Foundation XML and E4X for Flash and Flex (Paperback)

XML is the lingua franca of the Web. All designers and developers working in a web environment need a sound understanding of XML and its role in application development. Many software packages and organizations allow for the exchange of data using an XML format. Web services and RSS feeds are now commonplace.

For those working with Flash and Flex, a thorough understanding of XML is particularly important. XML documents are one option for the data provided to SWF applications. Flash and Flex can load, display, and modify XML content. These applications can also send XML content to other applications for updating or for use in different situations.

ActionScript 3.0 introduces some fundamental changes to the way in which Flash and Flex applications work with XML. One significant change is that XML is now a native data type. ActionScript 3.0 also introduces new classes and a different framework for working with external documents. These changes are based on the E4X ECMAScript standard, and they streamline and simplify the process for working with XML in Flash and Flex.

In this book, Sas Jacobs gives you an introduction to XML and E4X. She explores the new XML and XMLList classes and explains E4X expressions, providing examples for both Flash and Flex. In addition to explaining how to incorporate XML documents in SWF applications, Sas Jacobs shows you approaches specific to Flash and Flex and explores real-world usage. The book finishes with two case studies. In the first, you will learn how to consume and display information and images from Flickr using Flash. In the second, you will work with Adobe Kuler in Flex.

Whether you are a designer or developer, this book will help you work with XML and make the transition from ActionScript 2.0 to ActionScript 3.0. It will also provide you with an excellent grounding if you are new to Flash and Flex.

In this book, you'll learn how to:

• Work with the new XML and XMLList classes in ActionScript 3.0
• Build E4X expressions in ActionScript 3.0 to simplify your work flow
• Work with XML content in Flash and Flex to create dynamic web applications
• Consume REST and SOAP web services in Flash and Flex
• Build real-world Flash and Flex XML applications

Summary of Contents

1. Introduction to XML
2. Generating XML Content
3. Actionscript 3.0 and XML
4. Using E4X Expressions
5. Using the URLLoader Class With XML Documents
6. Loading Methods Specific to Flex
7. Loading Methods Specific to Flash
8. Modifying XML Content With Actionscript 3.0
9. Communicating With the Server
10. Consuming Web Services With Flex
11. Consuming Web Services With Flash
12. Flash Case Study
13. Flex Case Study

XML是網絡的通用語言。在網絡環境中工作的所有設計師和開發人員都需要對XML及其在應用程序開發中的作用有深入的理解。許多軟件包和組織都允許使用XML格式交換數據。Web服務和RSS訂閱現在已經很常見。

對於使用Flash和Flex的人來說，對XML的全面理解尤為重要。XML文檔是提供給SWF應用程序的數據的一種選擇。Flash和Flex可以加載、顯示和修改XML內容。這些應用程序還可以將XML內容發送給其他應用程序進行更新或在不同情況下使用。

ActionScript 3.0對Flash和Flex應用程序處理XML的方式進行了一些基本的改變。其中一個重大變化是XML現在是一種本地數據類型。ActionScript 3.0還引入了新的類和一個不同的框架來處理外部文檔。這些變化基於E4X ECMAScript標準，使Flash和Flex中處理XML的過程更加簡化和簡單。

在這本書中，Sas Jacobs向您介紹XML和E4X。她探索了新的XML和XMLList類，並解釋了E4X表達式，並提供了Flash和Flex的示例。除了解釋如何將XML文檔合併到SWF應用程序中外，Sas Jacobs還向您展示了特定於Flash和Flex的方法，並探索了實際應用。該書以兩個案例研究結束。在第一個案例中，您將學習如何使用Flash從Flickr消費和顯示信息和圖像。在第二個案例中，您將在Flex中使用Adobe Kuler。

無論您是設計師還是開發人員，這本書都將幫助您使用XML並從ActionScript 2.0過渡到ActionScript 3.0。如果您對Flash和Flex還不熟悉，它也將為您提供良好的基礎。

在這本書中，您將學習以下內容：
- 在ActionScript 3.0中使用新的XML和XMLList類
- 在ActionScript 3.0中構建E4X表達式以簡化工作流程
- 在Flash和Flex中使用XML內容創建動態Web應用程序
- 在Flash和Flex中使用REST和SOAP Web服務
- 構建真實世界的Flash和Flex XML應用程序

內容摘要：
1. XML簡介
2. 生成XML內容
3. ActionScript 3.0和XML
4. 使用E4X表達式
5. 使用URLLoader類處理XML文檔
6. Flex特定的加載方法
7. Flash特定的加載方法
8. 使用ActionScript 3.0修改XML內容
9. 與服務器通信
10. 使用Flex消費Web服務
11. 使用Flash消費Web服務
12. Flash案例研究
13. Flex案例研究