Flash MX 2004 and Flash MX Professional 2004 introduce a new Extensibility architecture. This is not an upgrade to an existing feature, but a brand new concept that nobody using an earlier version of Flash has seen or used before. With the extensibility tools, which include behaviors, custom-made tools and commands, the JavaScript API (or JSFL), and the XML-to-UI API, you can literally extend Flash to do things it cannot do out of the box. Things such as adding new custom commands to the menu and customizing the tool bar, adding brand new, custom created tools. The commands could be as simple as drawing a commonly used shape on the stage, or as complex as creating an entire new Flash movie from scratch. Tools take into account mouse actions and property inspector parameters. This allows you for custom shapes much as are seen in Microsoft Office, for example, stars, callouts, arrows, etc.
Keith Peters
DOM Flash Java JavaScript Workflow XML friends of ED
From the reviews:
"For those who know ActionScript, JavaScript or XML, this book is extremely interesting – it shows you exactly how to expand Flash’s toolset to suit your needs." - Computer Arts
"Great stuff. The narrow scope of the subject matter has given the authors the space to thoroughly cover this important new feature of Flash MX 2004." - Flashmagazine.com
"The purpose of this book is to introduce … new extensibility API. … If you plan to develop a lot of your own tools or extensions … then this reference is going to get well thumbed. … The writing team really knows their subject and has the experience to write … . the source code is available on Friends of Ed’s website. … Great stuff." (John Dalziel, flashmagazine.com, March, 2004)
"The latest title from the omnipresent friends of ED … is aimed at those very much familiar with the app and its inner workings, bringing a guide to extending its features. These include timeline effects, behaviours … providing coders with a way to add elements and create add-on tools. … For those who know ActionScript, JavaScript or XML, this book is extremely interesting – it shows you exactly how to expand Flash’s toolset to suit your needs." (Computer Arts, Issue no. 95, April, 2004)