Tag Archives: Flex

I Have Made my Choice!

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In the world of UI or Front End Engineering you have so many different camps.  The standards based camp (HTML, JS, CSS), and the Flash camp.  I have been using these technologies for so long that I just can’t see ditching any one of them for another.

HTML was my first love, it’s what got me into software development back in 1995.  HTML was my gateway drug.  By 1999 I was into JavaScript and then I got into the heavier stuff.  By 2001 I was a full blown Flash junkie, that still had an HTML habit.

As time went on I drifted between the standards world and the Flash world.  I never felt like I was cheating on one technology with another, well until everyone started freaking out.

You see 2010 was the year of the irrational UI layer freakout.  It happened just a few years after the initial RIA wave hit, but boy did it create some headaches.  The 2010 UI Freak Out pitted HTML5 (now just HTML) against Flash, and it was done in an agressive tone.  The whole thing stunk of rhetoric and propaganda from self serving companies and uneducated developers.

Well now it seems to be over, and I could not be happier with my choice.  You see, I chose “All of the Above!”  That’s right, I am not giving up my Flex and Flash, and I will not be embarrassed that I can write CSS, HTML, and JavaScript six ways to Sunday.  And if I feel like using Air I will.  I am going to use the right tool for the job. You are not going to make me feel lesser because I didn’t chose your side.  In the words of Howard Beale : “Things have got to change. But first, you’ve gotta get mad!… You’ve got to say, ‘I’m as mad as hell, and I’m not going to take this anymore!’”

I chose “All of the Above!”

PS – when you meet someone who puts down something and won’t listen to reason or see value in something, walk away.

Passion and Drive = Codebass Radio

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Here is my Doogie Howser moment.  I recently had a conversation with a few friends regarding “passion for what you do” and I couldn’t help but think about Codebassradio.net, in particular the founder Vicky Ryder.  Codebassradio.net is an online radio station that has grown from once a day hourly windows to pretty much jamming all the time, every day.  Their official vision statement is:

CodeBass serves to showcase the fine folks among the Adobe community who share in a love of music. It’s all about getting to know YOU and what you have to offer. CodeBass loves to promote community awareness and serves as a conduit for connecting kindred souls, especially across platforms that do not typically interact.

But I don’t think this really tells the whole story.  So let me elaborate based on my perspective…

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Blackberry Playbook SDK Beta 2 is Available

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Well RIM just released their newest Blackberry Playbook SDK for AIR.  This time around the SDK will work with Flash Builder 4.5 (code named: Burrito).  On top of that people have really jumped into the whole AIR on Android scene.  If you are a Flex or ActionScript developer and want to build applications for Android devices as well as the soon to be released RIM Playbook then visit the Adobe Labs site and get your hands on Flash Builder 4.5 and the Flex 4.5 SDK (code named: Hero).

I will be blogging about my experiences soon, but right now I can say that it is very easy to develop for both Android and the Playbook using the SDKs and Flash Builder 4.5.