> I guess whether you think it's a crappy analogy depends on > whether you believe Form-based applications are different > enough from other flash apps to warrant their own IDE. > Personally, I don't. I can already build Form-based apps > just fine in Flash 8 or with DHTML. So please explain how > Flex is superior (without using acronyms or buzzwords).
I don't know from superior - I have no knowledge or experience using the Flash IDE, and I'm not a Flash programmer. I AM a Flex programmer, however. (An inexperienced Flex programmer, but you have to start somewhere.) I also have experience developing forms-based applications using other traditional IDEs, such as Visual Studio and its predecessors. These IDEs have a common development idiom - you drag controls onto the form, you bind event handlers to them, etc. The Flash IDE does not follow this idiom, and the FlexBuilder IDE does. Whether you like it or not, this is very valuable if you want to attract developers who are familiar with the idiom. > Yes, the Eclipse IDE is cool. Yes, AS 3 looks promising. > But why not just build the Flash 9 IDE with an Eclipse-based > actionscript compiler/editor? It's all about the idiom, again - people with experience using traditional forms-based IDEs expect to see certain things. Eclipse has those things, the Flash IDE doesn't (at least, as far as I know - again, I'm not a Flash developer.) > Ceating two similar but non-overlapping products is > confusing. I'm sure it will create all sorts of workflow > headaches between artists and developers. I don't think the two products are similar at all. In fact, if they didn't create applications that used the same runtime environment (the Flash Player itself) you'd have no reason to assume they shared any commonality at all. > And I'm really not looking forward to explaining to clients > who may only have a passing familiarity with Flash that > they're going to have to buy both Flash 9 and Flex 2 to > compile my stuff. :( Well, fortunately, they won't need to buy Flex 2 to compile your stuff. There will apparently be a free, command-line Flex compiler which you can download and use separately from FlexBuilder. In theory, you could just use Notepad or any other editor for Flex development, although that would probably be quite tedious and painful; in the same way, you can write C# apps with Notepad and compile them using the .NET MSIL compiler, but yecch. Dave Watts, CTO, Fig Leaf Software http://www.figleaf.com/ Fig Leaf Software provides the highest caliber vendor-authorized instruction at our training centers in Washington DC, Atlanta, Chicago, Baltimore, Northern Virginia, or on-site at your location. Visit http://training.figleaf.com/ for more information! _______________________________________________ [email protected] To change your subscription options or search the archive: http://chattyfig.figleaf.com/mailman/listinfo/flashcoders Brought to you by Fig Leaf Software Premier Authorized Adobe Consulting and Training http://www.figleaf.com http://training.figleaf.com
