Apache Flex: Rich Internet application

Showing posts with label Rich Internet application. Show all posts

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

For Whom Do I Write ?

Software Development Community (Photo credit: Michael Kappel)

Background

In 2005, I was building Java based Web applications for fetching information using SAP services. To execute my application I need to deploy it to Java EE Server and when the user requests the app.

It would require an small JavaScript footprint to load and HTML code generation in backend before the application screen would be displayed to the user. Users can perform operations on SAP systems by performing actions such as clicking a button or submitting a form, the input data was send to SAP back end in the form HTTP request with XML payload, and after processing this input the result would be delivered to the user via HTTP responses again in XML format which needs to be interpreted in the client side to be displayed in human readable form.

The available technologies was unable to provide satisfactory experience to my customers as lot of delay was involved at the client side for loading high volume data. Presentation of data in charts and graphs was often resulting in browser crashes. The results were often ugly and uninteresting to look at.

I started evaluating different technologies to improve my existing applications. I didn't wanted to use plain JavaScript / HTML due to code manageability issues as my applications would have large and complex code base, was requiring enterprise quality.

I did some prototypes using open source framework OpenLaszlo. But found it little risky to invest my time and effort into it as I was not sure about the roadmap and commitment of open source community. Flex was a great alternate to openLaszlo as it was backed by enterprise (started by Macromedia and later Adobe till 2011).

I started working on Flex Framework and results were impressive cross browser and cross platform web user interfaces (later desktop integration through AIR and mobile also arrived).

Now as many competitive technologies have matured and its worth reviewing Flex and what lessons we can learn from this great developer friendly technology.

Who should read my Blogs

Java Project Managers and Architects working on Java projects.
Product manager & Product owners working on Web & Mobile applications / products
Enterprise IT team members.
Tech-savvy managers, architects and developers looking for the best Rich Internet Application platforms for their projects
Senior professionals from software development organization units exploring about benefits of mobility and RIAs and what it takes to port existing applications for mobile devices and to RIAs.
and Finally for Decision makers responsible for the success of their online businesses, (both external or internal facing).

Report highlights rise of enterprise mobility(lenovo.com)
Business intelligence on a mobile device is now a 'must-have' feature(ibm.com)

Raw Engineering taps Zoho Recruit for their Recruitment Process (blogs.zoho.com)

Saturday, May 21, 2011

Adobe Flex Builder 4.5 - A game changer release

Today a developer faces a challenge of making their applications run on multiple platforms. With Adobe Flash Builder 4.5 the same code works smoothly and uniformly in every device. Adobe Flex is the single framework to build applications compatible across almost all major browsers, devices and operating systems.

It supports the following platforms:

For Desktop Applications multiple Operation Systems

Windows,
Mac
Linux

For Rich Internet Applications (RIAs) multiple Browsers

Chrome
Internet Explorer
Firefox
Safari

For Mobilie & Table Applications multiple devices platform

Android
BlackBerry (Research in Motion)
Apple iOS
Windows Phone 7

Flash Builder 4.5 with Adobe Creative Suite 5.5 release is a game changer release as It now provides support for building Flex and ActionScript applications using one single tool and one development framework for Google Android, BlackBerry Tablet OS and Apple iOS with one primary code base. It enables:

Developing across different form factors.
Developing across multiple operating systems & platforms. (Android, Blackberry Tablet & iOS)
Developing for different orientations of devices.
Testing & Debugging your application on device.

Friday, August 21, 2009

Enhancing eCommerce ROI through Rich Internet Applications (RIAs)

Image via Wikipedia

Whitepaper (in PDF format) on
Enhancing eCommerce ROI through Rich Internet Applications (RIAs).

Friday, August 14, 2009

Flex Technology Overview

Image by rutty via Flickr

Creating a Simple Application with Adobe Flex Builder

Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Getting Started With Flex SDK

Flex architecture contains following components:

•Adobe Flex Builder

•Adobe Live Cycle Data Services ES

•Adobe Flex Charting

•Adobe Flex SDK

Flex SDK is a free tool containing the following components:

Command line compiler
Debugger

the following link provides step-by-step instructions for creating an Adobe AIR applications using Flex SDK
Creating your first application using Flex SDK

Getting Started With Adobe Flex

Below is my presentation about Apache Flex overview which covers high level details about what is Flex, its architecture, benefits ...

Apache Flex: Overview from Tarun Telang

Flex can be applied for the following solutions:

•Business systems/Applications

•Standalone custom solutions

•Network, communication and other interactive solutions

•Video and audio messaging solutions/ Collaboration Tools

•CRM and ERP systems

How to create an Application with Adobe Flex

The video below show how to use Flex Builder 3 and walks you true creating a new Flex Builder project demonstrating new functionality available in this release.

Getting Inspired & Exploring the possibilities of Adobe Flex, updated

English: Differentiation of Java technologies ...

Image via Wikipedia

Now its time to browse some Rich Internet Applications (RIA) built in Adobe Flex.

Rich Internet Applications are web applications that works like full fledged desktop applications.

They can be delivered to the user through a site specific browser either through a plug in or virtual machines.

A site-specific browser (SSB) is a software application that is dedicated to accessing pages from a single source (site) on a computer network such as the Internet or a private intranet. SSBs typically simplify the more complex functions of a web browser by excluding the menus, toolbars and browser chrome associated with functions that are external to the workings of a single site. These applications can be started by using mostly a desktop icon using the favicon.^[1]

Examples of site-specific browser

Mozilla Prism - https://mozillalabs.com/en-US/prism/
Robin Web Browser - http://raven.io/
Fluid App - http://fluidapp.com/

RIAs let you perform in-line editing, drag and drop items or otherwise interact directly with elements.
Popular browser based RIAs include Flickr, Google Maps, and eBay.

