book

Flash Remoting: The Definitive Guide

Name: Flash Remoting: The Definitive Guide
Author: Tom Muck
ISBN: 9780596004019

by Tom Muck

September 2003

Intermediate to advanced

640 pages

18h 43m

English

O'Reilly Media, Inc.

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Dedication
Preface
Remoting: More Than Just a Name
What Is Remoting Used For?
What This Book Contains
What This Book Is Not
The Book at a Glance
Part I: Remoting FundamentalsPart II: The Server-Side LanguagesPart III: Advanced Flash RemotingPart IV: AppendixesTerminology ConventionsTypographical Conventions
We’d Like to Hear from You
Future Versions of Flash
Acknowledgments

I. Remoting Fundamentals
1. Introduction to Flash Remoting
1.1. What Is Flash Remoting?
1.2. How Does Flash Remoting Work?
1.2.1. Action Message Format
1.3. Benefits
1.3.1. Why Not XML?1.3.2. HTML and Server-Side Code1.3.3. Session Management in Flash
1.4. Flash Remoting Requirements
1.4.1. Macromedia Flash Authoring Tool1.4.2. Macromedia Flash Remoting Components1.4.3. Macromedia Flash Remoting Gateway
1.5. Supported Platforms
1.5.1. Macromedia ColdFusion MX1.5.2. J2EE Application Servers and Java Servlet Engines1.5.3. Macromedia JRun 41.5.4. Microsoft ASP.NET Servers
1.6. Hello World
1.6.1. Flash ActionScript Code1.6.2. Server-Side Code1.6.2.1. ColdFusion MX1.6.2.2. Server-Side ActionScript1.6.2.3. Java using JRun 4 or other J2EE servers1.6.2.4. Microsoft .NET server1.6.2.5. PHP1.6.2.6. Web service1.6.3. Overview
1.7. Workflow Example
1.8. Architecture for Flash Remoting Applications
1.8.1. Presentation Tier1.8.2. Middle Tier1.8.3. Data Tier
1.9. Wrapping Up
2. Installing, Configuring, and Using Flash Remoting
2.1. Installing Flash Remoting
2.1.1. ColdFusion MX2.1.2. JRun 42.1.3. Other J2EE Servers2.1.4. ASP.NET2.1.5. PHP with AMFPHP2.1.6. Typical Installations
2.2. Naming Your Services
2.2.1. Creating the Sample Directories and Package Structure2.2.2. The Services
2.3. The Authoring Environment
2.3.1. Flash Remoting Components2.3.1.1. NetServices class2.3.1.2. RecordSet class2.3.1.3. DataGlue class2.3.1.4. NetDebug class2.3.2. Flash Remoting Windows and Menu Options2.3.2.1. NetConnection Debugger2.3.2.2. Service Browser2.3.2.3. Help menu2.3.3. The Actions Panel2.3.3.1. Setting up the Actions panel2.3.3.2. Code hints and code completion2.3.4. Additional Flash Remoting Developer’s Tools2.3.4.1. Database server and development environment2.3.4.2. Local copy of application server2.3.4.3. Code editor2.3.4.4. SWF decompiler2.3.4.5. Extensions
2.4. Sequence of Events in Flash
2.5. Making a Remote Call
2.5.1. Initialize Objects as Needed2.5.2. Create a Connection and Service Object2.5.3. Create a Service Object2.5.4. Create Callback Methods or Functions2.5.5. Call the Remote Service2.5.6. Wait for the Response2.5.7. Act on the Response or Error2.5.8. The Server-Side Code2.5.8.1. ColdFusion MX2.5.8.2. Server-Side ActionScript2.5.8.3. J2EE2.5.8.4. ASP.NET2.5.8.5. PHP
2.6. Wrapping Up
3. Client/Server Interaction, UI Components, and RecordSets
3.1. User Interface Components
3.2. Flash UI Components Set 2 and Flash Charting Controls
3.3. Macromedia’s DRK
3.3.1. UI Components Set 33.3.2. DataGrid Control3.3.3. Other Content, DRKs, and Components
3.4. Text Objects
3.4.1. Static Text Fields3.4.2. Dynamic Text Fields3.4.3. Input Text Fields3.4.4. Adding Text Fields from ActionScript
3.5. Building Forms in Flash MX
3.6. The RecordSet Class
