Programming in Flash

[lazyrunner50]

Hey. Is ActionScript (I believe that is the name for programming in Flash) hard to learn? I am coming from a background of ASP, PHP, Java, JavaScript, C++, etc.... I have seen a lot of pages done with Flash, and I feel like I am missing out on a whole lot by not knowing how to work with it.

[Iceman]

well tbh you can do a heck of a lot of flash without ever touching actionscripting (i did it for about an hour without even touching the actionscript thing) but once you know actionscript (which is MUCH easier than things like Java) you can do a lot more stuff and make your pages a lot more interactive

[lazyrunner50]

Humm. Do you know of any good books out there on the subject?

[Iceman]

i didn't use any books to learn flash or actionscripting - the macromedia help files are probably the best i have ever encountered (including tutorials and things). everything you need to learn this stuff is all in the help files!!

[lazyrunner50]

Yeah, I went through parts of the tutorial on Flash, didn't look at the ActionScript stuff though. I dunno, it seemed helpful, but I was looking to be able to create something along the lines of <a target=new class=ftalternatingbarlinklarge href="http://www.917media.com/base.asp">this page</a>, and while I didn't go through the ActionScript stuff, I don't think that tutorial will cut it.

[Iceman]

that is true - some of the stuff on that site wont be covered by the tutorials but a good book is one imaginatively named <a target=new class=ftalternatingbarlinklarge href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0672320789/qid=1078983452/sr=1-4/ref=sr_1_3_4/026-7878177-4662838">"Actionscripting In Flash"</a>. Altho I have to say this is more of a book aimed at beginners!! Once you know everything in this nook you will be at the stage to try random stuff yourself and teach yourself (always the way to go)

[lazyrunner50]

Oh, yeah...I believe that teaching yourself is definitely the way to go. I just want a book that is comprehensive enough so that it gives me an idea of what is and what isn't possible. I don't want to reinvent the wheel!

[Iceman]

makes sense...

[houmerlin]

If you understand JavaScript and C, then you will have no problem with ActionScript. For the most part there is no difference between JavaScript and ActionScript regardint the syntax. The only confusing part about Flash and ActionScript it the multidimensional concept Flash provides which is different from web development with ASP, Java or JavaScript or pretty much anything else for that matter. But Iceman is correct you can do a lot in Flash without actually doing any ActionScripting. However you will notice a much more smooth transition in movement with items using ActionScripting as opposed to tweening. You can tell what areas we used ActionScripting and what areas we used tweening when we built the 917 Media site. There is so much you can do in Flash with ActionScripting though. For instance you can declare a variable and set it as an object then set the object's actions, properties and methods globally across movies. It should not take you long to understand ActionScript and once you do, everything becomes pretty easy. A good reference book is Colin Moock's book. He is one of the most talented Flash developers out there. A good website for ActionScript references is http://flashkit.com/.

[lazyrunner50]

That's really cool...you helped develop the website? I met Sean Sullivan, and applied for a job there, only to be turned down <img src="i/expressions/face-icon-small-sad.gif" border="0">

[houmerlin]

Yes I was involved in the development for the site. You have met Sean before? I know in the past we were not in a position to hire employees. We are better positioning ourselves now to begin entertaining hire new developers. What are your strong suits? What are your skill sets? Send me an email with your resume. My email address is on the 917Media website under contact us. I dont want to list it here because spyder bots general have a fun time extracting posted email addresses from websites. <BR><BR>- Paul Jerome