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Foundation PHP 5 for Flash

David Powers

friends of ED, 2005

This is a book I wrote myself, so the review is by no means impartial. I think it's the best thing since sliced bread. I hope you do, too.

Are you a reasonably experienced Flash user who has certain mastered the basics, but wished you could take your SWFs further into the realm of dynamic data rich applications? Well, look no further.

Foundation PHP 5 for Flash brings together three of the web's hottest technologies - Flash, the server-side language PHP, and the MySQL database system. It's bang up to date, using ActionScript 2.0, PHP 5.0, and MySQL 4.1, but has been designed to be version-neutral. In other words, you can be confident that you're working with the latest standards, but that your applications won't break if deployed on an older server. The book also provides a brief introduction to an alternative database system, SQLite, which is now automatically bundled with PHP 5 and requires no installation.

At each stage in the learning you are given an overview of a new area of PHP/MySQL, introducing you to the syntax while showing how it compares to ActionScript, and how it integrates with Flash to produce increasingly complex applications. For example, earlier chapters cover things such as getting data from PHP to Flash and back again, variables, arrays, string manipulation, validating user input, and feedback forms. Later on, you move on to more advanced subjects such as creating databases with MySQL Monitor and phpMyAdmin, manipulating database data through a Flash interface, displaying data from an RSS feed in Flash, persisting data with sessions, and creating a full blown content management system.

In addition, to get you up and running, the book features a detailed guide to setting up your environment - PHP, MySQL, and the Apache web server - along with extensive troubleshooting information.

PHP is the language of choice on nearly 18 million domains, and MySQL has more than five million active users, including industry leaders like Google, the Associated Press, Sony, and NASA. They're open source and free; and with the help of this book, you'll see that they're easy and fun to learn.

Flash MX 2004 ActionScript: Training from the Source

Derek Franklin & Jobe Makar

Macromedia Press, 2004

As someone already familiar with ActionScript 1, I've used this book to dip into, rather than follow the 20 lessons in strict sequence. I hadn't used Flash for a while, and wanted to get up to speed quickly with ActionScript 2.0 and things like version 2 components and the Shared Object. Although each lesson is meant to take one and a half to two hours, most of them are split into discrete sections that can be completed on their own; and the accompanying CD-ROM contains .fla files for each stage, so it's easy to pick up and leave at any point.

The book follows strict ActionScript 2.0 data-typing, but the instructions are easy to follow, and accompanied by succinct explanations of the underlying theory and language structure. The logical layout means I often turn to this book as a reference, but I expect I'll no longer do that when something more substantial comes out, such as Colin Moock's "Essential ActionScript 2.0" or Sham Bhanghal's "Designer's ActionScript Reference".

The book is targetted primarily at people with little or no experience of ActionScript, and it should certainly give them a strong foundation in all basic aspects of scripting for Flash. What it lacks in comparison with Sham Bhangal's "Foundation ActionScript for Flash MX 2004" is the sense of fun or the feeling that you're building something that eventually ties all together. Because each lesson involves one or more standalone projects, no clues are given as to how different elements might be made to interact in a complete application. Another disappointment was that the LoadVars and XML lessons work only with ASP. Nevertheless, it's a good, solid book that will appeal to many.

Foundation ActionScript for Flash MX 2004

Sham Bhangal

friends of ED, 2004

I first learned ActionScript from this book's predecessor (Foundation ActionScript for Flash MX), and wondered whether it was worth getting this new edition. But since the publishers offered me a free copy, who was I to refuse? I'm really glad I got it, though. What's important about this revised edition is that it covers ActionScript 2.0, the new standard introduced in Flash MX 2004 and compatible with Flash Player 6 and upwards (in other words, the vast majority of Flash Players already in use). Although I've had Flash MX 2004 since it first came out in September 2003, I've been so busy writing my own books about PHP and Dreamweaver, I hadn't bothered to upgrade my ActionScript skills. Now was my chance to do so.

Many of the examples in this book are the same as in the previous edition. At first, that was a disappointment. Then I realized just how useful this was, because all the ActionScript has been rewritten to the much stricter data-typing standards of AS2. By setting the old book and the new side by side, I was able to see immediately how to convert from the old to the new. For new readers, of course, everything is new; and learning to code correctly from the start is a massive bonus. Let's make no bones about it: AS2 is more difficult to get to grips with than the older version. But one thing I've learned with all programming languages is that learning to do things the "easy way" is always a mistake. Unlearning bad habits later is far more time consuming and frustrating than getting it right in the first place.

On that note, I must make my only real criticism of the book. In the first printing, at least, there are a lot of careless errors in the code. They're printing errors, mind you, not bad code. Most of the typos are pretty obvious, and shouldn't put off an intelligent reader. What's more, all the correct code is available in the download files. Still, it's a shame, because it spoils what's otherwise a great book.

What appeals to me very much about Sham Bhangal's style is that he makes learning a complex subject fun. A lot of the examples are game-based, but there's plenty of serious material in there, too, for anyone planning to use Flash to develop rich internet applications. The final chapter covers Flash MX 2004's new version 2 components, and listener events - crucial to anyone developing a business-oriented application. Equally, the Futuremedia case study that runs throughout the book demonstrates that Flash is not just for games or quirky animations. It's an elegant and sophisticated website interface driven by some pretty impressive scripting.