3.6.1. Structure of a RecordSet Object3.6.2. Using the RecordSet Class3.6.3. Flash Remoting Using a RecordSet3.6.3.1. ColdFusion3.6.3.2. Server-Side ActionScript3.6.3.3. JRun and J2EE3.6.3.4. ASP.NET3.6.3.5. PHP3.6.3.6. The client-side ActionScript code
3.7. DataGlue
3.7.1. Using the DataGlue Class3.7.2. Gluing the DataGrid3.7.3. Gluing the Dynamic Chart Components
3.8. Wrapping Up
4. Flash Remoting Internals
4.1. The NetConnection Class
4.2. Using NetServices
4.2.1. Establishing the Gateway Connection4.2.2. Creating the Service Object4.2.2.1. NetServiceProxy4.2.2.2. NetServiceProxyResponder4.2.3. User Authentication4.2.4. Using the NetConnection Object Directly4.2.4.1. NetConnection debugging methods
4.3. Creating Responder Functions
4.3.1. Using onResult( ) and onStatus( ) Responder Functions4.3.2. Using Named Responder Functions4.3.3. Response Dispatch Hierarchy4.3.4. Choosing the Appropriate Type of Responder Function
4.4. RecordSet Object
4.4.1. The RecordSet Constructor4.4.2. The addItem( ) Method4.4.3. The addItemAt( ) Method4.4.4. The getLength( ) Method4.4.5. The getItemAt( ) Method4.4.6. The removeItemAt( ) Method4.4.7. The replaceItemAt( ) Method4.4.8. The getItemID( ) Method4.4.9. The setField( ) Method4.4.10. The getColumnNames( ) Method4.4.11. The filter( ) Method4.4.12. The getNumberAvailable( ) Method4.4.13. The setDeliveryMode( ) Method4.4.14. The sortItemsBy( ) and sort( ) Methods4.4.15. The addView( ) Method4.4.16. The removeAll( ) Method
4.5. The Timeline
4.6. Catching Errors
4.6.1. Error Types4.6.2. Trapping Server-Side Errors
4.7. Registering Objects
4.7.1. Using Object.registerClass( )4.7.2. Registering Objects for ColdFusion MX, Java, ASP.NET, and PHP4.7.2.1. ColdFusion MX4.7.2.2. Java4.7.2.3. ASP.NET4.7.2.4. PHP4.7.3. The Real Power of Object.registerClass( )
4.8. Wrapping Up
II. The Server-Side Languages
5. Flash Remoting and ColdFusion MX
5.1. Introduction to ColdFusion MX
5.2. How ColdFusion Fits into Flash Applications
5.2.1. Datatype Conversions5.2.1.1. Datatypes in Flash5.2.1.2. Datatypes in ColdFusion5.2.1.3. Passing data between Flash and ColdFusion5.2.2. Flash Variable Scope
5.3. Service Name Mappings
5.3.1. Order of Service Lookup5.3.2. Invoking a ColdFusion Page Service from Flash5.3.2.1. Using the Flash variable scope to pass data between Flash and a ColdFusion page5.3.2.2. Using named parameters to pass data from a Flash application to a ColdFusion page5.3.2.3. Returning data to Flash from a ColdFusion page5.3.3. Flash Remoting Services as ColdFusion Components5.3.3.1. The theory behind ColdFusion Components5.3.3.2. The structure of ColdFusion Components5.3.3.3. The <cfcomponent> tag5.3.3.4. The <cffunction> tag5.3.3.5. The <cfargument> tag5.3.3.6. Organizing ColdFusion Components using packages5.3.3.7. Invoking ColdFusion Components From Flash5.3.4. Examples of Flash Remoting Using ColdFusion Components5.3.4.1. Using a ColdFusion Component to send email5.3.4.2. Returning a Query object5.3.4.3. Wrapping a Java class in a ColdFusion Component5.3.5. ColdFusion Component Introspection5.3.5.1. Discovering ColdFusion Components from Flash
5.4. ColdFusion Pages Versus ColdFusion Components
5.5. Loading Query Data Incrementally
5.5.1. Implementing Pageable Recordsets on the Server5.5.2. Implementing Pageable Recordsets on the Client5.5.3. Managing Incrementally Loaded Data by Hand5.5.4. Passing the Page Size from Flash Dynamically
5.6. ColdFusion Security: Authenticating Users
