URL string encoding issue in Flex 3

I am pulling data from a mySQL source using a traditional httpService protocol, this time adding a specific filter value to the string. So it’s a string with multiple values encoded, and I am using the & symbol. This seemed like a straightforward proposition, and the test in the browser worked well. However, I had a very specific issue with URL encoding. The IDE was throwing a pretty descriptive error:

next character must be “;” terminating reference to entity “method”

The issue is that the MXML compiler hated the & symbol. I tried using the ascii symbol for ampersand, which is %26, but to no avail. the trick turned out to be grabbing the decimal value, and present it in HTML code. In this case that’s the ampersand – its #38; – and a handy little chart was very helpful – here at acsiitable.com

The service request worked perfectly!

mx:HTTPService id=”prodList”
url=”http://mysite.com/flexedOut/Products.php?filter=594&method=FindAll”
result=”myResultHandler(event)”

in case you can’t tell, the browser is rendering that ampersand perfectly so here it would be one space between characters: & # 38 ;

Timeline vs No Timeline

As a developer, I love the purist code. I develop in the ZEND architecture and I rarely code in anything that isn’t Eclipse Based anymore. Adobe Flex has become one of my favorite IDEs. What an interesting evolution in thought processes.

I have developed many OOP applications in Flash with Actionscript. This approach utilizes a basic timeline structure, as Flash has always been (since 4.0) on timeline. Thinking in terms of Timelines was no big switch, because Lingo was my language of choice before flash actionscript was an option. Learn to Speak, Just Enough, and the Berlitz titles too – were based on Lingo and director. Director was always the tool I used to bridge the gap between the artists and the programmers.

The timeline structure, although interesting and workable, is less appealing to hard core developers. As I develop more and more code in Flex, I realize that the old school timeline paradigm is less appealing. The more I use actionscript 3 in the Flex IDE, the better I like this shift in thinking.

There are times that I really miss the timeline in flash, but the tradeoff so far makes it worthwhile to stick with flex.

Remix of oshell dot calm

aEon has owned the domain name oshell.com since 1994, while employed at The Learning Company. Around 1997 while working there I was befriended by the lead engineer on the software project for a CD ROM based product that was sold over the shelves at Egg Head and Comp USA (may the latter rest in peace). I was content to do rapid interface design mockups to bridge the gap between my department (then the graphics division) and her department, which was programming and engineering. The résumé building project was a real fork in the road of my life, although I didn’t realize it at the time. She taught me several things about HTML. I absorbed all the information she taught me and discovered a new interest. I decided to become a developer.

I had written some rudimentary applications in Lingo in Macromedia Director, and I continued to develop that skill, but the web opened up my eyes to a new set of possibilities. These the words my mentor bestowed on me: “No one wants to to anything unless it’s connected to a database” turned out to be very important indeed in shaping my choices.

oshell dot calm has had many incarnations over the years, from plain html, to images cut into slices (ahh, fireworks), to CSS pushed content, and finally a fully flexed version of the site. Pure FLEX, with the creation of a few elements in illustrator, the creation of animated parts as separate swf files, and of course a fully fledged data connectivity that uses the standard web 2.0 http request model for gathering data from a mySQL database that is pushing content - which is today’s release.

Flex VS Ajax – part one

Flex or AJAX? Depends upon your goal. Here are a few reasons that I – aEon- personally prefer flex over ajax. The biggest lure for me was the fact that cross platform text and rendering issues are prevalent in ajax solutions.

NEED	FLEX	AJAX
Faster Development	YES
Seamless Between Platforms	YES
Browser Compatibility Issues / PROBLEMS	FEW	MANY
Memory Leaks		YES
Superior UI	YES
Better components
Skinning / Cross Browser Compatibility	YES
Versatile data filtering, sorting, etc.	YES
Ease of Development	YES
Graphics API	YES
Usability	YES
Ease of use	YES
Mature framework	YES
Robust Security	YES
Asynchronous request/response model	YES
Binary data communication	YES
Client-side caching	YES
Cross Browser communication	YES
Streaming	YES
	YES

Flex powered shopping cart

Tapping into the power of flex, we are developing a flashed out skin for elastic cart. It’s moving along nicely and in general we like how it’s forming up. We’ve been posting here and there about flex techniques we pick up along the way.

