

Macromedia Flex is a powerful platform that offers the ability to create Rich Internet Applications (RIAs). Misusing this power can result in areas of poor performance. Flex is like any other programming model because certain coding practices can be detrimental to the overall performance of your client application. This article describes some of the MXML coding practices that affect application performance on the client side and demonstrates simple techniques that will enhance the performance of your Flex application. More specifically, this article explores how to do the following tasks:
Note that the tips suggested in this article do not apply to all Flex applications. It is important to analyze the structure of your own application and modify the suggestions to tailor them to your needs. For ongoing coding and conceptual help, you can use the Flex support forums and Flex Developer Center.
Note also that this is the first part in a two-part article. The second part of this article, Flex Application Performance: Tips and Techniques for Improving Server-Side Performance, discusses the server-side enhancements and deployment options that you can use to improve the performance of your Flex application.
To make the most of this article, you need the following:
Learn more about Macromedia Flex.
We have made every effort to ensure the accuracy of this article and all code included. Feedback for this article and all Flex performance issues is always appreciated. To submit feedback, please email us.
Deepa Subramaniam is a Product Manager on the Flex team primarily focusing on the Flex SDK. Before joining the Flex Product Management team, she was a lead engineer on the Flex 1-4 releases and has been working on Flex since its inception in 2003. She is the author of the Adobe Flex 3 for Dummies book and has a degree in Computer Science from UC Berkeley.