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Macromedia Flash Article

Steven White
New City Media

If you have a firm with fewer than 10 employees, you're probably asking three important questions right now:

·	Can our agency afford to use and develop in Macromedia Flash MX?
·	Will our clients be able to pay for multimedia development using Macromedia Flash MX?
·	Can we continue to use our existing development processes?

According to the web development firm New City Media, the answer is "yes" to all three of these questions. With a sound development process, appropriate testing, and solid communication about "return on investment", you can approach any Macromedia Flash MX project with confidence.

What you'll learn:
In this paper, we'll describe how the Virginia-based firm, New City Media, used minor Macromedia Flash MX development projects to build its portfolio and then land a major Macromedia Flash MX application development project. You will also learn how Macromedia Flash MX benefited their team, client, and ultimately, the end user.

When you complete this white paper, you'll better understand how:

·	Small firms use Macromedia Flash MX to develop robust applications that were traditionally developed in complicated languages like C++.
·	By starting small and working up to larger Macromedia Flash MX projects, small firms can direct self-training, which helps to reduce the cost of adoption and reduce non-billable hours for employees.
·	With the right development process, small firms can adopt new technologies like Macromedia Flash MX while being true to their original estimate and schedule.
·	End users respond to Macromedia Flash MX applications that are usable, user-friendly, and help them accomplish their online goals and tasks.
·	Success depends on having a process and following it.

You'll also see how New City Media created the Medeco cam lock selector, which Macromedia recently featured as the Macromedia site of the day.

·	The basic question: Should we use Macromedia Flash MX for application development?
·	Will clients pay for Macromedia Flash MX and like it?
·	Will we need a new development process?
·	Macromedia Flash MX vs. the HTML application development
·	Plan the project: Understand your client's goals
·	Plan the project: Begin and end with the user
·	Plan the project: Incorporating existing data from the catalog
·	Plan the project: Understand the basics of cam locks
·	Planning: Revisit the process and set a deadline
·	Design: Creating mock-ups
·	Production: Building the components and core functionality
·	Production: Insert data into the combo box from a custom object
·	Production: Designing custom functions
·	Production: Using variables to "acknowledge" the user
·	Production: PHP
·	Testing and launching the application
·	Post-Production: maintain and promote
·	Conclusion

About the author
Steven White is a veteran of the web industry and a true utility player for New City Media. Not only is he the lead Flash developer for the firm, but he also champions the end user, challenging New City Media clients to change the way they think about content and their site's visitor needs. As Senior Developer, Steven has tackled most aspects of web development for the firm, assisting with everything from site design and architecture to Macromedia Flash development, web page production, and site testing.