As we know, in coming days, adoption of cloud based solutions is increased. And this momentum will be going to increase future of RIA, with few changes like tool and technologies going to be replaced by open technologies. To be specific, it’s going to be HTML5, JavaScript and CSS3. There are lots of features HTML5 has introduced which could be very effective to develop more responsive RIA solutions. There are few treads driving this change:

Web Innovation:

Browsers and core web technologies are change rapidly. HTML, JavaScript and CSS are changing to enable running applications with great user experience in browser without dependencies.

Web Performance:

JavaScript performance has improved dramatically in last few years and application performance is most important factor to provide great end user experiences.

Mobile:

Growth of smart phones and tablets is a major factor for the treads change. Support to build robust application using HTML5, JavaScript and CSS3 and also continue to have strong support ( i.e. hardware acceleration of CSS3).

So now it’s clear, that in HTML5 will be future of Web. Adobe is committed to HTML5 and focusing in two primary areas, tooling and enabling more expressive web content. I think, in future Adobe Edge will be best tool for RIA applications. Yes for enterprise application it will take some time to get place with Adobe Flash and Flex. You will get some information from the preview video given below. So with great vision, let’s focus on JavaScript and HTML5 in the New Year.

You will get more information about HTML5 from here.

Enjoy RIA….

Flash Facebook Cookbook by James Ford, is one more information source for Facebook Developers. I received a copy of this book and while reading it, I would like share review of the book.

The Flash Facebook Cookbook contains integrating Flash applications with Graph API and Facebook platform. It contains lots of recipes for that and recipes start with basic explanation of Flash-Facebook integration. If you have some knowledge of Flash Builder, Flex framework or Flash platform then it’s a nice book to explore your experience with world by Facebook platform.

Enjoy RIA

You can get some exciting information from the demo:

I think Flash Professional to export animation as HTML is very exciting feature because it helps to reach mass audience across configurations and helps to migrate content from Flash into HTML. So Flash developer and designers can use their Flash skills and by exporting application into HTML, they can target more platforms.

As per my personal opinion if you are able to achieve similar results with Adobe Edge and Flash Professional then only it will be great challenge for flash platform developer and designers to learning possible outcomes with new technology (Edge) which is more compatible with more devices.

Enjoy RIA

Most of the stuff seen in browser is created with HTML. This language has, until fairly recently, been limited to static text and image contents. Long ago technology called Flash was developed to allow web browsers to display rich, dynamic and interactive content such as audio, video and SVG (scalable vector graphics).

Now, HTML5 could become a game changer in web application development. It poses a strategic threat to Adobe, as well as Microsoft and Java. There are many advanced features and effects that are only (currently) available in Flash. There are lots of Flash games and applications that would be difficult to do with HTML5.

There are many more comparison (including technical limitations and advantages) points for both the technologies available on web. Flash is better in some cases and HTML5 is better in others. However, HTML5 is the future of the web for simple interactivity. It includes charting, some limited 3d vector graphics, image transforms, video and audio. But the portion of the web that requires richer interaction will continue to rely on Flash and other technologies RIA technologies. I think the choices is not “all or none”. Depending on the context, the developer may use both together. I think over the long-term HTML5 may fit the bill.

Takes a look at the more informative debate Flash versus HTML5 debate and some considerations you should make if you’re deciding which one to use in your projects. The main conclusions: Flash lets you reach the widest audience with the drawback of not working on some mobile devices.

So friends, Enjoy RIA

Adobe also announced that Flash Player 11 and AIR 3 will be available today, a milestone release that will enable the next generation of immersive application experiences across devices and platforms. As announced, dozens of new features allow developers to deliver a new class of gaming and premium video experiences, as well as sophisticated, data-driven apps with back-end systems integration across devices and platforms including Android, Apple iOS (via AIR), BlackBerry Tablet OS, Mac OS, Windows and connected TVs and others. AIR Apps available on Samsung SmartTVs, coming to Digital Home devices from LG, TiVo and others.

Demo video of Flash-based apps with 3D graphics and others running on a Samsung Smart TV and other devices:

With more than 100 unique digital home devices already certified to support Adobe Flash and AIR, including Samsung Smart TVs, Adobe expects rapid growth for Flash-based applications across connected televisions and other devices.

