Customer Reviews

Macromedia Flash MX ActionScripting: Advanced Training from the Source

5 star:		(54)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

I've bought several books on Actionscripting, including several from Friends Of Ed. Most of them are confusing and poorly edited, riddled with grammar and spelling errors and have you hand-typing pages and pages of code without proper explanation.

However, this isn't the case with FLASH MX ADVANCED by Derek Franklin and Jobe Makar. Each lesson clearly explains what you are doing and why. First they explain in correct English what we want the code to do, then they show us in bright, bold blue font how it translates into Actionscripting. The tutorials included on the CD guide you through each lesson step by step, explaning the code as you go along.

There are several very practical applications that you could modify and apply for your own use. This book has some great tricks on loading dynamic mp3's and adjusting the volume on dynamically loaded sounds. It also guides you through several other new features to FlashMX.

I was afraid of Actionscripting until I purchased this book. Leafing through the pages, this book held my hand as I experienced the most advanced scripting I have ever done. This book is for you if you are an avid flash user that has been using Flash for 2 years or so but haven't really caught on to all the extra Actionscripting that ships with each new version.
I highly recommend this book above all other FlashMX books out there on actionscripting....

Let me start off by stating that I wanted to give this book a 3.5 star rating, but that option is unavailable.

The lessons in this book are nicely written and well laid out. They are presented in a straight-forward, easy to understand format, and can be quite helpful to those without actionscripting experience.

That having been said, however, I found the book lacking in execution. For one, the lessons, although helpful, do not really require you to learn actionscript, just rewrite it from the book. While this can help with a basic understanding of scripting, there are no exercises in the book that require putting that understanding into a practical application.

Also, while working through the exercises, I noticed a number of little, yet crucial, mistakes in the scripts. These mistakes could result in major frustration to someone without the knowledge to find and correct them.

Finally, why does a book such as this not have a comprehensive appendix of actionscript commands(event handlers, standard functions, etc.)? For a book specifically about actionscripting, too many times does the phrase "beyond the scope of this book" occur.

When I upgraded to Flash MX, I made a resolution to learn how to use ActionScript (which I'd been deathly afraid of since Flash 4), so I went out and bought the biggest "How-To" book I could find and worked through all the exercises.

I was very impressed by the capabilities of ActionScript the book's projects demonstrated, but felt like I was working more on my typing skills than developing any true understanding of the subject. The lessons always boiled down to "type this here, now type this there, now save and test your movie. Isn't that great?!" Yes, the final product WAS great, but I couldn't always figure out the reasoning behind the steps I was following.

My frustration led me back to the bookstore, to look for a book that would tell me something about WHY to use ActionScript rather than simply HOW to use it. I picked up a copy of Macromedia Flash MX ActionScripting: Advanced Training From The Source, read the Introduction, glanced through some of the exercises and bought it there on the spot. As the authors state in the Introduction, every single line of code in the book is explained, describing exactly what's going on every step of the way. I'm about halfway through it now and already have such an improved understanding of ActionScript that I've been able to play around with the projects in the book, adding my own code as well as altering the code that's already there. The book not only gives you an increased understanding of the logic and reasoning behind ActionScript, but also some illuminating insights into the way Flash uses and interprets that code "behind the scenes".

Another advantage to buying the book is the co-author's on-line resource, ... In addition to some great Flash info, it also has a comprehensive errata list of the typos that have been found in the book itself (which are surprisingly few, given the amount of info involved.) There's nothing more frustrating than spending an hour working your way through a lesson in one of these books, only to end up with a final product that doesn't do what it's supposed to do because you correctly copied a typo from the text. If you're dealing with a book with no or poor on-line support, you could just be left to wonder what went wrong, but having a dependable resource for troubleshooting those kinds of problems is a real plus.

If you want to know what's really going on with ActionScript, this is the book for you!

I f you want to be proficient at Flash, it's imperative that you learn Action Script. With several references on the market, how do you choose one that will give you not only confidence to learn how to script , but also will give you a plethora of pertinent examples that most web designers use? Look no further, Flash MX Actionscripting is a top choice! There are three reasons that make this book excellent :
1. Simplicity-Flash enables one to achieve the same results in several ways, and part of learning how to script is developing your own style. What I love about this book and Derek's teachings is one can achieve awesome interactive results writing in a straight forward and simplistic way. You'll learn to write expressions using dot syntax that create powerful actions. You'll learn a logical and orderly way of writing that will reduce needless lines of code, avoid possible mistakes or errors, and will give you a foundation that you can build on as you progress through the book.

