ActionScript : The Definitive Guide [Paperback]

Colin Moock (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1565928520 | ISBN-13: 978-1565928527 | Publication Date: May 2001 | Edition: 1st ed

Given its ability to deliver high-impact experiences even over low-bandwidth connections, Flash has become the de facto standard for hundreds of thousands of multimedia web developers worldwide.

Flash 5 now includes a new full-fledged programming language called "ActionScript" for controlling animation and multimedia. It's a quantum leap from the bare-bones "Actions" supported in Flash 4, and ActionScript: The Definitive Guide is the first book dedicated entirely to documenting and demonstrating this new language.

ActionScript includes all fundamental programming constructs (variables, loops, conditionals, functions, etc.), and is inextricably fused with Flash's authoring behaviors and animation timelines. Because ActionScript is based heavily on the ECMAScript Language Specification (ECMA-262) and is syntactically nearly identical to JavaScript, Macromedia expects thousands of existing JavaScript programmers to migrate to ActionScript.

This book is divided into three sections.

• "ActionScript Fundamentals" introduces both programmers and non-programmers to the new language by first describing fundamental programming concepts and then delineating in detail the components, syntax, and usage of ActionScript.
• "Applied ActionScript Code Depot" shows you how to use common applications, such as processing online forms.
• "Language Reference" is a concise and detailed reference that makes all ActionScript globals, properties, and objects, including extensive implementation samples, easy to find quickly.

Code samples are also available from the "Code Depot" on the author's web site devoted to Flash developers.

Topics covered in this book include:

• Step-by-step tutorials of the most common ActionScript behaviors
• Object-oriented programming in Flash
• Intelligent interface development
• Server communication
• Dynamic content generation
• Password protection
• String handling
• Message boards
• Basic physics
• Games

ActionScript: The Definitive Guide is structured so both programmers and non-programmers can learn how to use ActionScript. This book will take you well beyond simple Flash animations so you can create your own enhanced Flash-driven sites.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Macromedia Flash is the obvious choice for delivering multimedia over the Web. At the heart of Flash's power is ActionScript, the product's powerful object-oriented scripting language. ActionScript is based on JavaScript, making it easy for Web developers new to Flash to get up to speed. ActionScript: The Definitive Guide is a tutorial and reference to ActionScript that meets the needs of both new Flash developers learning the language and experienced coders who need a daily reference.

Author Colin Moock starts off with a primer to Flash terminology and a quick example application--an interactive quiz. Following that, the book quickly gets down to ActionScript nuts and bolts. The first part covers the basics of the language, such as operators, variable scope, and conditional logic, in a traditional presentation. A few lines of example code illustrate each concept.

Critical topics like arrays, movie clips, and object-oriented programming are covered well at the detail level, though a more extensive example application would really have come in handy to illustrate the big picture. The back of the book contains an excellent reference to the ActionScript language, complete with inline example code. ActionScript is an important tool to master, and ActionScript: The Definitive Guide is a fine means to that end. --Stephen W. Plain

About the Author

is an independent web guru with a passion for networked creativity and expression. He has been researching, designing, and developing for the Web since 1995. Colin served as webmaster for SoftQuad, Inc. (makers of HoTMetaL PRO) until 1997, and then as web evangelist for ICE (one of Canada's leading interactive agencies) until 2001. He has created interactive content for Sony, Levi's, Nortel, Air Canada, Procter & Gamble, and Hewlett-Packard. Colin now divides his time between writing, speaking at conferences, and researching emerging web technology. His award-winning Flash work and his renowned support site for Flash developers (http://www.moock.org) have made him a well-known personality in the Flash developer community. He is a contributor to macromedia.com's Flash developer center, a tutorialist in the Flash MX Bible (2002, Wiley Publishing Inc.), and regularly appears in industry magazines such as cre@te! online. Colin's latest personal undertaking is Unity (http://www.moock.org/unity/), a Flash socket server for multi-user content.

Product Details

• Paperback: 672 pages
• Publisher: O'Reilly Media; 1st ed edition (May 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1565928520
• ISBN-13: 978-1565928527
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (67 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,566,845 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Colin Moock is an independent web guru with a passion for networked creativity and expression. He has been researching, designing, and developing for the Web since 1995. His award-winning Flash work and his renowned support site for Flash developers (http://www.Moock.org) have made him a well-known personality in Flash developer community.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars clear a space on your desk for this one..., May 8, 2001

By 

Judith H. Zissman "judith" (SF, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: ActionScript : The Definitive Guide (Paperback)

Colin Moock has long been providing tips, tricks, advice and general hand-holding to Flash designers around the world. His detailed, thorough and methodical approach to ActionScript is much more than a collection of tidbits - it's an approach to thinking about scripting, to understand how Flash "thinks" and how the ActionScript language is constructed around that. Lucid enough for non-programmers and sophisticated enough for Flash experts, the Definitive Guide is a must-have for anyone who wants to be using Flash to the fullest.

