Flash MX Application & Interface Design

It will look at:

- Focusing your interface design for ease of use
- Shaping up the back end to keep things simple
- Delivering complex content, including video

Using a blend of instructional and inspirational chapters, this book looks at Flashs strengths graphical dynamism, interactivity, back-end punch and multimedia delivery.

- Make gorgeous sites in tiny files with the Drawing API
- Look at the marriage of data and beauty with a Flash Family Tree
- Create real-feel interfaces that mimic different media
- Make XML do the donkey-work in site structure
- Ease up you navigation with PHP
- Create an entire drawing application
- Deliver video and make it interactive with Flash

...and so much more!

Some authors from the book obviously assume their readers possess expert-level knowledge of OOP, classes, inheritance, and creating objects. As I waded through a couple of scripts, I felt as if the authors expected a certain level of familiarity with OOP from me. In addition, the examples in the book are quite complex. If a reader wishes to take the examples and use the lessons found within them, he or she will either need extraordinary persistence or advanced scripting skills.

Nevertheless, the book contains a wealth of code for the advanced scripter; enough to keep an enthusiastic reader busy for many weeks. The book also showcased the drawing API through several chapters and gives great coverage of creating text fields in Flash MX. I enjoyed the varied perspectives offered by the different authors, particularly the chapter related to using an XML document to populate an interface/navigation.


fun fun fun   January 13, 2003
 2 out of 7 found this review helpful

i haven't seen a single book that sells the role flash mx should play in interface design and applications development as this one.

a definite must have for every designer/developer.

note: if you don't even read it... display it proudly on your shelf.


One Amazing Book!   December 27, 2002
 7 out of 7 found this review helpful

At first I have to admit when I seen this title, I thought hmmmm a book about flash and designing, can't be too interesting, but after reading it and lookinig at the case studies, I quickly changed my mind. I have to say this is one amazing book. If your a flash designer, then this book is a must! It has case studies from preloaders (ah you say whats the big deal with that?) believe me, just the prloaders alone are worth the price of the book, then it goes into how to make a website that is not just appealing visually but some totally amazing coding to go with it, then it goes into projects like the totally insane family tree (I have yet to see anything coded or visually appealing as this project is, you have to see this one to believe it), then how to use xml to create an insane directory (or it can be used as a menu) then comes php (Ok this is where it starts to go into orbit, a full website thats easy to navigate and extremly eye appealing). You want stickiness? check out the growing plant case study. Unbelievable project! then also theres the t-shirt designing art program (which can be converted into an online art program for various purposes) and also the use of video (now this is not just a normal video case study) on the side it shows you what steps a karate guy is making top view in graphics as the karate guy does his moves (one great how to do karate tutorial for online) which can also be converted into other things as well. So there you have it a book jammed packed full of totally insane case studies. Some have surpassed anything Ive seen yet! I was thikning of giving this book a 4 star rating when I got about halfway through it, I have no choice but to give it a 5 star rating, it's just way to good not too.
If your a flash designer or just a flash programmer, you need this book!


oops got two reviews in here   December 24, 2002
 1 out of 4 found this review helpful

I removed this review as it wound up becoming two here. Feel free to remove this one.
Deadsam


Fun book   November 26, 2002
 2 out of 4 found this review helpful

This is an interesting book covering many aspects of flash use today. There is a good sprinkling of

- Drawing API
- Advanced Actionscripting
- XML, PHP and server side technologies
- Sticky site concepts
- neat interactive video

The book is not big, and is by no means exhaustive .. .but it is fun.