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Time Entry Application: Sample Workflow for Designing and Building Applications in Flash MX Professional 2004

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Paul Gubbay

Paul Gubbay
Macromedia

Table of Contents

  1. Introduction
  2. Features of the Time Entry Application
  3. Installing the Time Entry Application
  4. Defining the Time Entry Application Framework

The Time Entry sample application provides you with a basic workflow for designing and building applications in Flash MX Professional 2004 using data components, forms, and data binding. This article introduces you to the application and provides some basic information on its structure. You will benefit most by looking at the source code, reading the comments, and reviewing the way I use data binding to control the flow of data between the components. All the code within the application is fully documented.

The workflow described in this sample application will be familiar to users with an application development background. Functionality it is split among several classes, each providing a public interface to expose business logic. The code for the entire application is contained within several external ActionScript class files. In addition, the sample makes use of many of the new features of visual data binding.

The Time Entry application accomplishes two goals:

  • Defines a useful framework for developers to build applications that utilize the new features in Flash MX Professional 2004
  • Provides several examples using data components and data binding to integrate data within your Flash application

By the way, this sample application in no way reflects Macromedia's best practices for building Rich Internet Applications. It is simply a work in progress that will continue to evolve as I add new features.

Requirements

To run the Time Entry sample application, you should have Flash MX Professional 2004 and ColdFusion MX installed on the computers you plan to use. You can install ColdFusion MX on a different computer than the one on which you build the Flash application but you will need to update the IP address within the application.

Macromedia Flash MX Professional 2004


Note: Make sure that you have installed the latest Flash MX 2004 update (version 7.0.1). If you do have the update installed and are using Windows XP, make sure you have deleted your ASO folder at:

C:\Documents and Settings\**username**\Local Settings\Application Data\Macromedia\Flash MX 2004\en\Configuration\Classes\aso

Macromedia ColdFusion MX


Download sample files for this tutorial


Contains Flash project file, ActionScript files, Access database, and ColdFusion component

Important security note: The sample ColdFusion component gives you the ability to run a query statement against any ColdFusion data source that you have set up on your machine. You should install it to the web root folder only within a development environment behind a secure firewall or on a computer that is not connected to the Internet. If you intend to use this component in a production environment you must take the necessary steps to secure it.


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About the author

Paul Gubbay has a 15-year background in the software industry and specializes in conversion and delivery of legacy data through the Internet. In the role of CEO, Paul spent the last several years building the vision and infrastructure of CyberSage Software. His understanding of the issues that face today's customers and the development tools available to solve them has played a key role in the direction of the company. Under Paul's guidance, CyberSage focused on emerging technologies such as XML, Java, and Macromedia Flash to deliver leading-edge product offerings. With Macromedia's technology acquisition of CyberSage Software, Paul joined Macromedia as Director of Engineering for Flash Professional, where he continues to apply his vision and understanding of customers' needs to Macromedia product offerings.