2. Hands-on-taking Macromedia's Training from the Source method to the next step, this book allows you to quickly learn the scripting process (brackets, event handlers) by giving you projects, but it's power is in the explanations: lots of Flash books give you examples and an overview of the code, but seldom do they provide as much in-depth as this book does. You'll start to understand the "why's and how's" that will help you create some masterful projects of your own.

3. Writing-this is one of the forte's of this book. Have you ever had to read something redundantly until it made sense? Or after you read it you were more confused and defeated than before? Derek is a true teacher in his writings. Instead of giving you some geek foreign language, he uses every day examples that help you to immediately learn this new "foreign language" and gain confidence with each lesson.

Since Flash gives you only a reference guide to Action Script, one must find a more detailed reference to take advantage of this power language-Flash MX Advanced Actionscripting by Derek Franklin and Jobe Makar is the answer!

Bad decision to buy this book.

Now we can argue semantics all day. But the title of the book is Flash MX actionscripting: Advanced Training from the Source. Tell me someone, where is the advanced training in this book? How can learning what a button does when you rollover it be considered advanced training? How can learning what movie clip events on(Load) and on(Enterframe) do be considered advanced? It is not advanced actionscripting... and it is not advanced training on actionscripting... I've read many posts here of people that praise the book and claim that the book is supposed to offer advanced training, not advanced actionscripting... well, after finishing this book I sure can make a cool button, and let me tell ya what, I know EXACTLY what the button is gonna do when I roll over it with my mouse, or if I press it... I owe that all to this book I guess.

I'm not as nice as the other reviewers that gave poor reviews to this book but still gave it 1-2 stars because they liked the examples, even if they were simple. This book gets NO stars from me because it is not advanced anything. If you took away your moneies worth in information from this book then you were a complete flash newbie... which is fine, the book claims it's advanced training but it is really a beginner -intermediate book. Just because you tell someone 300 times over and over what a button does when you roll over it, does not make that advanced training.

Lastly, if we continue to buy these books without voicing our opinions about how far they stray from the title, then publishers will continue to let these kinds of books be published! Voice your opinion here so that the authors know that their next book offering newbie content under the guise title of advanced will not be tolerated by the buyers! This book itself is NOT a bad book.. it just doesn't fit with the title. CHange it to Flash Actionscript: Beginning Training from the Source and you've solved all your problems and elimated all the negative posts this book has received.

I used Franklins other starter book when I was just learning flash.. Loved it! The guy is a great author. However, I didn't need to buy the same starter book again with a different cover on it and a title of "advanced" placed on it just so someone other than me could make a few bucks.

Any of you flash authors out there please heed the following! Create content according to that which you advertise on the title. If you are making an advanced Flash book (be it advanced training, scripting, or whatever) don't make the first 15 chapters of your 18 chapter book newbie review just so you can meet a page requirement and make a buck.. come on now!

Honestly, I should be writing some of these books. I'm no better than intermediate in skill level yet every "advanced" book I buy on this subject yields me more "advanced" training on newbie material. Let me tell you what, after reading 4-5 of these "advanced" books, nobody knows how to make a button better than me! wahoo!

People wanting to buy this book please realize that most of the 4-5 star reviews this book are getting also use comments that imply they are very new to the flash authoring environment. Don't be persuaded to buy this book expecting advanced scripting practices or advanced training on anything. If you are not expecting advanced training, and are new to flash mx, then by all means pick up the book.
I will be seeking a refund for this purchase.

For a very long time, I have been looking for a textbook for my course on Internet Multimedia. This is a course where students should go beyond basic Flash tweening and button pressing. There are many books about Flash and ActionScript. Unfortunately not many of them were suitable for such a course. Finally, I found exactly what I needed - this was the book by Derek Franklin.

This book goes beyond the basics and introduces ActionScripting in a way that can be easily adopted for a university course. In each chapter, the author introduces theory and then, using examples, shows how to apply this theory. Examples are completed step by step with a detailed explanation of how each technique works. This way, he achieved a very well designed mix of a lecture and tutorial. As we know this kind of mix works well for all students. Even weak students can easily follow this text.

The selection of topics in this book is quite impressive. It covers most of the concepts of ActionScript in Flash MX including using Flash with XML, online applications, as well as an almost complete syntax of ActionScript. There are hundreds of examples guiding us through each topic. However, there are no end-of-chapter examples, and if you wish to adopt this book for a course, you will have to invent them on your own.