TVs and other connected devices in the digital living room are the next frontier for rich entertainment apps. Flash-based applications are transforming content consumption on TVs as developers embrace new opportunities to deliver beautiful HD content to increasingly powerful digital home devices connected to a big screen.

With the AIR SDK, Flash Builder and Flash Professional CS5.5 software, developers can build new applications for connected digital home devices or extend existing Flash-based experiences from desktops and mobile devices to TVs. AIR 3 brings a series of advancements to TVs including full hardware-accelerated rendering for 2D and 3D graphics to enable console-quality gaming applications. Content publishers are able to deliver HD videos with Dolby and DTS 7.1 channel surround sound for full support of home theater systems. With the new Game Input API, developers can also make a range of devices an integral part of the gaming experience on TV screens, including joysticks, smartphones and tablets.

Flash Player is supported on more than 98 percent of Internet connected PCs today and by the end of 2011, Adobe expects more than 200 million smartphones and tablets including Apple iOS devices to support Flash based applications via AIR. By the end of 2015, the number of devices that will support AIR is expected to increase to 1 billion. AIR, a superset of Flash Player, enables developers to leverage existing code to create and deliver standalone applications across devices and platforms. Thousands of Flash-based applications have already been created and made available on Android Market, iTunes App Store, Samsung SmartTV Store and BlackBerry AppWorld today.

You can get MAX keynote information from here.

Enjoy RIA ..  :)

I really like the environment, single framework and tool to build and deploy rich, expressive mobile and tablet apps on Android, BlackBerry Tablet, iPag and iPhone device.

You can get ideas about Flash Builder 4.5 from here :
What’s new in Flash Builder 4.5

Introduction of Flex 4.6

According to Adobe, Flex 4.6 will be released later this year, with new version of the SDK and a corresponding update to Flash Builder with new components and functionality specifically designed to help to create application for latest mobile and tablet device.

New Components

• SplitViewNavigator : A new top-level application component specifically designed for the tablet experience. With only few lines of code, manage the layout of multiple views and have them adapt automatically based on device orientation.

• CallOutButton : A versatile component that pops over existing content and can contain text, components or even entire views.

• SpinnerList : This popular tablet component is an adaption of the existing List component. It not only has a new look, but also gives options like recirculating content and a position based selection model.

• DateSpinner : A highly flexible component that is not only locale-aware, but provides multiple out-of-the-box configurations to fit most date/time entry needs.

• Text Enhancements : Flex 4.6 solves the problem of cross-device text input. Flex exposes the native text-editing controls on EVERY platform—this enables the developer to customize the keyboard and the user to experience the native UI of common operations like selection, copy/paste and spelling checking.

• ToggleSwitch : This simple and much-requested control is now available in Flex 4.6.

Also in addition to supporting the new features in the Flex framework, Flash Builder 4.6 exposes new capabilities that will enable developers to build better cross-platform mobile applications—Native Extensions and Captive Runtime.

Native Extensions allows developers to complement their Flex application with native C, Objective-C, and Java libraries—this new feature opens a world of new possibilities for both mobile and desktop applications. Providing access to Apple iOS, Google Android, and BlackBerry Tablet OS specific APIs, your applications can access native features like notifications or the calendar. Flash Builder provides complete support for both managing and packaging Native Extensions. To read more about the possibilities or learn how to build your own native extension, see Oliver Goldman’s article,Extending Adobe AIR.

Here you will get more information about Flash Builder 4.6 & Flex 4.6.

So Friends, Enjoy RIA

Adobe AIR 3 introduces enhanced features that provide developers a consistent and flexible development environment for the delivery of out-of-browser applications across devices and platforms.

AIR 3 delivers innovation for rich engaging applications with performance improvements that deliver advanced graphics rendering, high-definition video, and consistent reach across operating systems and devices. AIR 3 is packed with features that will benefit all developers but has a special focus for those interested in developing console quality games, delivering high quality video, or scalable enterprise applications.

Adobe Flash Player 11 desktop beta drives innovation for rich, engaging digital experiences with new features for cross-platform browser-based viewing of expressive rich internet applications, content, and videos across devices. Some of the features from the Flash Player Incubator, such as Stage 3D and 64-bit support, have been moved into this beta release.

Key benefits of the Flash Player 11 desktop beta include:

• Stage3D APIs : 

Create highly interactive visuals to improve collaboration on 3-dimensional models.

