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—— Some new software coming soon from Adobe ——

Flash Builder | Flash Catalyst | Text Layout Framework

Flash is so popular Adobe want to make it easier for more people to join the fun. Flash-based applications like the BBC i-player (built with Adobe AIR) are raising people's expectations, so Adobe are adding new tools to help people build:

• Flash content for websites (from banner ads to entire sites)
• Flash-based games, media players and training tools
• Adobe AIR widgets, which run on the desktop with or without an internet connection

Flash Builder 4

This will be the next version of Flex Builder. There is huge potential for confusion over names, so to be clear:

• Flash Professional CS4 is good old Flash that we all know and love. Great for designers, rubbish for coders
• Flash Builder 4 is the new name for Flex Builder. Brilliant for coders, but no drawing tools for designers
• Flex will still be the name for the underlying framework behind Flash Builder 4

Who Wants What?

• Everyone using Flash CS4 will still be using that for animations and wiggly stuff
• Developers using Flex Builder 3 may well move to Flash Builder 4, so plenty of upgrade-training opportunities here
• Anyone saying 'Flex' may well mean Flash Builder 4

Top New Features in Flash Builder 4

• 'Skinning' an application (making it look pretty) is much easier with the 'Spark' theme
• The old 'Halo' theme is still supported, as is the whole 'Flex 3' way of doing things
• New namespaces separate component purposes more logically
• Built-in Unit Testing
• Better CSS support
• Easier data-centric coding

More Info

• Flash Builder was due by the end of 2009, but it's likely to be early 2010
• Full name will be Flash Builder 4 Premium
• It is based on Eclipse, so existing Java developers will be well at home
• It was called 'Gumbo' during development
• Adobe AIR applications can be built directly within Flash Builder 4, Flash CS4 and Flex Builder 3

Flash Catalyst

Also due out soon, Flash Catalyst is another new thing with Flash in its name.

• Flash Catalyst lets you import designs from a design package (e.g. Photoshop, Illustrator etc) and convert them to working Flex components
• Layers, text, vectors etc. all survive within Flash Catalyst, so visual elements can be made into actual buttons, text entry fields and other controls
• Flash Catalyst writes the code for you, so a designer can pass a user-interface design (that actually works) to a developer for use in Flash Builder 4
• Although you can see the generated code, you can't edit it within Flash Catalyst. That would be a job for Flash Builder 4

Typical Workflow: Designer to Developer

• Designer draws some cool stuff with whatever design software they like
• The designs are imported into Flash Catalyst where buttons, labels, scroll-bars etc are identified in the design
• Extra 'states' can be added, so buttons change on hover, or visual elements come and go as the user progresses
• The finished project is saved out of Flash Catalyst
• Developer imports this into Flash Builder and writes the business logic to make the site work

More Info

• Flash Catalyst is based on Eclipse
• It was called 'Thermo' during development
• The code it writes is called 'fxg'
• The ouput from Flash Catalyst cannot be opened back in your original design softwware

Text Layout Framework

Eventually part of Flash CS5, a lot of people are dead excited about the fantastic improvements in online text that the Text Layout Framework provides. So here's the basics:

• Text Layout Framework works right now, in Flash Player 10
• It provides much clearer on-screen text
• There is far better control of the text, like you'd expect in print-based packages
• Proper right-to-left and top-to-bottom text is supported