Elad Elrom: Developer spotlight

What (Adobe and non-Adobe) technologies are you currently using?

The main product I use on my day-to-day work is Adobe Flex Builder. I am using Flex to create applications for the web, desktop, and mobile devices. My projects often touch other technologies such as Ant scripts, Adobe Flash Professional, Adobe Flash Catalyst beta, Adobe ColdFusion, PHP, and Adobe Illustrator, as well as relation databases such as MySQL and MS-SQL.

What is your most recent project you've built and what (Adobe and non-Adobe) technologies have you used?

I have used Flex Builder for a pure ActionScript project to do a major refactoring for the NBC Universal video player being used by high-profile sites. The video player combines many modules and is being used in different variations throughtout the NBC Universal space.

What excites you, inspires you, or makes you say, "Wow that's really cool" about the technologies you work with?

I am a true beliver of the KISS principle ("Keep It Short and Simple"), and I am always excited and impressed when a new product, tool, or methodology comes along that makes things easy that used to be complex.

For instance, I have been using Flash Catalyst alpha version for a few months now and I have to say it rocks! Flash Catalyst allows you to easily create a round trip between Flex and Illustrator. Flash Catalyst makes the process of working with designers feel easy and simple to the point that you wondered how we ever managed to work without the tool.

Where do you get your information about technology?

I regulary read the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times. I get the TechCrunch newsletter every day. I often hear about technology through the Flex community from sites such as Twitter and Adobe feeds. I often learn about the direction it's moving through calls with Adobe's evangelists or other friends and experts in the Adobe community, as well as events such as Adobe MAX.

What are some of your favorite community resources, websites, or blogs?

My home page is the Adobe feeds and I often skim through blogs and feeds I find intersting. The Flex documentation is one of my favorite resources that I visit every day, as well as the Adobe Developer Connection which is a great resource to read quality articles.

How are you invloved with the community?

I have written two books and close to 750 pages so far this year, from existing Adobe technologies to emerging Adobe technologies. The books talk about Adobe Flash Player 10, Flash Catalyst, Adobe AIR 1.5, Flash Lite, Flex 3 and Flex 4 deployment of AIR on multiple devices and other topics.

I keep an active blog and I am an author at InsideRIA. In my blog, I keep up with the latest technologies such as Flash Catalyst and Flex 4. I have spoken this year at conferences such as Flex Camp in Chicago and the Adobe MAX un-conference in San Francisco. I have helped and mentored many engineers. Additionally, I am sharing various open-source projects, such as puremvc-generator, eladlib, and mp3tunes-as3-api. Recently, I was added to the Flex SDK as a contributor.

What is your favorite or most useful electronic gadget that you own? How about one that you want, but don't own?

I love gadgets!

I often use my Nokia MID and Samsung UMPC as well the Sony Reader, but I have to say that the Apple iPhone is my favorite. I got the iPhone when it first came out and upgraded to the second generation 3G last year. Living in New York City, I use the iPhone in the subway and the gym to listen to music, check e-mails, browse the Internet, use the GPS feature when I am traveling out of the city, and of course take and upload pictures of my baby daughter!

What's the one thing you'd love to see in web technologies in the future?

Flash Player 10 deployed on all devices. I can't wait for the day when the Open Screen project becomes a reality and Flash Player 10 is fully adopted on many devices such as ARM arcitecture. I think it's exciting to leverage and use existing code to deploy an application across different screens.

What was the genesis/origin/history for your existing work?

I was always obsessed with technology. Studying and dealing with technology since a young age, I learned electronics as well as many programming languges such as Visual C++, Java, Basic, Pascal, and others. I have used Flash since Flash 5 and although I loved the technology, it wasn't until Flex 2 that I knew I wanted to devote all my time to the technology.

What's next for you? For technology?

I believe that, for me, the future is continuing development with Flash Catalyst and Flex 4 as the product rolls out of beta and into a production-grade product. As Flash Player 10 becomes available on mobile devices, I see myself getting more involved in utilizing these technologies to create more appealing applications as well as writing a new book.