This is very much a hands-on book that teaches you through practical examples. Athough everything is presented in a logical manner, it's less useful as a reference book. Sham's not ignored that side, though. He's currently working on a new version of the Designer's ActionScript Reference, which should be out some time in late 2004.

Flash MX 2004: Training from the Source

Jen deHaan

Macromedia Press, 2004

I've been trying to get to grips with Flash for some time. It's much more complex than building a website with (X)HTML, and not having a graphic design background puts me at a distinct disadvantage. I first learned from "Foundation Flash MX", which certainly got me off the ground and interested in learning more. That's why I turned to this book when Flash MX 2004 came out.

Like "Foundation Flash MX", this book is aimed at teaching Flash from the ground up - no previous knowledge is required. Everything is very clearly explained, and the accompanying CD-ROM contains all the necessary files in both "before" and "after" state, so you can take them apart and see where you may have gone wrong. The book's approach is the construction of a complete website, introducing you to important aspects of Flash site construction as you go along.

It's aimed very much at the serious end of the market. Although there are some little touches of humour in the design, you're learning how to create a business-like site, not how to create a space invaders game. That's probably my main criticism of the book - I missed the sense of fun imparted by the "Foundation Flash MX" authors. Nevertheless, I have found it easier to use Jen deHaan's book when I need to look up a technique that I've forgotten. There are also some nice design techniques, so I'm happy to have both on my shelf.

Foundation Flash MX 2004

Kristian Besley & Sham Bhangal

friends of ED, 2004

This is an excellent introduction to Flash that moves rapidly through all the basic drawing tools and animation techniques, and then on to ActionScript, the language that makes Flash animations so powerful. The authors assume no previous knowledge of Flash, but get you using the program right from the start. By the end of the first chapter, you've already created your first animation - admittedly a very crude one, but the hands-on approach gives a real sense of achievement.

Tying the whole book together is a case study, in which you build a Flash-driven web site piece by piece, using the knowledge gained in the previous chapter. If you like a project-based tutorial approach, and you're completely new to Flash, this book would be an excellent choice. You have to work almost all the way through the book before finding out how to publish your first efforts on the web, but that's no bad thing. Flash is scorned by many web designers and users because of slow downloads and designs that irritate rather than delight. Foundation Flash MX 2004 has a lot of very sensible advice on how to avoid these pitfalls, with an excellent chapter on optimization before getting round to publishing your first masterpiece.

The book has been rewritten and updated to reflect the changes in Flash MX 2004 (both the Standard and Professional versions are covered). Although many of the examples are the same, the case study that ties the book together is brand new. As well as being a fun way to learn Flash, the wide variety of examples helps build design skills at the same time as teaching the mechanics of the program.

Dreamweaver MX 2004 Magic

Massimo Foti, Angela Buraglia et al

New Riders, 2003

New Riders released this book one week before Christmas, presumably in the hope of filling many Dreamweaver enthusiasts' Christmas stockings. Like a lot of things in Christmas stockings, it's attractive and there are some really good things inside, but there are also plenty of disappointments. The line-up of distinguished authors held the promise of some really good stuff, but I get the impression that the rush to get it out in time for Christmas meant they weren't given the opportunity to polish everything to perfection.

The biggest disappointment is that Massimo Foti, a brilliant creator of Dreamweaver extensions whose name appears as the lead contributor, seems to have been directly involved in only one of the 12 projects in the book. What's more, it's a project that works in ColdFusion and IE6 only. It may be brilliant, but I'll probably never find out because I have no plans to switch my server to ColdFusion. If it were just one project that had this problem, it might be acceptable, but of the five projects using server-side technology, only one has been designed to work with all three main ones, PHP, ASP and CF. Another works with ASP and CF, but the remaining three are single-technology projects - one each for ASP, ASP.NET and CF.

It's no criticism of the individual authors that they have concentrated on what they know best, but New Riders has let both them and readers down. "Macromedia Dreamweaver MX 2004 Web Application Recipes" by Joseph Lowery and Eric Ott came out a month earlier, and the entire book has been written so that everything works in ASP, PHP and ColdFusion. As a result, the book is bigger - and more expensive - but you get the impression the expense is more than justified.

In spite of these serious criticisms, "Dreamweaver MX 2004 Magic" does have some very strong points. Stephanie Sullivan kicks off with a tutorial on using CSS to position and style your pages. Anyone familiar with Stephanie's designs will appreciate that it's a winner, and there are some very useful tips you'll pick up from it. Brad Halstead and Murray Summers (authors of "Dreamweaver MX Templates") each present projects based on using templates for site navigation, again full of useful hints. Eduardo Zubler brings his love of Flash to a project called "Flashing Up Dreamweaver", which includes a very nifty extension called "Flash Date Picker". This, in fact, is one of the strong selling points of the book: the accompanying CD-ROM contains Dreamweaver extensions currently not available elsewhere. Eduardo's extension inserts a pop-up calendar that inserts dates in the correct American or European format into a form.

Another feature that will appeal to anyone who finds difficulty following just written instructions is that every project is accompanied by a Quick Time movie showing you how to go through all the steps. Although useful, I would have preferred the authors themselves to talk you through the projects, and explain things that aren't in the text. For my money, at least, the Magic series, while still attractive, has begun to lose its original sparkle.