Adobe Flex 4: Developing Rich Internet Applications

Description

This Adobe Flex 4: Developing Rich Internet Applications training course provides experienced application developers with hands-on, practical experience using Flex. This 4-day course introduces developers to all the primary features of Flex they'll need to know in order to build a fully functional, well architected front end for a Rich Internet Application (RIA).

Audience

This Adobe Flex course is designed for application developers who want to bring the power of Rich Internet Applications to their web applications. To gain the most from this class, you should:

• Be familiar with an object oriented programming language such as Java or C++.
• Be familiar with XML terminology.

Course Outline

Unit 1: Introducing the Course

• Introducing mastery learning
• Understanding the course format
• Reviewing the course prerequisites
• Reviewing the course outline

Unit 2: Introducing Adobe Flex 4

• Introducing the Adobe Flash platform
• Understanding Flex development technologies
• Understanding Flex application deployment
• Exploring the Flash Builder interface
• Creating a Flex project
• Walkthrough 1: Creating a main application file and running it

Unit 3: Understanding Flex 4 Fundamentals

• Understanding Adobe Flex namespaces
• Understanding Flex components
• Laying out and styling with Flash Builder
• Compiling and running a Flash Builder
• Walkthrough1: Creating an application and configuring its controls in Design mode
• Creating an application and configuring its controls in design mode
• Creating custom components
• Introducing skinning
• Walkthrough 2: Creating and skinning custom components
• Accessing and using structured data within a custom component
• Introducing data binding
• Walkthrough 3: Accessing and using structured data in a custom component
• Updating visual controls using dynamic data
• Walkthrough 4: Updating visual controls with dynamically assigned data

Unit 4: Object Oriented Programming

• Introducing OOP terminology
• Understanding MXML classes
• Walkthrough 1: Using MXML classes
• Creating a class property
• Walkthrough 2: Creating a class property
• Writing a class definition in ActionScript
• Walkthrough 3: Creating an ActionScript class
• Creating instances of an ActionScript class
• Walkthrough 4: Creating instances of an ActionScript class
• Creating class methods
• Walkthrough 5: Creating a class method

Unit 5: Understanding Components and Layouts

• Introducing visual components
• Introducing Spark layout classes
• Walkthrough 1: Using layout classes in an Application container
• Walkthrough 2: using different containers with layouts
• Using constraints to control component layout
• Walkthrough 3: Implementing a constraint-based layout
• Adding scrollbars to containers
• Walkthrough 4: Using a Scroller

Unit 6: Handling Events

• Understanding events
• Implementing event handlers
• Walkthrough 1: Using inline ActionScript for event handling
• Creating ActionScript event handler functions
• Walkthrough 2: Using a function for an event handler
• Understanding the event object
• Understanding event bubbling
• Walkthrough 3: Using the event object
• Walkthrough 4: Using the addEventListener() method

Unit 7: Validating and Formatting Data

• Using the Form container
• Walkthrough 1: Using a form
• Using formatters
• Walkthrough 2: Formatting currency
• Validating form data
• Triggering validation with events
• Walkthrough 3: Validating Numeric Input
• Triggering validation with ActionScript
• Walkthrough 4: Triggering validation with ActionScript

Unit 8: Controlling Navigation

• Understanding MX navigator containers
• Using the ViewStack container
• Using a Spark container inside MX navigator containers
• Walkthrough 1: Navigating using the ViewStack and TabBar control
• Creating custom navigation for the ViewStack container
• Using the TabNavigator container
• Using the Accordion container
• Walkthrough 2: Navigating using the TabNavigator and Accordion containers

Unit 9: Controlling Application State

• Understanding view states
• Walkthrough 1: Creating multiple states
• Controlling view states
• Walkthrough 2: Controlling view states using MXML

Unit 10: Animating Components and States

• Applying effects to components
• Walkthrough 1: Applying an effect to a component
• Creating composite effects
• Walkthrough 2: Creating parallel and sequential effects
• Applying and removing components during animations
• Walkthrough 3: Animating between states

Unit 11: Controlling Visual Display with Styling

• Creating global application styles
• Walkthrough 1: Creating global styles
• Defining styles and skins for components
• Walkthrough 2: Creating selector styles and skins
• Introducing Advanced CSS selectors
• Walkthrough 3: Using advanced CSS selectors

Unit 12: Skinning Spark Components

• Introducing skinning
• Walkthrough 1: Creating and applying skins
• Incorporating visual elements drawn in other programs
• Walkthrough 2: Using a shape drawn in Adobe Illustrator
• Changing the default display of skin parts
• Walkthrough 3: Creating a vertical header for the Spark Panel container

Unit 13: Implementing Advanced Skinning Techniques

• Implementing different visual states for a skin
• Walkthrough 1: Creating animated states in a Button control skin
• Accessing custom component properties from a skin
• Walkthrough 2: Implementing a skin on multiple instances with different properties
• Adding scrollbars to skins
• Walkthrough 3: Making a component scrollable using a skin

Unit 14: Accessing Remote Data

• Using HTTPService to load remote data
• Walkthrough 1: Creating an HTTPService request and using the lastResult property
• Handling returned data and faults
• Walkthrough 2: Using result and fault handlers
• Making HTTP requests with parameters
• Walkthrough 3: Making HTTP requests with parameters
• Using the wizards
• Walkthrough 4: Using the wizards

Unit 15: Creating a Typed Data Model

• Understanding the need for a typed data model
• Creating an ActionScript class for typed data
• Walkthrough 1: Creating a value object class
• Populating an ArrayCollection with value objects
• Walkthrough 2: Populating an ArrayCollection of value objects
• Understanding data bindings with value objects
• Walkthrough 3: Implementing data bindings
• Refactoring value objects
• Walkthrough 4: Refactoring a value object

Unit 16: Extending Events

• Understanding the problem with bindings
• Defining the event type
• Handling the event in the main application
• Walkthrough 1: Creating and dispatching an event
• Extending the Event class
• Using the extended event class
• Walkthrough 2: Extending the Event class to dispatch the event object with data
• Dispatching a value object with the extended event
• Walkthrough 3: Dispatching a value object in the extended event
• Overriding the clone method
• Walkthrough 4: utilizing the clone() method

Unit 17: Rendering Content with the DataGroup Container

• Displaying string data in an item renderer
• Walkthrough 1: Using DefaultItemRenderer
• Passing UI components in the data provider
• Walkthrough 2: Using the DafaultComplexItemRenderer
• Creating a custom item renderer
• Walkthrough 3: Applying a skin to the SkinnableDataContainer

Unit 18: Displaying Data Using the DataGrid

• Using the DataGrid control
• Specifying DataGrid control columns
• Walkthrough 1: Specifying DataGrid control columns
• Formatting DataGrid control columns
• Walkthrough 2: Formatting data in DataGrid control columns
• Using item renderers and item editors
• Walkthrough 3: Using a drop-in item editor
• Inline item renderers and item editors
• Walkthrough 4: Using an inline item editor
• Item renderer and item editor components
• Walkthrough 5: Using a component item renderer
• Using events and selected items with a DataGrid component
• Walkthrough 6: Using a change event on the DataGrid control

Unit 19: Deploying Flex and AIR Applications

• Compiling the Flex application
• Creating a Flex application
• Walkthrough 1: Creating a Flex application production build
• Creating a desktop application
• Walkthrough 2: Creating a desktop