Marco Casario | RIAvolutionize the web

Change the ActionScript classpath directory

The flex-config.xml file permits developers to set and configure several stuff for Flex applications.
During our developing time, it happened we were able to change the default directory for ActionScript classpath in order to share components between application.
For default the ActionScript classpath subdirectory is under :

/WEB-INF/flex/user_classes

To change it, you have to open the flex-config.xml file, find the tag and set your folder :

<actionscript-compiler>

<actionscript-classpath>

<path-element>/WEB-INF/flex/my_user_classes</path-element>

</actionscript-classpath>

</actionscript-compiler>

Pay attention to case-sensitive file system. Unix file system (case-sensitive) make flex generates a component-not-found error, while for Mac and Win file system flex generates a case-mismatch error.

Macromedia Certified contest to win a free exam

From Macromedia Flash Devnet page I read about this contest which consists of writing 7 exam questions
for one of these exams :

Macromedia Flash MX 2004 Developer
Macromedia Flash MX 2004 Designer
Macromedia Dreamweaver MX 2004 Developer
Macromedia ColdFusion MX Developer

Winners have a free certification voucher.
This is an abstract from the site :

The Macromedia Certification team challenges you to write 7 exam questions for the exam of your choice. To win a free certification voucher your questions must be of final exam quality - meaning when submitted the questions require little to no editing from The Donath Group or Macromedia. You may submit as many questions as you like, but to be eligible for a free certification voucher, you must submit at least 7 questions.

We will review all submitted questions on a quarterly basis and contact you directly if you are winner. Certification vouchers awarded as part of the Item Writing Contest are good for any exam and will expire a year from the date of issue. Good Luck!

Visit the page : http://www.donathgroup.com/macromedia/contest/

Flex Live events

Tomorrow will be a Macromedia Live Online Seminars about Developing Rich Internet Applications with Macromedia Flex.
You can register from here .

And do not miss the event on Thursday, November 18, 2004 about Flex 1.5.
All info here.

Flash Communication Server tutorials

This morning I read some mails in the FlashComm mailinglist by Graeme Bull, Stefan Richter and Bill Sanders about their preferred Flash Comm tutorial sites.
So i decided to list them and add other resources :

Server Side Persistent Shared Objects
http://nemo.hartford.edu/~wsanders/SerSidePSO.zip

Deleting an FLV without using server side code
http://www.sti-media.com/blog/archives/000083.html

Flash Comm slides
http://flash-communications.net/technotes/fitc2004/fitc.ppt

Brian Lesser's tutorial
http://echo.ryerson.ca/arraysSharedObjects/index.html

Learning to love ASC
http://www.peldi.com/blog/archives/2004/10/learning_to_lov.html

Flash Comm 1.5 LiveDocs
http://www.macromedia.com/livedocs/flashcom/mx2004/index.html

Server Side framework explanation (a 3 aprt tutorials)
http://blog.funciton.com/en/archives/000254.php

http://www.macromedia.com/devnet/mx/flashcom/
http://www.macromedia.com/support/flashcom/
http://www.flashcomguru.com
http://www.peldi.com/blog/
http://www.flashcommunicationserver.net
http://www.flvplayer.com/

Feel free to add your own personal bookmarks and resources.

A new Flex application : BRIDGEWERX Designer

Matt Chotin has published on his blog a link for the demo of BridgeWerx, a new app that uses Flex.
BRIDGEWERX is a revolutionary Integration Software Factory, producing solutions that connect applications and business processes together

The BRIDGEWERX Designer (developed entirely in Flex) tool lets you design, procure, provision, implement and manage your integration projects from anywhere in the world.

Clint Modien, one of the developer (I suppose), has commented :

Thanks for the recognition Matt!! I just wanted to add that the application itself is available to play with now at:

http://bwdesigner.5by5software.com/BRIDGEWERX/BRIDGEWERX.mxml

registration is free

And the website with more info is at:
http://bridgewerx.com

Another grat example of how to use Flex to develop rich internet application that improve the User Experience.
To see other investors, partners and company that have started to use Flex go here.

Central ICQ Videochat ??

Via my CNET News.com Alerts i received an email titled :

ICQ offers video chat

So I immediatly thought about a Video application created with new Central AOL IM SDK instead I read that the video application was developed under the program known as ICQ Xtraz.
ICQ enables you to conduct simple and easy to use Video chat sessions.

Download the ICQ Video Xtraz.

What is the ICQ Xtraz API ?

The ICQ Xtraz API is a development platform that enables developers and businesses alike to create new and innovative features that can be seamlessly integrated into the ICQ 4 client. Currently the Xtraz API is available to developers or businesses who wish to partner with ICQ.
ICQ Xtraz are web-based features that are seamlessly integrated into ICQ 4.