5.6.1. Client-Side Security Implementation5.6.2. Security on the Server5.6.3. Using Role-Based Security with ColdFusion Components
5.7. Updating Data on the Server
5.7.1. Passing a Record to the Service Manually5.7.1.1. The server-side code5.7.1.2. The client-side code5.7.1.3. Enhancing the ComboBox component5.7.1.4. Response handlers5.7.1.5. Calling the services5.7.2. Passing a Record to the Service Automatically5.7.2.1. The updateProducts( ) method5.7.2.2. The client-side ActionScript
5.8. Wrapping Up
6. Server-Side ActionScript
6.1. What Is Server-Side ActionScript?
6.2. The CF Object
6.2.1. Using CF.http( )6.2.1.1. Creating a proxy for a remote service6.2.2. Using CF.query( )6.2.2.1. CF.query( ) properties6.2.2.2. The SQL argument6.2.2.3. Retrieving results6.2.2.4. Inserting, updating, and deleting results
6.3. When to Use Server-Side ActionScript
6.4. Datatype Conversions
6.5. Handling Errors with try/catch
6.5.1. Retrying the Query6.5.2. Debugging6.5.3. Finally6.5.4. Custom Exception Objects
6.6. Extending Server-Side ActionScript with Java
6.6.1. The Principles of Extending SSAS6.6.1.1. Adding a Sleep( ) function6.6.1.2. Getting a directory list from the server6.6.1.3. File methods on the server6.6.1.4. Sending an email with Server-Side ActionScript6.6.1.5. Retrieving emails using Server-Side ActionScript6.6.2. Creating a CF.query( ) Method for JRun 4
6.7. Wrapping Up
7. Flash Remoting and Java
7.1. The Flash Remoting Gateway
7.2. Supported Platforms
7.3. Setting Up Flash Remoting for J2EE
7.3.1. Logging
7.4. Service Types
7.4.1. JavaBean Services7.4.2. Java Class Services7.4.3. Enterprise JavaBean (EJB) Services7.4.4. Servlet Services7.4.5. JMX MBean Services7.4.6. Server-Side ActionScript (SSAS) Services
7.5. Datatype Conversions
7.5.1. ActionScript-to-Java Data Conversion7.5.2. Java-to-ActionScript Data Conversion7.5.2.1. ResultSet7.5.2.2. PageableResultSet7.5.2.3. Java object7.5.3. Converting Using JavaBean Introspection7.5.3.1. Converting datatypes from ActionScript to Java7.5.3.2. Converting datatypes from Java to ActionScript
7.6. Service Lookup
7.6.1. Identifying Services7.6.2. Locating Services
7.7. Invoking Service Methods
7.7.1. Invoking Service Methods on JavaBeans7.7.2. Invoking Service Methods on Java Classes7.7.3. Invoking Service Methods on EJBs7.7.4. Invoking Service Methods on Servlets7.7.5. Invoking Service Methods on MBeans7.7.6. Exceptions
7.8. Architecture and Design
7.8.1. Use a Service-Oriented Architecture7.8.2. Create a Business Delegate
7.9. Referencing the Request and Session
7.10. Saving and Sharing State
7.10.1. Using JavaBean Services to Store Session State7.10.2. Using Servlet Services to Store Session State
7.11. Databinding
7.12. Security
7.12.1. User Authentication and Authorization7.12.1.1. Container-Managed Security7.12.1.2. Home-grown systems7.12.1.3. Service authentication7.12.2. Restricting Service Access7.12.2.1. Use Java security7.12.2.2. FlashGatekeeper
7.13. OpenAMF
7.14. Wrapping Up
8. Flash Remoting and .NET
8.1. Overview of .NET
8.2. Connecting to .NET
8.2.1. Connecting to an ASP.NET Page8.2.1.1. Using code behind with ASP.NET pages8.2.2. Connecting to a .NET Assembly
8.3. Datatype Conversions
8.3.1. Receiving Complex Datatypes from .NET8.3.2. Sending Complex Datatypes to .NET8.3.3. Convert Custom Classes to an ASObject8.3.4. Receiving Arrays from .NET8.3.5. Sending Arrays to .NET
8.4. Database Access with ADO.NET
8.4.1. Selecting from a Database8.4.2. Manipulating a Database8.4.3. Using an XML Data Source8.4.4. Writing to an XML File