20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Believe the reviews, June 20, 2001

By 

Chris (Audubon, NJ, United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: ActionScript : The Definitive Guide (Paperback)

Let me start by saying, I'd be suprised if this book gets 1 review with less than 5 stars.

I come from a programming background, and have in the past, for whatever reason, found the Flash interface to be confusing and cumbersome. I bought 2 Flash books prior to this one "Teach Yourself Flash Visually" and "Flash 5 Magic With Actionscript". Both books have their merits, but after owning these books, I was still a Flash novice at best.

2 days after buying "Actionscript: The Definitive Guide" I'm feeling like a pro and more or less have Flash at my mercy. :)

If you come from a programming background, this is THE book for you. Even if you don't, I'd can't imagine this book being anything but completely useful.

The title is completely accurate. This is THE DEFINITIVE GUIDE. Buy this book now!

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Expert Mode, January 14, 2002

By 

Layth Barzangi (Dubai, UAE) - See all my reviews

This review is from: ActionScript : The Definitive Guide (Paperback)

I've been working and experimenting with Flash ActionScript for as far back as the early days of version 4. Although I am (and will forever remain) a Flash designer in essence, I've always been keen on developing my programming skills and pushing the envelope of what Flash can do as far as possible.

Flash 5 ActionScript was a joy to behold, but with sub-standard documentation from Macromedia and a series of unsatisfactory and mostly egocentric books from many independent writers, I, like all ActionScripters, had to rely on scattered online resources, trial and error, and long hours of .FLA dissecting as the best available source of knowledge and training. I'm not saying that it was a waste of time, but certainly not a pretty situation at all.

Enter Colin Moock's ASDG.

Although I was already a long-time frequenter of Moock's site and held much respect for the man's knowledge and approach, I still had doubts about whether that would necessarily warrant a good book author. When ASDG came out, I read all the possible reviews I could find, reviewed my disappointing experience with ActionScript books I've already read, and kept wondering if anyone could attempt the seemingly impossible and succeed.

ASDG arrived at my desk early in the morning four days ago. About 6 hours later, I was seriously wondering if it was worth kicking myself for waiting THIS long before getting it. For once, I'm gonna ask you to blindly believe the hype you see here and everywhere else -- Yes, if you want to save yourself the hassle and become an expert Flash Developer tomorrow instead of "in a year's time", then do honestly get this book now. Get it today - no, this minute.

Not only is ASDG the most comprehensive, complete and unbelievably detailed ActionScript reference on the planet. Its style, tone, approach and structure is so wonderfully thought out, it could well be the first ever technical reference book that could be dubbed "a page turner". Moock attacks the material with huge aplomb and an unwavering sense of seriousness, yet still manages to keep a great sense of humor and throw in those one-liners at just the right time. Where he really triumphs is in his ability to mold a subject of such complicated nature into a clear and simple down-to-earth format, allowing both total beginners and veteran wizards to benefit from it completely and equally. This is truly no easy feat, and Moock pulls it off magnificently.

The scope of this book honestly leaves no ActionScript stone unturned. However, it is not just a better version of Macromedia's ActionScript manuals. ASDG is, above all, a complete course in object oriented programming philosophy and technique. Before giving you a complete language reference in the third part of the book, Moock takes his time in the first two parts and offers readers invaluable advice and recommendations that simply do not exist anywhere else in ActionScript literature. His goal is not just to expose the language in its entirety, but to also help you develop a highly professional and truly effective programming style. His concepts about code centralization, modularity, optimization and function organization are priceless, and seldom does one come across such information, let alone the fact that it exists within the cover of a single book. All this is presented with a generous amount of example code, which itself is so extensively commented, you'd rarely (if ever) get stuck figuring out what is going on. In fact, the code comments are so clear, you get the feeling that Moock's goal was to make your mind process the code as fast as the ActionScript interpreter itself.

All in all, this is a book that redefines perfection. Moock's passion for the subject is astronomical, yet equally astronomical is his modesty, and his will to hold nothing back and hand over the entirety of his ActionScript experience to the reader. The wealth of his knowledge is amazing, but that is beautifully complemented by his incredible skill as a teacher. This makes this book not just a successful technical reference, but also a role model for technical writers everywhere. The end result is that his passion traverses over to you with consummate ease, and no matter what your skill level in ActionScript is, you will find information in this book that will propel you forward faster than you ever thought possible.

Get ASDG, fire up Flash, open up the Actions window, and prepare to bid a final farewell to Normal Mode.