Flash and XML: A Developer's Guide - Softcover

Jacobson, Dov; Mary O'Brien; Jacobson, Jesse

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0201729202 ISBN 13: 9780201729207

Publisher: Addison-Wesley Professional, 2001

Synopsis

Instead of just "gee-whiz" animation or cool user interfaces, Flash pros need to build truly useful sites that are viable for the long-term. That means interfacing Flash with dynamic content, backend databases, server-based applications, and even with other live users. The key to all these is XML. Now, there's a book that shows you exactly how to build enterprise Flash applications that integrate XML -- and leverage its full power. Flash and XML is structured in 19 progressive lessons. In each lesson, the authors teach a key principle of Flash enterprise integration by first explaining it, and then demonstrating it with working code. The book begins with an introduction to Flash and ActionScript that's ideal for working developers, and also serves as a useful refresher for Flash professionals. Next, the authors introduce XML, review the role of HTTP in Web development, and start writing PHP-based server code for accessing back-end data. Next, they show how to extend Flash and server-side systems to a third-tier, connecting with back-end databases via SQL. Every chapter's code samples build on what's come before, constructing a robust application that encompasses client-side Flash code, server-side XML, back-end remote database access, and even emulated "peer-to-peer" connections. For both Flash professionals (with or without XML experience) and software engineers involved in Web development (with or without Flash experience).

About this title

About the Author

Dov Jacobson heads the Big Fun Development Corporation, a small studio that specializes in networked games. He served as vice president of interactive publishing at Turner Broadcasting and directed product development at Pansophic Systems. He is responsible for nearly two dozen commercial titles and four high-tech creative studios.

Jesse Jacobson sat down to the computer at age two. He has since learned how to use it. He has written code for many Big Fun titles. He also worked on research projects at Georgia Tech and the Technion in Israel. He currently studies at Dartmouth College.

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From the Back Cover

"This book is an exceptional training manual to bring a web developer or flash designer with scripting skills into an entirely new world of coding."
--Christopher Ian Smith,
XML Developer, RespondTV.com

"This is a 'must-read' for any Flash developer."
--John Paul Rawlins, Editor
FlashNewz.com

Flash and XML shows designers and developers how to integrate these powerful technologies and create dynamic web sites. With this thoroughly readable guide you take Flash to the next level, interfacing ActionScript with XML. Empower your Flash projects with dynamic content, backend databases, server-based applications, peer-to-peer, and more.

Flash and XML is a tutorial that brings you up to speed on both technologies, offering clear and concise explanations. In addition, this book presents a number of important web technologies, including PHP, MySQL, and sockets. It shows how to work with these technologies to create n-tier, interactive systems that access the full resources of the Internet.

Sample projects (trivia game, XML browser, simple chat) showcase the capabilities of Flash and XML together and demonstrate important concepts, approaches, and techniques.

The companion web site at http://www.FlashandXML.com contains all of the source code referenced in the book, as well as updates, discussion groups, and links to other resources.

Containing plentiful examples, experience-based techniques, and just enough theory, Flash and XML is a one-stop sourcebook that will guide you in the development of web sites that are not only animated, interactive, and powerful, but extremely useful as well.

Specific topics covered include:

• Flash architecture
• ActionScript techniques
• XML in detail--for Flash developers
• DTD specification
• Internet request and response: HTTP
• Server scripting with PHP
• Basic SQL syntax
• Designing MySQL databases
• From MySQL to Flash via XML and PHP
• Cookies
• Packet sniffers
• Escaping the Domain Perimeter
• XML Sockets and streaming data
• Multi-user communication in Flash

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Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Flash can make fabulous introductions to fancy web sites. High-grade wow factor fills the opening screens. Colors are delicious, typefaces are trendy, and movement is exquisite. Rave music is looping and attitude is everywhere. Each intro is a unique work of art. But they all have one thing in common.

Each has a button that says SKIP INTRO.

Rarely is gratuitous glitz so clearly labeled. When budgets tighten, webmasters will not skip shopping cart, or skip catalog. But they may skip intro.What's Up?

The web is outgrowing its eye-candy phase, and so must Flash. A web site must be pretty to be viable, but it must be highly functional as well.

Flash pros can't get by on gee-whiz animation or cool interfaces. They'd better prepare to do some of the heavy lifting on the working web. Flash screens must interface with dynamic content, with back-end databases, with server-based applications, and even with other live users.

XML provides a path.Don't Stop!

Once you connect your Flash code to the outside world, your scope is unbounded. And so is the list of things to learn.

In this book we learn a lot. We begin with Flash and XML. We study networking protocols and PHP server scripting. We learn sockets and SQL and a few fancy XML dialects. We go on to achieve competence in many other related technologies and put them together to build working web systems.Who Are You?

If you are creative and technical, this book is for you. Maybe you have a design background. You learn whatever technology you need to realize your vision. This book offers you skills that open fresh new worlds. Let's hope your imagination can keep up.

Maybe you have computer science training. You're happy with simple gray buttons. Your art is an elegant code design. You are ready to put Flash to work with all the web technologies you already know.

This book was written by authors who approach Flash from both angles. We want it to speak to both engineers and artists, and we struggled (often with each other) to support both perspectives.Why?

We wrote this book because it wasn't there when we needed it.Typographic Conventions

We have adhered to several conventions in this book.Case Conventions

lowerAndUpperCase is used to name variables and functions in ActionScript
UpperAndLowerCase labels frames and names symbols, objects and constructors.
ALL_UPPER_CASE is used in manifest constants, SQL keywords, PHP globals.
Separated_by_underscores is typically used for PHP names.
Typesetting Conventions

italics indicate names we gave variables, functions, elements, instances, and so on.
codefont shows language keywords and expressions.
codefont is also used to set off the text output of any program.
boldface introduces the first use of an important term.
SMALL CAPS are used for pull-down menu options. Slashes show hierarchy.
"quotes" are reserved for string literals.

These rules are breached occasionally in the book. Sometimes this is for historic reasons, sometimes due to ambiguity and sometimes because it just didn't look right.

Dov and Jesse JacobsonBerkeley Lake, Georgiadov@bigfun.netjesse.jacobson@dartmouth.eduFlashandXML

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Edition details

• Publisher: Addison-Wesley Professional
• Publication date: 2001
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0201729202
• ISBN 13: 9780201729207
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 368