Introduction

The idea of this book emerged in tandem with the evolution of the Flex framework. Flex 3 was a big leap ahead of its predecessors, and that is when Advanced Flex 3 was conceptualized and authored. Then came even bigger changes and a whole lot of new features in Flex 4, and so it was time to revise to keep pace with the changes in the framework. Hence you have this book in your hands!

Like the earlier version, this book assumes only a minimal knowledge of the Flex framework. It illustrates and explains many advanced comcepts that are pertinent to practioners. With no intent to be necessarily exhaustive, this books covers a lot of ground by dealing with topics as varied as designer-developer workflow, Java integration, Mashups and 3D.

We have taken a fairly hands-on approach, so you will find plenty of illustrations and examples. Without being pedantic, enough of the theoretical foundations behind each topic are also covered. And we have included references to external online documents, where relevant.

After you read this book, you will be well on the way to confidently building engaging and interactive applications. We hope you enjoy reading it as much as we enjoyed writing it.