As a long-time Flash programmer, I am always looking out for the next great tool that will take Macromedia Flash to the next level. This has been true since I started many years ago with Flash 5. Every new version that came out was like a breath of fresh air—taking a design-related tool further and further into the programmer's realm. With Adobe Flex Builder 2, I am once again hyperventilating in the newly fresh air. This time, however, it's better than ever.

Flash programmers now have their own tool that separates the programming from the design. This is paramount for those of you who, like me, can't design their way out of a paper bag. A tool that has no timelines! A tool that produces SWFs with ActionScript 3.0. SWF files that run many times faster than ActionScript 2.0 in the new Flash Player 9. A tool that saves you so much time developing applications that it's (almost!) embarrassing.

I gave this presentation (see Figure 1) at the April 2006 meeting of the Flash Users Group. In it, I go over the basics of Flex Builder 2 and explain how Flash developers can use it based on what they already understand from programming ActionScript within Flash. Although I'm a beginner with Flex Builder 2—still on my first major application—once I understood the basics, I was soon knocking down hurdles like they weren't even there.

So breathe in deeply and push yourself outside your comfort box. You'll be amazed just how comfortable you'll become with Flex Builder 2. It's another tool in your arsenal for developing killer rich Internet applications.

Figure 1. Presentation about Flex Builder 2 to the Flash Users Group

Watch the Breeze seminar

Note: Presentation duration is 2 hrs. 5 min., including Q & A.

General outline

First hour:

• Brief discussion of Flex
• Tour of the Flex Builder 2 IDE
• Description of an MXML component
• Containers for layout speed
• Basic events

Second hour:

• Component states
• ViewStacks as application screens
• Simple effects
• Q & A

Requirements

To follow this presentation you may want to install the following software:

Flex Builder 2 (SDK Included)

• Try
• Buy

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