||moock-updates|| Flash Player 9; Free ActionScript Compiler; ActionScript 3.0 Lecture Notes

[colin@moock.org]

/**
  * Flash Player 8.5 renamed to Flash Player 9
  * http://www.moock.org/blog/archives/000185.html
  */
Last friday at FITC, Adobe announced that the next Flash Player's 
version number will be 9, not 8.5 (the previously announced version 
number). The version number change reflects the vast amount of new 
functionality that will be added to the next player, including the new 
ActionScript 3.0 programming language.

Flash Player 9 will mark the first time a major Flash Player release has 
been made available before its accompanying Flash authoring tool. The 
next Flash authoring tool, code named Blaze, is expected to target Flash 
Player 9. Blaze does not yet have a release date, but a preview release 
that supports ActionScript 3.0 is expected to be made available through 
Adobe Labs.

Hence, developers wishing to produce Flash Player 9 content in 
ActionScript 3.0 will be able to choose from three development options:

* Flex Builder 2
   http://labs.macromedia.com/technologies/flexbuilder2/
* Free Flex SDK (Standalone Compiler)
   http://labs.macromedia.com/wiki/index.php/Flex:SDK_Announcement
* Blaze Preview

Mike Chambers, of Adobe developer relations, has a good overview of how 
ActionScript 3.0, Flash, Flex, and Flash Player 9 all fit together:
   http://www.macromedia.com/devnet/flash/articles/flex2_flash.html


/**
  * Free Flex SDK
  * http://labs.macromedia.com/wiki/index.php/Flex:SDK_Announcement
  */
have you heard? this summer, Adobe's releasing a free .swf compiler for 
ActionScript 3.0! it comes as part of the Free Flex SDK, which also 
includes the Flex Framework and documentation. wow!


/**
  * Lecture Notes Posted
  * http://moock.org/lectures/introToAS3/
  */
i've posted the notes for a lecture i gave last sunday at FITC (in 
toronto). topics covered:
    * general overview
    * E4X
    * Display API
    * Event Model


colin