8.5. State Management
8.6. Error Handling in Flash Remoting with .NET
8.6.1. Catch Me If You Can8.6.2. Exceptional Flash
8.7. Wrapping Up
9. Flash Remoting and PHP
9.1. Introduction to PHP
9.1.1. How PHP Fits into Flash Applications
9.2. Installing AMFPHP
9.2.1. Configuring AMFPHP for Web Services
9.3. Datatype Conversions
9.4. Using AMFPHP with Web Services
9.5. Using AMFPHP with PHP Classes
9.6. Working with a Database
9.7. Wrapping Up
III. Advanced Flash Remoting
10. Calling Web Services from Flash Remoting
10.1. What Is a Web Service?
10.1.1. WSDL10.1.2. UDDI10.1.3. SOAP
10.2. Why Use Flash Remoting?
10.2.1. Limitations
10.3. Web Services from a ColdFusion Server
10.4. Web Services from an ASP.NET Server
10.5. Wrapping J2EE and JRun Web Services
10.6. Web Services from PHP
10.7. BabelFish Web Service
10.8. Datatype Conversions
10.8.1. Passing Complex Datatypes to and from Web Services10.8.2. Passing Simple Arrays to Web Services
10.9. Creating a Flash MX Web Service Extension
10.10. Wrapping Up
11. Extending Objects and UI Controls
11.1. Principles Behind UI Components
11.2. DataProviderClass and DataGlue
11.3. Enhancing a Standard Control
11.3.1. Creating a ListBox with a Data-Driven Icon11.3.2. Enhancing a ComboBox with Methods11.3.2.1. Using pickValue( ) and pickLabel( )11.3.2.2. Using setDefault( )11.3.2.3. Using setDescriptor( )
11.4. Enhancing the RecordSet Class for Interactivity
11.4.1. The Current Record Functionality11.4.2. Adding the glue( ) and recordChanged( ) Functionality11.4.3. The setCurrentRecord( ) Method11.4.4. Putting It Together
11.5. Adding Validation to a TextField
11.6. Wrapping Up
12. Flash Remoting Best Practices
12.1. Separation of Tasks
12.1.1. Designer12.1.2. Client-Side ActionScript Programmer12.1.3. Flash Remoting ActionScript Programmer12.1.4. Database Programmer12.1.5. Server-Side Programmer12.1.6. HTML Developers
12.2. Separation of Functionality
12.3. Server-Proofing the Application
12.4. Component Use
12.4.1. Component Speed12.4.2. Data Loading
12.5. Clean API
12.5.1. Reusable Code12.5.2. Modularity
12.6. Loops and Repeated Operations
12.7. OOP or Not OOP
12.7.1. Procedural Programming12.7.1.1. Task-oriented12.7.1.2. Event-driven12.7.1.3. Result handlers in procedural programming12.7.1.4. Procedural example12.7.2. Object-Oriented Programming12.7.2.1. Everything is an object12.7.2.2. OOP in Flash Remoting12.7.2.3. How to create your objects12.7.2.4. Responder objects in OOP12.7.2.5. Problems with OOP12.7.2.6. Callback example12.7.2.7. Broadcasters12.7.3. Mixing Procedural and Object-Oriented Code
12.8. ColdFusion RecordSets
12.9. Implementing Caching
12.10. What to Walk Away With
12.11. Wrapping Up
13. Testing and Debugging
13.1. Debugging Flash Remoting Applications
13.1.1. Types of Errors13.1.2. Dissecting the Application13.1.3. Consistency13.1.4. Feature Creep
13.2. Trapping Errors
13.2.1. try/catch Blocks
13.3. The Flash ActionScript Debugger
13.3.1. Using the Debugger13.3.1.1. The Watch window13.3.1.2. The Locals window13.3.1.3. The Call Stack13.3.2. A Debugging Session
13.4. NetConnection Debugger
13.4.1. Parts of the Debugger13.4.2. Using the NetConnection Debugger13.4.2.1. Debugging a connection13.4.2.2. Debugging method calls13.4.2.3. Validating user data13.4.2.4. System errors
13.5. NetDebug.as
13.6. Trace Debugging
13.7. Testing Server-Side Code