Why Adobe Flex ?

Flex is a highly productive, free open source framework for building and maintaining expressive web applications that deploy consistently on all major browsers, desktops, and operating systems.

Flex applications can be built using Flex SDK or Adobe Flex Builder 3. It is basically a collection of technologies developed by Adobe which can be used for the development of cross platform Rich Internet Applications (RIA).

Flex applications can be delivered on the web via the Flash Player or to the desktop via Adobe AIR

Flex requires server-side technologies like Java, SAP NetWeaver, ASP.NET or PHP to provide it with real-time data.

Adobe Flex is used across broad variety of industries and use cases.

Flex showcase which is a Flex application letting you browse and search for publicly available Flex applications. Many companies are developing Flex RIAs for internal applications.

Feel free to explore different the Flex showcase on your own, this will provides you with good inspiration and great ideas, and will lets you see what Adobe Flex is capable of.

1. Adobe Flex Showcase
2. Adobe AIR Application Showcase

Flex development can be beneficial not only to developers but also to end-users. Due to Flex programming model you can get scalable and reliable solutions. Even these solutions can be re-designed whenever needed.

Please click the link below to get Tour de Flex application which provides over 600 running samples with source code!

"Tour de Flex" and "Tour de Flex Mobile" - provides collection of Flex applications showcasing the capabilities of the technology for web/desktop and mobile application development respectively.

Related articles

Apache Flex Overview, updated

crazy with the books (Photo credit: leff)

What is Flex?

Flex is a highly productive, free open source framework that provides enterprise-level components for Flash Platform for designing, building and maintaining expressive mobile, web and desktop applications that deploy consistently on all major devices, browsers, desktops, and operating systems.

Flex allows you to build web and mobile applications that share a common code base, reducing the time and cost of application creation and longer term maintenance.

Flex Overview

Adobe has donated the Flex SDK to Apache Software foundation. [Adobe Donating Flex to Open Source Foundation (infoq.com)]

Flex 3 Getting Started - Animated Overview on Adobe Learning Resource

Flex 4 Getting Started - Getting Started page for Flex 4 (current release) on the Flex Developer Center.

What is Adobe Flash Builder ?

Adobe^® Flash^® Builder^™ 4.5 software (formerly Adobe Flex^® Builder^™) is an Eclipse^™ based development tool for rapidly building expressive applications for the following platforms:

mobile,
web, and
desktop

using the following technologies:

ActionScript^® and MXML
the open source Flex framework.

Adobe Flash Builder 4.5 introduces new support for mobile application development and testing that enables use of a common code base to build apps for the following platforms:

Android^™,
BlackBerry^® Tablet OS, and
iOS mobile platforms

while sharing code from web applications. It includes support for the following features:

intelligent coding,
interactive step-though debugging,
application profiling, and
visual design of the user interface layout.

Can I learn Apache Flex (previously Adobe Flex) ?

Below are the Prerequisites for learning Adobe Flex includes basic understanding of following topics:

Basic understanding of any programming Language ( for e.g. C#, Java, C / C++ etc..)
HTML (Hyper Text Markup Language)
XML (eXtensible Markup Language)
JSON (JavaScript Object Notation)
CSS (Cascading Style Sheets)
Exposure to any server side technology (like ColdFusion, Java Servlet/JavaServer Pages, PHP, .NET) is recommended but not necessary.

Which languages does Flex Framework supports ?

A Flex application consists primarily of code written in two different languages

ActionScript - a fully object oriented, strictly typed, ECMA Script language. It is is used for describing the event handlers and custom application logic.
MXML - an XML based markup language. It is used to provide description of the appearance and components that make up the application.

What is Flash Catalyst ?

An additional product Adobe® Flash® Catalyst™ (code-named Thermo) a professional interaction design tool for designers to create complex RIA user interfaces and interactions by using a visual editor which will create Flex application code that the designer and developer can share. Adobe Flash Catalyst is a tool for rapidly creating user interfaces without coding.

Future of Flash Catalyst & Flash Builders

Following the decision of Flex moving to the Apache Foundation, that Flash Catalyst will be discontinued. Flash Builder will also have features the following features removed in future:

Design View,
Data Centric Development (DCD)
and Flash Catalyst workflows.

Adobe has stopped sales and development of Flash Catalyst tool, Adobe is now focusing mainly on creating tools for native applications using AIR and HTML5 for e.g.

Adobe Muse (http://muse.adobe.com)
Adobe & HTML (http://html.adobe.com/)

As an alternate to Flash Catalyst it is recommended to use Adobe Creative Suite Master Collection. (refer http://www.adobe.com/in/products/flashcatalyst.html for details)

Further Reading:

Future of Flash and Flex
Life After Adobe Flash Builder(drdobbs.com) - Developing Flex with using Microsoft's Visual Studios IDE

Learning Resources:

Flex 3 LiveDocs - Flex Help Documentation
Tour de Flex - A desktop application for exploring Flex capabilities
Flex Developer Center - collection of resources on flex
flex.apache.org - Apache Flex website
Flex Showcase - list of desktop and mobile applications written in Flex
Flex Cookbook - collection of solution to common problems

Apache Flex