Why do we like flex over css, and why select flex to provide a 2.0 experience? Because of the visual aspect of flex. Bored with differences in how machines display interfaces – browser variations between OS platforms are one example, not to mention the gaps in how platforms display data – we are looking for a magic bullet. Why Not?

AJAX and CSS won’t do all we need it to do. We were mesmerized by the potential of creating application type experiences over the web, and providing cool effects like drag and drop while ensuring a close match in appearance between both mac and pc – is a wonderful thing. We like it.

Its more than the visual and creative side of the web that draws us to flex. Air applications are a strong pull and we feel the tug – green apps that can reduce the cost of production and stay viable over the long run via web hosted sql updates. That adds bang to the buck.

For these reasons, we selected flex as our skin for elastic cart, and we will be posting more and more about it between now and October…

Local Version History in Flex SDK

You work at home to avoid distractions to meet a deadline. You’re doing some heavy duty cutting edge work, and you are custom coding components in flex. So there you are, coding in flex, and you get interrupted by a phone call. your eyes avert from the screen, you lose your train of thought. While you are not looking, the kitten you are watching for a friend pounces on the desk and does cartwheels on your keyboard. wait, an entire section of code is now gone. the kitten has beautiful blue eyes and you can’t stay mad at it. curses! how will you get your work back?

The answer, my friend, is blowing in the wind. It’s also the kick ass context menu option in Flex SDK. put your mouse over the code, and right click (you know you love it) Choose Compare with -> local history. Wowee, zappo. There’s your entire code history, and you can retrofit or roll back easily.

I must say, I love flex SDK on eclipse like a mouse loves cheese for this very reason.

What percent of your visitors use flash or flex?

The magic number here is 98%. Two percent of web users do not have flash player installed. Which in my feverish developers brain means that we can now be confident to push a better experience to the masses. So, you say, the other two percent will hate you.

Ah, not really. Give them a flash sniffer and let them install. Or better yet develop your php delivery independently of your flash / air push and just let it be. Until the iPhone can handle flash, we are all going to have to be accommodating.

In another year, that 2 percent may be a lingering bad dream. Flash may indeed become ubiquitous. Here’s hoping….

Cool Flex Trick

Have you ever stopped to wonder – what are the legal mxml tags built into the SDK for flex? Is there some type of list I can use? You betcha! Check out the manifest. If you are on a mac – it will most likely be here:

/Applications/Adobe\ Flex\ Builder\ 3/sdks/3.2.0/frameworks/mxml-manifest.xml

The manifest is neatly organized, with air framework components listed first, followed by charting components, data services, framework classes and finally rpc. very cool…

Roll up your sleeves and get ready to flex…

For those of you who are into actionscripting and flash design and development, the world is about to shift once again. The beauty of flash catalyst and flash builder cannot be denied. Now that flex is about to become more recognized as a serious tool to provide web 2.0 experiences, and the desktop is coming to a browser near you, it’s time to dust off the old XML and remember – who took us to the dance.

I have been waiting for this change with baited breath for the better part of 6 months. Systematically installing all of the eclipse based IDE applications on our main development machines, and rolling up my sleeves. Think you know everything about delivering user experiences over the web? Think again. Change is coming.

Now, onto business. What about Flex? Why is it exciting? You may ask yourself this question if you have not been keeping the pulse of interactive media applications. Adobe’s FLEX is like flash, written from the ground up for those who approach new media design from a programmatic and data based point of view. It’s basically flash for programmers. which is why I love both flash and flex, being both a programmer and an artist, I get to use both halves of my brain at once. Invigorating.

1. Flash and Flex consume it, and now like never before. There are some new and more effective methods of consuming XML in the latest versions of flash and flex.
2. You can work with remoting, and live services, that’s true. It’s also not that much of a performance hit to ask the database for some info and then let flex or flash deal with it. XML can be a really powerful method of delivering robust dynamic content in flex.
3. delicious interface elements and ease of design.
4. drag and drop and other yummy desktop experiences right on the web. stateless web, your days are numbered.