This Book Wants You

This book wants you to use object-oriented programming in your daily Flash work. It wants you to reap the benefits of OOP ”one of the most important revolutions in programming history. It wants you to understand ActionScript 2.0 completely. And it will stop at nothing to get what it wants.

Here's its plan...

First, in Part I, The ActionScript 2.0 Language , this book teaches you the fundamentals of object-oriented concepts, syntax, and usage. Even if you have never tried object-oriented programming before, Part I will have you understanding and applying it. Chapter 1 gives an overview of ActionScript 2.0. Chapter 2 teaches you the basics of OOP and helps you decide how much is right for your projects. Chapter 3 through Chapter 10 offer details on classes, objects, methods , properties, inheritance, composition, interfaces, packages, and myriad other core OOP concepts. If you already know a lot about OOP because you program in Java or another object-oriented language, this book helps you leverage that prior experience. It draws abundant comparisons between Flash-based OOP and what you already know. Along the way, it introduces OOP into your regular routine through exercises that demonstrate real-world Flash OOP in action.

In Part II, Application Development , this book teaches you how to structure entire applications with ActionScript 2.0. In Chapter 11, you'll learn best practices for setting up and architecting an object-oriented project. In Chapter 12 and Chapter 13, you'll learn how user interface components and movie clips fit into a well-structured Flash application. In Chapter 14, you'll see how to parcel up and share code with other developers. All this will help you build more scalable, extensible, stable apps. It's all part of this book's plan.

Finally, in Part III, Design Pattern Examples in ActionScript 2.0 , you'll explore a variety of approaches to various programming situations. You'll see how to apply proven and widely accepted object-oriented programming strategies ”known as design patterns ” to Flash. The design patterns in Part III cover two key topics in Flash development: event broadcasting and user interface management. After an introduction to design patterns in Chapter 15, we'll explore four common patterns in Chapter 16 through Chapter 19. Once you've tried working with the patterns presented in Part III, you'll have confidence consulting the larger body of patterns available online and in other literature. And you'll have the skills to draw on other widely recognized object-oriented practices. You see, this book knows it won't be with you forever. It knows it must teach you to find your own solutions.

This book doesn't care whether you already know the meaning of the words "class," "inheritance," "method," "prototype," or "property." If you have no idea what OOP is or why it's worthwhile, this book is delighted to meet you. If, on the other hand, you're already a skilled object-oriented developer, this book wants to make you better. It wants you to have the exhaustive reference material and examples you need to maximize your productivity in ActionScript 2.0.

This book is determined to make you an adept object-oriented programmer. And it's confident it will succeed.