Synopses & Reviews
If you're ready to develop Rich Internet Applications with Flash, learning ActionScript 3.0 is a must. This Quick Answer Guide is designed specifically to help Flash designers and developers make the leap from AS2 to AS3 quickly and painlessly. Written by Flash insiders with extensive knowledge of the technology, this guide points out the key differences between AS2 and the new object-oriented version of the language -- such as where your favorite language features went, and how your approach to workflow will change. You also get overviews of AS3's features and object orientation in general, plus solutions for handling more than three dozen programming tasks with AS3. Formatted so you can find any topic easily, ActionScript 3: The Quick Answer Guide for Flash Professionals explains: Object-oriented programming (OOP) concepts, such as packages and classes ActionScript 3 features, performance, and design patterns Workflow differences between AS2 and AS3 including tools, code editing, component sets, and image and font rendering Where did it go? A guide to help you find familiar features in AS3, such as global functions, operators, statements, and every class from accessibility to XML How do I? Step-by-step solutions for performing tasks with AS3, including input, sound, video, color, display, events, text, debugging, and more
The Quick Answer Guide also demonstrates how you can leverage AS3 skills across various platforms such as Flex and Adobe AIR. AS3 is a huge upgrade to Flash's programming language, with enhancements to its performance, feature set, cleanliness, and sophistication. This guide helps you upgrade your programming abilities to match it.
Synopsis
Designed specifically to help Flash designers and developers make the leap from ActionScript 2 to ActionScript 3.0 quickly and painlessly, this book offers an overview of ActionScript 3.0 and includes a How do I? section for dealing with tasks.
Synopsis
"No matter what your background, the pages that follow will provide you with some excellent knowledge, insight, and even a little bit of wisdom in the realm of Flash and ActionScript. Happy learning!"-- Branden Hall, from the Foreword
Written by Flash insiders with extensive knowledge of the technology, this guide is designed specifically to help Flash designers and developers make the leap from ActionScript 2.0 to the new object-oriented ActionScript 3.0 quickly and painlessly. Formatted so you can find any topic easily, ActionScript 3.0 Quick Reference Guide explains:
- Object-oriented programming (OOP) concepts, such as packages and classes
- ActionScript 3.0 features and player enhancements that improve performance
- Workflow differences between ActionScript 2.0 and ActionScript 3.0 including tools, code editing, component sets, and image and font rendering
- Where did it go? A guide to help you find familiar features in ActionScript 3.0, such as global functions, operators, properties, and statements
- How do I? Step-by-step solutions for performing tasks with ActionScript 3.0, including input, sound, video, display, events, text, and more
Also included are overviews of Flash and ActionScript features and workflows. ActionScript 3.0 is a huge upgrade to Flash's programming language -- and this guide helps you upgrade your skills to match it.
About the Author
David is a career multimedia programmer/designer whose portfolio includes NASA, Adobe, and major US automotive and boat manufacturers. He likes anaglyph 3D photography, finely crafted wooden game boards, Library of Congress field recordings, and Turkish coffee. David is self-taught and gets a kick out of sharing \"aha!\" moments with others through consultation, mentoring, and regular contributions to the Adobe Flash and ActionScript forums. He is a resident author at Community MX, a web development training site geared toward Adobe products. David lives in Virginia with his amazing wife, Dawn, and his beguiling daughter, Meridian.Rich Shupe has been teaching ActionScript programming to students of all levels since the language became available. He founded his own training and development company, FMA, in 1995. A recognized authority on several technologies, including Flash, Director and QuickTime, Rich is a full-time faculty member at New York's School of Visual Arts' Computer Art Department. His highly acclaimed "Learning ActionScript 3.0" has been called "The best book on ActionScript ever written" by evangelist and Flash community leader Lee Brimelow.Jen deHaan is a freelance web designer/developer based in Calgary. She has been involved in writing, contributing to or editing many computer books on Flash, ActionScript, digital video and ColdFusion in 2002. She has co-authored three books on ActionScript: Flash MX Designer\'s ActionScript Reference, ActionScript Zero to Hero, and Flash MX Components Most Wanted.
