November 2008
Intermediate to advanced
504 pages
10h 23m
English
Overview
Covers version 1.5 of Adobe AIR
Written to help you hit the ground running, this book teaches you how to build state-of-the-art rich desktop applications on the breakthrough Adobe AIR platform.
Stacy Tyler Young, Michael Givens, and Dimitrios Gianninas illustrate the power of this technology through practical application examples based on the official 1.5 release of Adobe AIR. You’ll discover how Adobe AIR helps you solve problems you just couldn’t solve before by extending the reach of your web applications onto users’ desktops. Building on your existing knowledge of Adobe Flex, HTML, JavaScript, and Ajax software, you’ll master the powerful Adobe AIR platform--moving quickly from task-oriented examples to larger-scale, real-world projects. The authors don’t just cover coding--they help you maximize your effectiveness throughout the entire development lifecycle via design patterns, frameworks, build process, continuous integration, and automated testing.
If you’re ready to build the next generation of rich hybrid desktop applications, Adobe AIR is the development platform you’ve been searching for...and this is the book you need to kick-start new projects using this exciting new technology.
Detailed information on how to...
Install and configure your Adobe AIR development environment
Build the next generation web/desktop hybrid applications to run on Adobe AIR
Add new desktop capabilities to your web applications such as native windows, local file I/O, and client-side databases
Create HTML/Adobe Flex mash-up applications
Push data to Adobe AIR clients using BlazeDS, an open source Java remoting and messaging technology
Package, distribute, and update Adobe AIR applications
Work with display objects in 3D space by leveraging Adobe Flash Player 10
Build Adobe AIR applications using common frameworks like Cairngorm
Create automated builds using Apache Ant, complete with FlexUnit testing strategies
Create a peer-to-peer photo-sharing application by combining Adobe AIR and Java
Part I Getting Started with Adobe AIR
1 Introduction to Adobe AIR 9
2 Setting Up the Development Environment 15
3 Creating an Adobe AIR Application 29
4 Debugging Adobe AIR Applications 51
Part II Building Adobe AIR Applications
5 Working with Windows 67
6 Working with Screens 89
7 Working with Files and Directories 101
8 Understanding the Drag-and-Drop API 115
9 Working with Copy and Paste 129
10 Working with Native Menus 159
11 Adding User Notifications 177
12 Working with Local Databases 189
13 Understanding Networking and Local Connections 213
14 Working with Adobe Flex AIR Components 251
Part III Securing Adobe AIR Applications
15 Understanding Security Sandboxes 263
16 Using the Encrypted Local Store 273
Part IV Deploying Adobe AIR Applications
17 Distributing Adobe AIR Applications 283
18 Updating Adobe AIR Applications 309
Part V Architecting Adobe AIR Applications
19 Introduction to Frameworks and Design Patterns 321
20 Building Adobe AIR Applications Using the Cairngorm Microarchitecture 335
Part VI Agile Development with Adobe AIR
21 Creating a Build Process 359
22 Incorporating Unit Testing 373
23 Continuous Integration with Adobe AIR 393
Part VII Real-World Projects
24 Contact Manager with Integrated Yahoo! Maps 411
25 Peer-to-Peer Photo Sharing Using Adobe AIR, Bonjour, and Java 421
26 Building a Video Distribution System 427
Part VIII Adobe AIR 1.5 and Adobe Flash 10 Extras
27 Using Adobe Flash 10 Features in Adobe AIR 439
Appendices
A Adobe AIR Resources for Developers 451
B Adobe AIR API Reference Poster (Downloadable) 455
C Downloading Source Code for Adobe AIR Programming Unleashed 457
Index 463
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