An ICQ Xtraz feature that you create, as an ICQ partner, will be hosted on your site, and under certain limitations will be controlled and managed by you - so design, security and other aspects of your application or service, can be easily managed.

In order to develop ICQ Xtraz features, you will need access to the development platform, the ICQ Xtraz API. Currently the Xtraz API is only made available to individual developers or businesses that partners with ICQ.

Go to Xtraz Developer Center

The article end with this sentence :

"Central has yet to generate significant interest among developers, however, who have expressed concerns about usefulness and licensing terms."

Read the entire article.

PayDirect service (used by Central Try/Buy model) shutted down by Yahoo

I read on Zdnet site that Yahoo is shutting down PayDirect, the payment system used by the new Central Try/Buy license model.
The Try/Buy Distribution License permits developers to sell their Central apps using the Central Try/Buy infrastructure to promote them and handle payments transaction with the Yahoo! Payments service.
All details about the model are here.

You can read the entire article here.

From Yahoo Paydirect site (http://paydirect.yahoo.com/) :

The PayDirect service and web site will be completely discontinued on May 15, 2005.

A full timeline outlining these dates is included below:

November 22, 2004 – After this date, you will no longer be able to send money or add funds to either your PayDirect account or to any WorldCards you have sent. However, you will be able to transfer your balance to your bank account and close your PayDirect account. Recipients of Worldcard ATM cards may continue to withdraw funds you have put into a sub-account prior to this date but you will not be permitted to put new funds in a sub-account.

February 15, 2005 – All PayDirect accounts that have not already been closed by the account owner will automatically be closed, and the balance will be refunded. You will not be able to conduct any further transactions. The PayDirect web site will still be available for you to view your account history.

May 15, 2005 – The Yahoo! PayDirect from HSBC service will be completely discontinued, and you will no longer be able to access the web site.

What will happen to Central and the new License program ??????
Macromedia let us know, please !

Flash Player 8 revealed by Kevin Lynch

During the Tokyo Flash Conference Colin Mook recorderded the Kevin's presentation of Flash Player 8 :

http://www.moock.orghttp://www.asvguy.com/2004/10/flash_player_8_.html/blog/archives/000146.html
Read a summury of some of the new features covered in the ASVGuy blog :

http://www.asvguy.com/2004/10/flash_player_8_.html

More details will (probably) show up at MAX2004 in New Orleans !
The new Flash Player rocks !!!!

Change default MXML Component settings from Flexbuilder

During developing with FlexBuilder i noticed an annoying issue about creating a new document from the Start Panel.

When you create a MXML Components you get a blank mxml file with a View container with the width and height property setted to 400 px. Every time i have to cancel that default settings.
So i decided to change the settings from the document type definition file. This file is located in the FlexBuilder Configuration/DocumentTypes folder. You can find there a lot of files that contain information about at least one document type (server model, color coding, style ...).
If you open the NewDocuments folder you are able to find the default file for creating mxml components : Default_comp.mxml.
Open that file :

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>

<mx:VBox xmlns:mx="http://www.macromedia.com/2003/mxml" width="400" height="400">

</mx:VBox>

You can see the settings for the width and height properties inside the mx:VBox tag.
For my usefullness i've cancelled them.
In the NewDocuments folder you can also edit all default document for flex development :

Now when Flexbuilder launches, it reads all document type definition files and builds a list of valid document types and when you create a new MXML Component file you obtain the default mxml document with your own settings.
If you want you can also create your own documents and then edit the MMDocumentTypes.xml files inside your DocumentType folder.
Opening this file you can see all the definition for all default new documents. You can edit a document type forcing it to load a file changing its "file" property.
This is the code for the MXML Application default file that loads the Default.mxml file :

<documenttype id="MXML" internaltype="XML" servermodel="MXML for JSP" winfileextension="mxml" macfileextension="mxml" file="Default.mxml">

<TITLE>MXML Application</TITLE>

<description>

<![CDATA[Flex Application MXML document with a vertical layout]]>

</description>

</documenttype>

In order to load another document you can just change the "file" property :

file="myFile.mxml"

Very good growth for Flash and Flex

I saw the Breeze presentation released by Macromedia about their 2nd quarter fiscal 2005.
Good news for Flash and Flex users :

- Flash 7.2 has registered 75% of download penetration from July 26. Macromedia receveid great feedback for this new release
- New Flash video examples to show FLV capabilities (http://www.adidas.com/us/performance/home.asp, http://www.redbullcopilot.com/, http://media.highspeed.discovery.com/index.html, http://entertainment.polo.com/rltv.asp, http://www.cnet.com/)



- Flash Video used inside the Yahoo Instant Messaging



- Flash and mobile (see a summary from FlashDevices)
- New Flex customers acquired

See also this blog by John Dowell.

I see a lot of new opportunities for Macromedia users !