Jen graduated with top honors from a top New Media program, and also with a BFA in Developmental Art from the University of Calgary. She is an experienced teacher and writer, focusing on integrating technologies for the Web using Flash MX. Jen\'s personal websites are ejepo.com and flash-mx.com.Biography to follow
Table of Contents
Dedication; Foreword; Preface; What Sets This Book Apart; What's in This Book; What's Not in This Book; Conventions Used in This Book; This Book's Example Files; Using Code Examples; Safari® Books Online; How to Contact Us; Acknowledgments; ActionScript 3.0 Introduced; Chapter 1: Introducing ActionScript 3.0; 1.1 Examining ActionScript 3.0, the Language; 1.2 Exploring Flash Player API Updates; 1.3 Understanding Players and Support; 1.4 Learning ActionScript 3.0 on the Heels of 2.0; 1.5 Deciding to Migrate or Write Code from Scratch; Chapter 2: Discovering What You Need to Work with ActionScript 3.0; 2.1 Flash CS4 Professional/Flex Builder 3; 2.2 Flash Player 9 or Higher; 2.3 Using Other Code Editors with Flash; Chapter 3: Looking at the Changes in ActionScript 3.0; 3.1 Major Changes and Obsolete Code; 3.2 Major Syntax and Structure Changes; 3.3 Additional ActionScript 3.0 Resources; Chapter 4: Exploring the Benefits of Using ActionScript 3.0; 4.1 Performance; 4.2 Efficiency; 4.3 Consistency; 4.4 Standards and Portability Among Other Technologies; ActionScript and the Flash CS4 Authoring Tool; Chapter 5: Creating and Working with Code; 5.1 Thinking in Terms of the Timeline; 5.2 New Features in the Actions Panel and Script Windows; 5.3 Setting ActionScript Preferences; 5.4 Associating FLA Files with AS Files; 5.5 Using Script Assist; Chapter 6: Creating a Document Class; Chapter 7: Working with Library and Linkage Changes; 7.1 Linkages Now Reference Classes; Chapter 8: Copying Motion as ActionScript 3.0; 8.1 Copying Motion; 8.2 Applying Motion to Other Objects; Chapter 9: Using ActionScript 3.0 Components; 9.1 Overview of the Component Set; 9.2 New and Removed Components; 9.3 Changes in Writing Code for Components; 9.4 Changing the Appearance of Components; Chapter 10: Making Up for a Reduced Component Set; 10.1 Working Without Data Components in ActionScript 3.0; 10.2 ActionScript 2.0 Components in ActionScript 3.0 SWF Files; 10.3 Exploring Third-Party UI Components; Chapter 11: Debugging and Troubleshooting; 11.1 Debugging Is a Good Thing; 11.2 Testing Your ActionScript 3.0 Code; 11.3 Reviewing Improvements in Debugging Over ActionScript 2.0; 11.4 Exploring the Compiler Errors Panel; 11.5 Using the Enhanced Debugging Workspace; How Do I?; Chapter 12: How Do I Draw with Code?; 12.1 12.0 Introduction; 12.2 12.1 Creating a Display Object Dynamically; 12.3 12.2 Referencing an Object's Graphics Property; 12.4 12.3 Defining a Line Style; 12.5 12.4 Drawing a Line; 12.6 12.5 Drawing a Curve; 12.7 12.6 Defining a Fill Style; 12.8 12.7 Drawing a Rectangle; 12.9 12.8 Drawing a Rectangle with Rounded Corners; 12.10 12.9 Drawing a Circle; 12.11 12.10 Creating a Gradient Fill; 12.12 12.11 Using a Drawn Shape as a Dynamic Mask; 12.13 12.12 Caching Vector as Bitmap; 12.14 12.13 Applying a Simple Bitmap Filter; Chapter 13: How Do I Work with the Display List?; 13.1 13.0 Introduction; 13.2 13.1 Choosing Which