Flex Resources and Help
The best resources I found, in a variety of media:
Books
These were the top 3 books recommended over and over again by the Usenet groups I follow.
- Programming Flex 3: The Comprehensive Guide to Creating Rich Internet Applications with Adobe Flex [link]
- Essential ActionScript 3.0 [link]
- Programming Flash Communication Server [link]
Web
Documentation
If you have a project already in mind and understand object oriented code, you may want to jump right in with your idea.
- Flex 3 docs [html | pdf]
- ActionScript 3 docs [html | pdf]
- Flash Media Server 3 docs [html | pdf]
- Flash Media Server 3.5 docs [html | pdf]
Video Tutorials
While Lynda.com has been a great resource for learning Flex, these free video tutorials have proven just as handy:
- Learn Flex in a Week [video tutorials]
- Flash 411: Getting your video questions answered [video tutorials]
Sample Apps
Sometimes the best way to learn a new concept is to just jump right in and get your hands dirty. These sample applications are small, simple and great examples of the potential behind RIAs. Although the first one is created in Flash, it can be done in Flex, too.
- Building a Simple Live Video Broadcaster and Receiver [sample app]*
- Creating a Simple RIA [sample app]
* As someone new to Flex, I thought the broadcaster/receiver idea would have been really useful as a sample Flex project, so I rebuilt this one in Flex and translated it from ActionScript 2 into ActionScript 3. I’ll make the .zip file available for download in the next post.
People
For those really complex questions that can’t be answered by a definition in the documentation or isn’t covered in the books, you can connect to a pool of professionals via e-mail:
A List Apart – The Survey, 2008
Calling all designers, developers, information architects, project managers, writers, editors, marketers, and everyone else who makes websites. It is time once again to pool our information so as to begin sketching a true picture of the way our profession is practiced worldwide.
The second annual survey by A List Apart seeks information about the people behind the scenes: the folks who make a website “go” (that’s you). Last year nearly 33,000 respondents gave us a peek into what working in the world of web is like – from obvious findings (it’s a male-dominated field) to not-so-obvious extrapolations (compared to IT and other computer-related fields, web workers make squat!) all of which you can read, but please take this year’s survey first.
Favthumbs visualizes your del.icio.us bookmarks
As described by Freestyle Labs:
Favthumbs: your del.icio.us bookmarks visualized, a MobileMe Gallery + del.icio.us mashup, coded by Jamie Hamel-Smith.
Perfect for visual thinkers, who might like to browse their bookmarks as pictures instead of words. No special sign-up needed, just log in with your existing del.icio.us account and browse away.
Favthumbs has two viewing options: a Grid View reminiscent of Opera’s Speed Dial, or a Carousel View that behaves like coverflow on Mac OS X (Leopard).
Inspirational Reading
How to Stand Out in Any Job by Chris Guillebeau
Getting Things Done When You’re Only a Grunt by Joel Spolsky
How to Make Time for Your Personal Goals by Leo Babauta
Polite Way to Stop E-mail Spam from Friends
Thanks. No. Finally, a polite message to stop those chain letters and other assorted random messages from cluttering up your inbox. A free service from your friends at 43folders.
