Field Notes Inside an Integrated Communications Agency

The tool you choose to use should depend solely on the screw you're trying to turn. Same goes for designing Web projects. When beginning the design phase of Web project X, final deliverables should be taken into account when deciding which application to use. Every designer I work with is equally proficient in both Illustrator and Photoshop; while I'm sure every creative has their favorite, both are tools that can be wielded with awe-inspiring deftness. Will the final project hit the Web as XHTML or rich media? Or some amalgamation of both? Making this determination prior to design kick-off can save HOURS of design translation, giving your project a much better chance of coming in on time and under budget.

The formula is absurdly simple:

Flash / rich media = vector = Illustrator
XHTML = bitmap = Photoshop

I submit the responsibility to pose the question is shared. I will try my best to remember to ask - but as long as SOMEONE asks, that's all that matters.

As Flash sheds the last vestiges of its prepubescence and roars into adolescence, I am seeing little evidence of the social anxiety and self-image crises that have come to define these awkward years. It seems my favorite little App. has benefitted from some good parenting, and is growing into a strapping young development platform. Like an anxious parent watching his daughter get ready for her first school dance, I have found myself stabbing the Web for answers on how better to communicate with Flash's new, deeper voice: Actionscript 3.0. There are some major code differences that can be daunting at first, but all you really have to do is break the ice and you will find that, while a little uncomfortable at first, you relate better than you might think.

With Flash Forward fresh in my mind, here are some of the major arterial differences you will encounter as you navigate the migration from AS 2.0 to AS 3.0:

• More code. Based on ECMAScript, ActionScript 3.0 is compliant with the ECMAScript Language Specification, Third Edition. This means that the syntax is more closely aligned with traditional programming languages. A little more verbose, the extra typy-typy actually serves to simplify the language. Are you down with OOP? Our Python jockeys are loving it.

• Stricter. While this may be initially more frustrating for those coming from the front-end world, to the seasoned programmer this is a welcome breath of fresh air. Train yourself. Declare data types and function return types.

• Some things are just...plain...gone. setProperty(). attachMovie()? createEmptyMovieClip()?? swapDepths()?!?! Oh crap. _global is gone. _level is gone. I'm sweating now. But we can get through this. We can. It's for the greater good.

• No more stage coding. Actionscript may no longer be applied directly to buttons and movieclips on the stage - on() events are, as they say, l'histoire. All AS3 events are handled via the EventDispatcher, using listeners (yes, just like AS2 event listeners - take comfort). Frame actions are still cool. 

• Display Objects. Movie Clips are now instantiated with new():
     var mc:MovieClip = new MovieClip();
Depth management of display objects is now accomplished with a very intuitive parent/child display list syntax.

There is much more, but if you take the time to read through the information sprinkled throughout the above list, you should find yourself well-equipped to jump in and get your feet muddy. Actionscript 3.0 is faster, more consistent and much more powerful. Wrap your mind around the nuts and bolts of Object-Oriented Programming - you will thank yourself. And be prepared: because AS3 does not play well with AS1/AS2, you will find yourself straddling the fence in your project work. This is almost certain to prove frustrating and tedious at times; take comfort in the fact that you are not alone, and know that, as a wise old man used to tell me, we are building character...

Additional Adobe love:

AS 3.0 Overview  

Tips for Learning Actionscript 3.0

OOP Primer