13.7.1. Debugging in ColdFusion13.7.2. Debugging in Java13.7.2.1. Server logs13.7.3. Debugging in ASP.NET13.7.3.1. Visual Studio.NET13.7.3.2. ASP.NET Web Matrix13.7.3.3. Server logs
13.8. Using a TCP Trace Utility
13.8.1. SOAP Trace Utility13.8.2. Testing Client Calls13.8.3. Tracing a Web Service
13.9. Debugging SQL Code
13.9.1. Database Errors13.9.2. Query Optimization
13.10. Wrapping Up
14. Real-World Application
14.1. General Considerations
14.2. Requirements
14.3. Specifications
14.3.1. Users14.3.2. Scripts14.3.3. General
14.4. The Modules
14.4.1. Structure14.4.2. Database14.4.3. Defining Server-Side Services14.4.4. Implementing Server-Side Services14.4.4.1. The UserService service14.4.4.2. The ScriptService service14.4.4.3. The SiteService service14.4.5. Client-Side ActionScript14.4.5.1. Objects14.4.5.2. Interface14.4.5.3. ActionScript code
14.5. Flash Remoting Code
14.5.1. RemotingInit.as14.5.2. ScriptObject.as14.5.3. ScriptRepository.as14.5.4. UserObject.as14.5.5. SiteUtilityFunctions.as14.5.6. UI.as14.5.7. Flash User Interface Code
14.6. Testing and Debugging
14.7. Completed Application
14.8. Future Expansion
14.9. Wrapping Up
15. Flash Remoting API
15.1. Entry Headings
DataGlue Object
DataGlue.bindFormatFunction( ) Method
DataGlue.bindFormatStrings( ) Method
NetConnection Class
NetConnection.addHeader( ) Method
NetConnection.call( ) Method
NetConnection.clone( ) Method
NetConnection.close( ) Method
NetConnection.connect( ) Method
NetConnection.getDebugConfig( ) Method
NetConnection.getDebugId( ) Method
NetConnection.getService( ) Method
NetConnection.ReplaceGatewayUrl( ) Method
NetConnection.RequestPersistentHeader( ) Method
NetConnection.setCredentials( ) Method
NetConnection.setDebugId( ) Method
NetConnection.trace( ) Method
NetDebug Object
NetDebug.trace( ) Method
NetDebugConfig Class
NetDebugConfig.getDebug( ) Method
NetDebugConfig.setDebug( ) Method
NetServices Object
NetServices.createGatewayConnection( ) Method
NetServices.getVersion( ) Method
NetServices.setDefaultGateway( ) Method
RecordSet Class
RecordSet.addItem( ) Method
RecordSet.addItemAt( ) Method
RecordSet.addView( ) Method
RecordSet.filter( ) Method
RecordSet.getColumnNames( ) Method
RecordSet.getItemAt( ) Method
RecordSet.getItemID( ) Method
RecordSet.getLength( ) Method
RecordSet.getNumberAvailable( ) Method
RecordSet.isFullyPopulated( ) Method
RecordSet.isLocal( ) Method
RecordSet.removeAll( ) Method
RecordSet.removeItemAt( ) Method
RecordSet.replaceItemAt( ) Method
RecordSet.setDeliveryMode( ) Method
RecordSet.setField( ) Method
RecordSet.sort( ) Method
RecordSet.sortItemsBy( ) Method
IV. Appendixes
A. ActionScript Datatype Conversion
A.1. ColdFusion Datatype Conversion
A.2. Java Datatype Conversion
A.3. C# Datatype Conversion
A.4. Visual Basic Datatype Conversion
A.5. PHP Datatype Conversion
A.6. SOAP Datatype Conversion
B. Books and Online Resources
B.1. Flash Remoting Resources
B.1.1. Macromedia ResourcesB.1.2. Open Source Flash Remoting ProjectsB.1.3. Articles, Blogs, and Utilities
B.2. Flash and ActionScript Resources
B.2.1. BooksB.2.2. Links
B.3. Other Books of Interest
B.3.1. DreamweaverB.3.2. ASP.NETB.3.3. JavaB.3.4. ColdFusionB.3.5. Web ServicesB.3.6. SQLB.3.7. XMLB.3.8. PHPB.3.9. Other Technologies
B.4. Other Links of Interest
B.4.1. ASP.NETB.4.2. ColdFusionB.4.3. XMLB.4.4. Web ServicesB.4.5. PHPB.4.6. JavaB.4.7. Database LinksB.4.8. Other Technologies
C. Specification and Implementation for a Real-World Application
C.1. Notes from the Designer
About the Author
Colophon
Copyright

