Chapter 10. To Protect and Serve

Throughout the previous section of this book, several aspects of object-oriented programming (OOP) were examined, and all the aspects focused on the client side of the development process. Because it is a client-side development language, this focus on the client makes sense. However, as Flash continues its transition from movie making to creating application user interfaces, chances are that Flash will not encompass the entire application.

To properly understand the new direction of Flash, it helps to see where it fits within the history of computer applications. Although many Flash developers began programming only since the introduction of the World Wide Web, computer applications actually predate that event by several decades. After examining the history of applications, we discuss the two types of data and hybrid applications.