Type of Display Object to Use; 13.3 13.2 Creating a New Display Object; 13.4 13.3 Adding a Display Object to the Display List; 13.5 13.4 Specifying the Depth of a Display Object; 13.6 13.5 Finding a Display Object; 13.7 13.6 Removing a Display Object from the Display List; 13.8 13.7 Working with Children of a Display Object Container; 13.9 13.8 Working with Parents of a Display Object; 13.10 13.9 Casting a Display Object from One Type to Another; 13.11 13.10 Changing the Parent of a Display Object; 13.12 13.11 Referencing the Stage Through a Display Object; Chapter 14: How Do I Work with Events?; 14.1 14.0 Introduction; 14.2 14.1 Understanding Event Listeners; 14.3 14.2 Capturing Mouse Events; 14.4 14.3 Understanding Event Flow; 14.5 14.4 Using Event Bubbling; 14.6 14.5 Using the target and currentTarget Event Properties; 14.7 14.6 Simulating a Mouse Up Outside Event; 14.8 14.7 Capturing Frame Events; 14.9 14.8 Improving Performance by Removing Event Listeners; 14.10 14.9 Capturing Keyboard Events; 14.11 14.10 Capturing Stage Events; 14.12 14.11 Using a Timer to Dispatch Events; 14.13 14.12 Dispatching Your Own Events; 14.14 14.13 Manually Calling Event Listener Functions; 14.15 14.14 Capturing an Event Before It Reaches Its Target; 14.16 14.15 Setting the Execution Order of Events; 14.17 14.16 Using Weak Listeners; Chapter 15: How Do I Work with Text?; 15.1 15.0 Introduction; 15.2 15.1 Creating a Text Field; 15.3 15.2 Styling a Text Field; 15.4 15.3 Creating a Password Field; 15.5 15.4 Focusing a Text Field; 15.6 15.5 Populating a Text Field; 15.7 15.6 Automatically Sizing a Text Field; 15.8 15.7 Scrolling a Text Field; 15.9 15.8 Using Embedded Fonts; 15.10 15.9 Formatting Text Using TextFormat; 15.11 15.10 Formatting Text Using HTML; 15.12 15.11 Formatting Text Using CSS; 15.13 15.12 Adding Hyperlinks to Text; 15.14 15.13 Triggering ActionScript from HTML Links; 15.15 15.14 Selecting Text; Chapter 16: How Do I Work with XML?; 16.1 16.0 Introduction; 16.2 16.1 Creating an XML Object; 16.3 16.2 Loading XML; 16.4 16.3 Reading an Element Node; 16.5 16.4 Reading a Text Node; 16.6 16.5 Working with Multiple Nodes of the Same Name; 16.7 16.6 Reading an Attribute; 16.8 16.7 Finding Content Using Shorthand; 16.9 16.8 Finding Content Using Conditionals; 16.10 16.9 Reading HTML or Entities in XML Nodes; 16.11 16.10 Deleting XML; 16.12 16.11 Writing XML; 16.13 16.12 Writing XML with Variables; 16.14 16.13 Sending and Loading XML; Chapter 17: How Do I Work with External Assets?; 17.1 17.0 Introduction; 17.2 17.1 Loading and Applying a Cascading Style Sheet; 17.3 17.2 Loading and Displaying an Image or SWF File; 17.4 17.3 Communicating with an ActionScript 3.0 Loaded SWF; 17.5 17.4 Communicating with an ActionScript 2.0 Loaded SWF; 17.6 17.5 Unloading an Image or SWF File; 17.7 17.6 Loading and Playing a Sound; 17.8 17.7 Setting the Volume and Pan of a Sound; 17.9 17.8 Visualizing the Amplitude of a Sound; 17.10 17.9 Unloading a Sound; 17.11 17.10 Loading and Playing a Video; 17.12 17.11 Unloading a Video; Migration; Chapter 18: A Sample Migration; 18.1 A Simple Particle System; 18.2 ActionScript 2.0; 18.3 ActionScript 3.0; 18.4 Migration Sample Summary; Chapter 19: Where Did It Go?; 19.1 Introduction; 19.2 Code Comparisons; Colophon;