It is important to note the style of writing of this book. It is precise, with NOT too much talking; very clear and easy to follow. In fact, I was reading this book like an interesting novel. The language of this book is not too crowded with technical terms and jargon. So, if you are looking for an ActionScript programmer's guide or an ActionScript reference book, this is the wrong choice. However, if you are looking for a good textbook with strong pedagogical values, this is just the right book for you.

In the next academic year, I am going to use this as the textbook for my course.

This book arrived by post at 06.57 in the morning - by late in the evening, I'd read through all 606 pages of it. I couldn't put it down. It is the most comprehensive book on ActionScripting I've ever seen and very easy to read. Best of all, for my money, is the fact that it fills in gaps which other books seem to leave uncovered. As a very general example, it explains things like 'levels' in a way in which it is very easy to understand, whereas I have other books which go 90% of the way, but which leave some tiny doubt as to the exact ramifications inherent in the usage.
The book is thorough in its treatment of every topic upon which it touches - and it touches many of them! It also covers pretty well all the new features of Flash MX: text objects, listeners, improved object orientation etc. and makes topics such as prototyping and how/why it is used, simple enough for anyone to understand. The book assumes no real prior knowledge of ActionScripting, or even programming in any form. What it does assume and quite rightly so, is a reasonable grasp of Flash itself. Had it not done so, it would not have been able to squeeze so much information into its 600-odd pages.
In short - this is a great book and I would thoroughly recommend it to anyone interested in getting to grips with the more in-depth aspects of Flash MX. Well done, Derek and Jobe!

This book is very well written for the lay person to intermediate user. It explains concepts in a clear and concise manner for non programmers but still packing in lots of important and relevant information. The examples are both conceptually useful as well as attractive for the graphic design audience.

This is not your typical "look what i did with Flash, Ma" I'll explain what i did without really imparting any knowledge to the reader. This really outlines concepts and programming techniques for the intermediate user.

This is a book that caters for beginners to Flash, more advanced Flash 5 authors and everybody in between equally well and was just what I needed to make everything I knew about Flash coalesce. It offers clear, concise explanations on just about everything you need to know from simple topics such as creating a tween, to more advanced methods like using the XML objects. Each subject is covered in depth, avoids fatuous condescension and is presented in an interesting manner.

The authors, particularly Derek Franklin, clearly love their subject and this comes over as infectious, imbuing the reader with a similar enthusiasm. This is not an ActionScript reference - there is a superb reference available from another author - but does not pretend to be. Instead, it tries and succeeds in painting a picture to illustrate the practicalities of using the wealth of features available within ActionScript, which is now beginning to look like a REAL programming language.

But the best of all is this: If you have a problem, you can go to the web-site of one of the authors, (I won't say which one) and he might just be persuaded to help you find an answer...

Thoroughly recommended.

Macromedia Flash is a not a tool for casual users. Getting used to its complex interface can be a daunting task. To add to the frustration for those of us who are self-taught Flash users, many Flash books are poorly written, rife with errors, and full of "examples" that have no practical application.

In contrast, Derek Franklin and Jobe Makar's Actionscripting: Advanced Training from the Source towers above the rest. This book is simply one of the most comprehensive, well-written instructional texts on the market. You don't often find a book that could be used as a textbook in a university course and still serve the solitary learner equally well, as this one does.

The authors have the rare gift of being able to explain concepts clearly while keeping their material engaging. The material is organized into manageable and logical sections, facilitating ease of use and ease of study. Kudos goes to Macromedia Press, too, for its clean presentation and use of color for the code samples.

With its accompanying CD-ROM, Actionscripting provides hands-on, useful projects covering a wide range of topics and providing plenty of ideas and inspiration. Reading this book not only raised my Flash skills and understanding to new heights-its sample scripts served as springboards for my own projects. For example, after having used only streaming sounds with varying degrees of success, I learned from the book how to create sound objects inside movie clips. This gave me more control over sounds and their accompanying actions and changed my approach to how I was using sound.

I'm not going to join in the discussion regarding semantics of the use of "advanced" in the title of this book. I will only say that no book provides a better, more rock-solid, foundation in the ActionScript language. Besides being a superb instructional tool, Actionscripting is also a handy reference. It remains on my desk, and I turn to it often for reinforcement of concepts and for its useful examples.

Watch for Derek Franklin's forthcoming book, Macromedia Flash MX Creative Web Animation and Interactivity. It's already available for pre-ordering on this web site.