Overview

Flash Remoting MX lets developers easily integrate rich Macromedia Flash content with applications that are built using Macromedia ColdFusion MX, Microsoft .NET, Java, PHP, or SOAP-based web services. The result is complex client/server applications that more closely resemble desktop applications than traditional web pages. Gone is the click/wait/reload approach of HTML. Your web application uses Flash as the front end while Flash Remoting handles the communication behind the scenes with the application server. All the end user knows is that it's fast and flexible.The potential uses for Flash Remoting are endless. Flash Remoting: The Definitive Guide will help you understand this breakthrough technology and use it to build your own Rich Internet Applications (RIAs). Build applications that connect to a database, file system, or other server-side technologies. Or, use Flash Remoting to create:

online stores that feature catalogs and shopping cart systems
sound and video clip libraries
banner ads with built-in shopping carts, click-through tracking, and site search capabilities
new controls that can be used in place of HTML
extensions to Flash, Dreamweaver, Fireworks, and more
front-ends to databases for administrators

The book begins with Flash Remoting basics: setup, installation and an introduction to its underlying concepts. Next, you'll explore the Flash's User Interface components as they relate to Flash Remoting. Then, you'll gain insights into Flash Remoting internals and the Remoting API. The book is rich with examples that you will be able to run on your own system.The next section focuses on the server-side environment that you'll use for your applications. Individual chapters cover Flash Remoting with ColdFusion, Server-Side ActionScript, Java, ASP.NET, and PHP.The last section covers more advanced Flash Remoting techniques, such as calling web services from Flash Remoting, extending objects and UI controls, best practices, and debugging. Plus there is a detailed chapter demonstrating a real-world application. The book concludes with a Flash Remoting API reference.Developers who are looking to create Rich Internet Applications with Flash will find Flash Remoting: The Definitive Guide indispensable.

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Flash Remoting: The Definitive Guide

by Tom Muck

Overview

Become an O’Reilly member and get unlimited access to this title plus top books and audiobooks from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers, thousands of courses curated by job role, 150+ live events each month,
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