Differences between Flash and Flex
Now a days, Flash and Flex both are on boom because both applications have been providing surprisingly powerful options from more than a decade to the designers and developers. I love to talk about one of my favorite subjects i.e. Flash and Flex. I am very much aware about Flash and ActionScript because my last 8 yrs were fully devoted to these subjects. As every designer start to learn and work from the basics, so I started my Flash career from Flash version 4 and l was lucky to get a chance to work with the debut version of ActionScript that was 1.0.
After a mammoth experience of Flash, ActionScript, PHP, MySQL, JavaScript and DHTML, I decided to dive deeply into the world of Flex Framework. I noticed few things in my giant working experience about Flash and Flex, so I am going to drilling down please read carefully.
Introduction to Adobe Flash
Adobe Flash is an industry leading authoring environment or integrated development environment for producing expressive or user engaging interactive contents. Earlier Flash was a product of Macromedia, after acquisition by Adobe in 2004 Flash has got right team and right tools on the time. Flash can produce contents for immersive experience across the desktops, tablets, smart-phones, and televisions etc.
Some examples of projects can be done in Adobe Flash:
1. Web Advertisements
2. Web Headers
3. Animated E-cards
4. Presentations
5. Websites
6. XML Galleries and websites
7. Flash Games etc.
Click to see live flash projects.
So, Flash provides tools and panels to create highly creative contents with some of the advanced logics in it. One can accomplish any creative or logically rich task using its Timeline and OOP’s programming. As flash is a 2d vector based animation program used to add animation, video and interactivity to web pages.
Introduction to Adobe Flex
Adobe Flex is an SDK or Software Development Kit launched by adobe to develop or deploy Rich Internet Applications or (RIAs) for flash platform. Projects are completed in Flex are cross platform and also can run on stand alone player i.e. Adobe AIR on Desktops, UNIX, LINUX, IMAC etc. To make easy the programming metaphor for the developers, adobe launched a very common language workflow i.e. MXML and XML based markup language.
Application Development Process
1. Build an user interface using a set of pre-programmed components
2. Change the appearance of the interface using styles and themes
3. Establish data connections
4. Modify database using forms or DataGrid
5. Add Charts and Graphs
6. Add dynamic behavior (one part of the application interacting with another, for example)
7. Define and connect to data services as needed
8. Test and debug code
9. Deploy application to the Web Server
Projects can be done in Flex using various technologies:
- Product Configuration
- Consumer Application
- Media and Publishing
- Education
- Social Networking
- Business Productivity
- Data Visualization
- Financial Services
Pointing out some of the major differences between Flash and Flex:
After a close introduction of both technologies, now u may have an approximate idea about the approaches and capabilities of these programs.
As we read, Flash is an animation program along with various features and ActionScript. While Flex is Software Development Kit to develop and deploy various intelligent applications.
Flex is a component oriented framework with various client side and server-side technologies. While Flash is a timeline centric application not a framework unlike Flex.
Many languages and third party features make Adobe Flex a Framework for example ActionScript, MXML, CSS, JavaScript, PHP, MySQL, ASP, ASP.NET, CFML, and JSP etc.
These technologies are the pedestal for Flex and base for the today’s web development and design industry. So, u can make a more robust application in flex using all. These technologies making easy to create Consumer Applications, Media and Publishing Contents, Social Networking Features, Data Visualization Services, Financial Services etc.
While Flash is limited to design and create timeline based animations and if one want to create dynamic application or visualization services, it would be a very time consuming task in flash. Hence, in flash you can deploy many technologies as PHP, MySQL, and CSS etc but you can not feel a component oriented environment when you work in flash.
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