A new set of low-level, GPU-accelerated 3D APIs that enable advanced 3D experiences and improved 2D performance across devices through the Adobe Flash Platform runtimes.

• 64-bit support:

Support for 64-bit operating systems and browsers on Linux, Mac OS, and Windows.

• G.711 audio compression for telephony: 

Integrate voice/telephony into business apps using G.711 codec.

Support interoperability with legacy phone system (through Flash Media Gateway, FMG) and other third-party clients (through open RTMP protocol) without the need of transcoding.

• H.264/AVC SW Encoding: 

Encode higher quality video locally using H.264 video.

Stream beautiful video from your computer’s camera with higher compression efficiency and industry-wide support, enabling both high quality real-time communications (e.g., video chat and video conferencing) and live video broadcasts from within Flash Player.

• Socket Progress Events: 

Build advanced file sharing apps like FTP clients that send large amounts of data.

Provide a means by which content can determine how many bytes remain in the AS Socket’s write buffer. Provide an event which will inform content whenever data is removed from the AS Socket’s write buffer so that it may easily monitor the status of the write buffer without having to set up a timer and manually poll the size remaining in the AS Socket’s write buffer.

• HD surround sound: 

With the rapid evolution of mobile computing platforms, new challenges have emerged for application developers. Adobe Flex SDK “Hero” and Flash Builder “Burrito”, along with the availability of the Adobe AIR runtime on mobile devices, developers can now build mobile applications for touchscreen smartphones and tablets with same ease and quality as on desktop platforms using Flex.

Setting up the project

After installing Flash Builder “Burrito” follow these steps to create your first mobile application:

1) Choose File > New > Flex Mobile Project.
2) For project name type FirstMobileApp

3) For mobile settings, make sure Google Android and Mobile Application options are selected.

4) Skip the server settings with their default values ( As we are not using application server for this application.)
5) Skip the build path settings with default values and select Finish.

Flash Builder “Burrito” creates a new mobile project, with two default files and initial view of the application. Now, its ready to start application logic, according to your needs. But for the first mobile application we creating simple application with navigation between some screens.

Now, first add a Button, to perform navigation to application’s first view. For this we are using ViewNavigator component. To change views will have to update the navigator what to do and accordingly, the build in navigation system responds. Will have to add the following code to add Home button to first view.

<s:navigationContent>

<s:Button label="Home" click="navigator.popToFirstView()"/> 

</s:navigationContent>

When the Home button clicked, postToFirstView() invoked, and the navigator will display the first view.

Within the tag <s:navigationContent> in FirstMobileApp.mxml, the firstView property has been set to views.FirstMobileApp, which refers to a file that was automatically generated when you created the project. When the user clicks the Home button, the ViewNavigator component will load the views. FirstMobileApp view.

Now, follow these steps to add more view screen :

1) Right-click the views package and select New > MXML component.
2) Type component name, here DetailsView as the name

3) Click Finish
4) Update the DetailsView code as below:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<s:View xmlns:fx="http://ns.adobe.com/mxml/2009"
 xmlns:s="library://ns.adobe.com/flex/spark" title="DetailsView">
 <fx:Declarations>
 <!-- Place non-visual elements (e.g., services, value objects) here -->
 </fx:Declarations>

 <s:VGroup horizontalCenter="0" verticalCenter="0">
 <s:Button label="Go Home"
 click="navigator.popToFirstView()"/>

 <s:Button label="More Details View"
 click="navigator.pushView(views.MoreDetailsView)"/>  
 </s:VGroup>

</s:View>

5) Repeat the steps as describe above and create MoreDetailsView.mxml and update its code.

Running the application in the emulator

Now follow the steps, to run the application with the emulator.

1) Open the FirstMobileApp.mxml
2) Choose Run > Run As > Mobile Application.
3) Select On Desktop as the Lunch Method and then choose a device to simulate

4) Click Apply > Run

The emulator will open and you will be able to navigate through the application using the buttons.

Running the application on a device

Excited to run the application on device!

If you have an device, you can follow the steps below to test your application on your device:

1. Plug your device into your USB port and choose Run > Run Configurations.
2. Change the Launch Method to On Device.
3. Click Run.
4. If the Choose Device dialog box appears, you may need to click Refresh and select your device.

If everything configure perfectly, then the application simply launch on device.

