Labs

Its that time again. Today we will be discussing the download method of the FileReference class. Unlike other methods that require a URLRequest, this one requires that request to be the complete path to the file on the server and not a relative one. While this is a pain, it is possible. Here is a download method that will do this for you:

So it appears DataType Number cannot be tested against null conditions. In order to determine if a Number has no value you must use the function isNaN(num) which returns a Boolean. That's right boys & girls a Numbers initial value is Not a Number ;-) Oh AS3 you confound me!

Want to start playing with Apollo, but don't want to take the time to learn FlexBuilder? Then use Flash CS3.

The team at Adobe is hard at work on an extension/plug-in that will streamline authoring Apollo apps from Flash CS3, but in the meantime, here is an extension created by Guy Watson that makes it easier.

There are also some new Apollo articles on the Adobe labs site (scroll to the bottom of the page).

FITC has been a good time as usual. A highlight for me so far was the announcement of Adobe's new Flash Player penetration numbers, featuring figures through March. According to the report, 83.4% of internet users around the world have version 9 of the player, and the number is slightly higher in North America.

So start coding that AS3!

I will be attending and participating in the inaugural Future of Web Design conference this week in London, and the always super fun FITC conference next week in Toronto.

These events are great chances to hear from leaders in the industry, be inspired, and learn about what Adobe is up to .. specifically more info about Apollo and CS3 .. straight from the source.

In London, I am giving a three hour workshop this Tuesday and speaking and sitting on a panel on Wednesday. In Toronto, I will be on a panel on Tuesday, April 24th.

If...

If you can answer YES to all of these questions:

- I am legally allowed to work in the USA
- I can work fulltime, on-site at Big Spaceship HQ in Brooklyn
- I have skills programming some or all of the following:
     Actionscript 2
     Actionscript 3
     HTML/Javascript/CSS
     PHP
     MySQL
     Any other front-end or back-end Web technologies
- I think Guitar Hero and Foosball are keys to a quality work environment

We are looking for developers at all levels, from intern to senior. Please send resume, cover letter, and code samples to dev.work (at) bigspaceship.com.

New in ActionScript 3.0 are user defined namespaces. ActionScript 2.0 already came with built-in namespaces, public and private. These gave you the ability to, at compile time, check your code for inconsistencies in your class definitions and timeline code.

Along with more predefined namespaces (public, private, protected, and internal) ActionScript 3.0 now comes with user defined namespaces. Those familiar with lower level programming languages (such as C++/C# or Java) may already be well acquainted with these concepts. If not read on and you'll be on your way in a couple of minutes.

I was in San Francisco this weekend attending the Apollo Camp event at Adobe on Friday evening. Between hanging out with some friends on the Apollo team .. Mike Downey, Mike Chambers, Danny Dura, Christian Cantrell .. and from the community .. Mims Wright, Roger Braunstein .. and enjoying complimentary pizza and beer, I learned a little more about the capabilities of Apollo.

Anyone reading this who isn't up to speed on Apollo and what it can do, now is the time to get caught up. Adobe has released the

Extremely talented developer and friend of the Spaceship, Roger Braunstein, has released Introduction to Flex as part of the O'Reilly Short Cut series. If you've been thinking about giving flex a shot, we recommend this as a starting point.

Apparently someone is clamoring for a class that we use here called "Out". This post will deliver said class, as well as provide a brief overview of its usage.

"Out" really doesn't do anything particularly useful, but it does make it a lot easier to scan through large volumes of trace() output and find the information you're looking for by formatting it nicely. This means that every line traced out is prefixed with the classname of the instance executing the trace, as well as the type of event the trace is intended to represent. There's also the option of filtering the outputs such that only traces from specific classes or of specific types are displayed.

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