Flex 2
We’re Not in Kansas Anymore!
or Welcome to Flex
Theo Rushin Jr
[email protected]
TeraTech, Inc.
Speaker Information
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Windows-based Developer - Since ‘85
Senior ColdFusion MX Developer - Since ‘99
Technical Instructor - Since ‘85
Flash Developer - Since ’99
Flex Developer – Since ’05
 Expert Snowboarder – Since ‘00
What is Flex?
“Adobe Flex 2 is a powerful application
development solution for creating and
delivering cross-platform rich Internet
applications (RIAs) within the enterprise
and across the web.”
David Gassner
What is Flex? (cont.)
 It’s a programming framework
 It’s an Eclipse based IDE
 It’s a set of server-side data services
Why are we here
2004
WEB APPLICATIONS
RICH INTERNET APPLICATIONS
1998
1992
MAINFRAME
CLIENT/SERVER
What are the benefits?
USERS
DEVELOPERS
IT OPERATIONS
• Dynamic data interface
• More functionality
• Less server load
• Less training and fewer errors
• Less code
• Less bandwidth
• More interaction
• Cleaner architecture
• More users served with same
infrastructure
• Less development time
Interfaces
that Work
Higher
Productivity
Operational
Efficiency
Flex 2 Product Line
Flex SDK 2
Flex Builder 2
MXML and ActionScript 3.0
Visual Layout
Flex Framework and Class Library
Code Hinting
Command-line Compiler & Debugger
Flex
Extensible Charting Components
Charting 2
Flex Data Services 2
Message Service
Data Management Service
RPC Services
Debugging
Skinning and Styling
What do I need?
 Download the Flex Builder 2 Trial
This includes;
 Flex 2 SDK
 Flash Player 9
 Flex Builder Plug-in
What do I need? (cont.)
Alternatives?
 Download the FREE Flex 2 SDK
 Download Eclipse 3.1.1 or 3.1.2
 Download the Flex Builder 2 Trial
Your Journey Begins Here!
Flex Builder 2 IDE
Flex™ Builder™ 2 is an Eclipse™ based
IDE for developing rich Internet
applications (RIAs) with the Adobe Flex
framework.
Programming Languages
You use two languages to write Flex
applications: MXML and ActionScript.
Programming Languages (cont.)
MXML is an XML markup language that you use to lay
out user-interface components. You also use MXML to
declaratively define nonvisual aspects of an application,
such as access to data sources on the server and data
bindings between user-interface components and data
sources on the server.
MXML-defined applications are compiled into SWF files
and rendered by the Adobe® Flash® Player 9
Programming Languages (cont.)
ActionScript is an object-oriented procedural
programming language, based on the
ECMAScript (ECMA-262) edition 4 draft
language specification.
Programming Languages (cont.)
Developers can use ActionScript to implement
custom behavior within their Flex applications.
A declarative language like MXML is not
appropriate for coding what you want to happen
when the user clicks a button, for example. For
that, you need to use a procedural language
like ActionScript, which offers executable
methods, various types of storage variables,
and flow control such as conditionals and loops.
Layout, Constraints and Navigation
The containers provided with the Flex
framework let developers design complex,
adaptive layouts with ease.
Panel
Canvas
Hbox, Vbox
Etc.
Layout, Constraints and Navigation
Flex Builder features a constraint-based
layout model that provides the control of
absolute positioning while still retaining
enough flexibility to respond smoothly to
resizing.
Layout, Constraints and Navigation
Flex features navigational containers that
control user movement, among multiple
children where the children are other
containers.
TabNavigator
Accordian
Etc.
Visual Controls
User-interface components, such as
Button, TextArea, and ComboBox controls
allow you to quickly define a rich and
engaging interface for you users.
Label
Checkbox
Etc.
Events
User interaction with your application can
generate events. You can "listen" for these
events in your code by adding event listeners,
sometimes referred to as event handlers.
The Flex event model is based on the
Document Object Model (DOM) Level 3 Events
Model.
Data-Driven Controls
Several Flex controls can take input from
a data provider, an object that contains
data.
DataGrid
Tree
HorizontalList
Etc.
Server-side Communication …
Flex 2 provides a new messaging infrastructure
for building data-rich applications.
There are three Flex features that are designed
for moving data to and from applications:
RPC services,
the Data Management Service,
and the Message Service.
Server-side Communication …
RPC services
Lets you create applications that make
asynchronous requests to remote
services that process the requests and
then return data to your Flex application.
Server-side Communication …
Data Management Services
Lets you create applications that work with
distributed data, and lets you manage large
collections of data and nested data
relationships, such as one-to-one and one-tomany relationships.
Requires Flex Data Services
Server-side Communication
Message Services
lets you create applications that can send
messages to and receive messages from other
applications, including Flex applications and
Java Message Service (JMS) applications.
Requires Flex Data Services
Questions?
Email me at
[email protected]
Flex Resources
 Flex 2 product line
 http://www.adobe.com/products/flex/
 Flex 2 stencils for Microsoft Visio
 http://www.digimmersion.com/
 Adobe Flex News
 http://weblogs.macromedia.com/mxna/index.cfm?query=byM
ostRecent
 Flex.Org
 http://www.flex.org/
Thoughts for today…
 Learn
 Share
 Have FUN!
Beware of the Flying Monkeys!