Hope this post will be helpful to start development with Flash Builder “Burrito”.

Enjoy RIA..

There are several popular 3D games like Farmville on facebook. There is a great open-source library known as as3isolib to develop such superb games. The open-source library, includes utilities, primitives and views and was developed with simplicity, speed and performance in mind so that developers can focus on actual implementations rather than having to learn a complex API.

The as3isolibs actionscript library provides a nice framework on which use, to build some interesting isometric games and applications. To get started with as3isolibs first download the latest version of the library from here, and add it to the Flex Builder path.

As the library relies on the Flash player 10 features so there are some instructions here to target Flash Player 10.

To use as3isolib will have to understand how to render isometric primitive to the display list, IsoGrid , IsoBox, IsoScene, IsoView and many more.

IsoPrimitive is the base class for primitive-type classes that will make great use of Flash’s drawing API. Developers should not directly instantiate this class but rather extend it or one of the other primitive-type subclasses.

IsoGrid provides a display grid in the X-Y plane.

IsoBox, 3D box primitive in isometric space.

IsoScene is a base class for grouping and rendering IsoDisplayObject children according to their isometric position-based depth.

You can get more information from the API Documentation.

You will get more superb information from below video tutorial from Lee Brimelow video tutorial Introduction to Isometric 3D.

Hope this information will be helpful to start work on isometric 3D.

Enjoy RIA..

As it’s well known that Polymorphism is an object-oriented concept. Polymorphism in AS3 can be approached from two direction or way. One approach is to use Inheritance. The other approach is through Interface.

Abstract Class base Inheritance

Inheritance means to extend a Class. For example,

public class SampleClass extends BaseClass

SampleClass inherits all the public / protected properties and methods of BaseClass. And the BaseClass can be referred as super class of SampleClass. In this kind of situation ActionScript provides the ability to override methods of super class. Only those properties and methods which utilize the public or protected namespaces can be overridden and super class ‘s private properties and methods are not accessible to the class which extending the super class.

Let me take an sample and well known example to explain it:

public class Animal
{
        protected var animalName : String;
        public function Animal( animalname:String )
        {
           this.animalName =  animalname;
        }

        public function getName():String
        {
            return animalName;
        }

        public function talk() : void
        {
        }

        public function eat(): void
        {

        }
}

 

Abstract class Animal, provides basic functionality the animals in app will use. For example, each animal has name. Now we extend the Animal class and create an animal.

public class Dog extends Animal
{
        public function Dog()
        {
            super("dog");
        }

       override public function talk() : void
       {
           // code
       }

       override public function eat() : void
       {
           // code
      }
}

 

The Dog Class extends abstract class Animal. So the Dog class is known as concrete Animal class, which override the public methods of base class.

public class PolymorphismDemo extends Sprite
{
         public var animalsArray : Array = [ ];
         public function  PolymorphismDemo()
        {
             var dog : Animal = new Dog();
             animalsArray = [ dog ];
             for each( var animal:Animal in animalsArray)
             {
                  trace(animal.getName());
                  animal.eat();
                  animal.talk();
             }
      }
}

 

You can observe that inheritance being used across the Flash platform. For example, any object on stage is extending DisplayObject, all events are extending base class known as Event.

Polymorphism through Intereface

Now, we are discussing the second approach for polymorphism through Interface. Interface is used to create class that implement a specific contract.

public interface IAnimal
{

         function getName() : String;
         function eat() : void;
         function talk() : void;
}

 

You can see Ianimal declares methods as its declared in abstract animal class in example of first approach. But if you observer something is missing from above methods is public namespace and brackets containing function body.

Interfaces allow only public function declarations.

You can’t declare properties, static or private methods in interface. Because interface represents a contract that lets outside objects know that public methods can be accessed on a class that implements the interface. Since outside objects can’t access private methods. Public properties can’t added to an interface for good encapsulation. And in case if its required to access properties of Interface then will have an great option getter and setter for properties in interface.

public class Dog  implements  IAnimal
{
        public function Dog()
        {
        }

        public function getName() : String
        {
            return "dog";
        }

        public function talk() : void
       {
            // code
       }

       public function eat() : void
      {
           // code
      }
}

 

Above Dog class implements IAnimal interface. And with interface there is no need to use the override syntax. By using the second approach ( with interface ) classes much more reusable.

Enjoy RIA ..