Which is better? I use FDT all the time now with the Flex 3 SDK to compile AS files. The main benefit that I see to Flex Builder is that you can create AIR and Flex projects in addition to your ActionScript projects...

So what is your opinion... Flex Builder of FDT3? I would do both, but currently can't afford both... :)

Not sure how I feel about how it looks. It really deviates from the rest of the Adobe logos, which might not be a bad thing though.

http://www.mikechambers.com/blog/2007/11/15/introducing-the-adobe-air-logo/

Here are a series of example AIR applications that were shown at some point at the Adobe MAX conference.

Arise
Bee
DragNShare
EmployeeDirectory
Fresh
HTMLPodcastPlayer
MapCache
PeekAgenda
PixelPerfect
RoadFinder
Salsa
Scout
ScreenPlay
Signet
SPF

Unfortunately, there is no source files. But they should be good for demonstration purposes.

Correction: It looks as though I grabbed the source files for these and not the published AIR file...

Who is going to MAX? I am going to MAX this year in Chicago. This makes the 3rd time for me, 2 times to MAX and once to DevCon. Any sessions that you are looking forward to in particular?

Here is my schedule:

Monday, October 1

• Hands On: Building your First Rich Internet Application With Flex 3
• Introduction to OOP with ActionScript 3.0
• Design Patterns in ActionScript 3.0
• Building Stunning Flex Applications with Flex Builder and Creative Suite 3

Tuesday, October 2

• Building Adobe Integrated Runtime (AIR) Applications Using Flash CS3
• Hands On: Introduction to ActionScript 3.0
• ------ open slot ------ going to skip into some undecided session.... tbd
• Flex Roadmap

Wednesday, October 3

• Inspire Session: Big Spaceship, Digital Creative Agency
• If You Build It Will They Come? Designing Your Web Application for Smooth Web Analytics
• Adobe Platform Roadmap
• Font Perspective: The New New Typography

My friend Kryssy at R/GA in NYC is looking for Flash Developers of all levels for full-time onsite work.

Description as follows.

• Scripting of Flash Interfaces and Applications in AS 2.0
• Maintenance of ongoing projects

Programming Knowledge Requirements:

• Full understanding of Object Orientated development and design with regards to AS2.0.
• A proactive, quality orientated approach to development.
• A love of clean and if possible reusable code.
• Experience in working in medium to large sized teams in a structured and disciplined manner, e.g. test-driven development, version-control and deployment knowledge is very helpful.
• Good working knowledge of OO Actionscript.

Soft skill we like:

• Plays well with others i.e. able to interface with designers and usability designers.
• Isn't afraid to raise there hand when something goes wrong and they need some help.
• Curious about new technologies and eager to keep abreast of the ones they already know.

Why should consider applying:

• Large supportive department of developers and a full QA team.
• A CTO that will always talk to you and help you get to where you want to go.
• Be amongst developers who are really into what they do and push the boundaries of development.

If interested email Krystyna.Bloch@rga.com with you resume and some code samples. Be sure to say that Jeff sent you.

My friend Kryssy at R/GA in NYC is looking for Flash Developers of all levels for full-time onsite work.

Description as follows.

• Scripting of Flash Interfaces and Applications in AS 2.0
• Maintenance of ongoing projects

Programming Knowledge Requirements:

• Full understanding of Object Orientated development and design with regards to AS2.0.
• A proactive, quality orientated approach to development.
• A love of clean and if possible reusable code.
• Experience in working in medium to large sized teams in a structured and disciplined manner, e.g. test-driven development, version-control and deployment knowledge is very helpful.
• Good working knowledge of OO Actionscript.

Soft skill we like:

• Plays well with others i.e. able to interface with designers and usability designers.
• Isn't afraid to raise there hand when something goes wrong and they need some help.
• Curious about new technologies and eager to keep abreast of the ones they already know.

Why should consider applying:

• Large supportive department of developers and a full QA team.
• A CTO that will always talk to you and help you get to where you want to go.
• Be amongst developers who are really into what they do and push the boundaries of development.

If interested email Krystyna.Bloch@rga.com with you resume and some code samples. Be sure to say that Jeff sent you.

Pay no attention to the post dates for this entry. These positions are almost always available.

Adobe's Adobe Integrated Runtime (AIR) was launched earlier this month. Kevin Lynch, chief software architect, called it "the best of the web and the best of the desktop come together". Unfortunately his statement does not stand up to scrutiny.

AIR is not useless. Flash is a great multimedia runtime, designers love it, and AIR lets you take Flash applications and install them into the desktop. It does not stop there. AIR also lets you take an HTML application and install it into the desktop, because it includes an open-source HTML engine called WebKit. This is where the problems start, however. It is all a touch schizophrenic, and there are two separate AIR development kits, for HTML and for Flash. AIR actually includes two JavaScript engines, one in Flash and another in WebKit. Adobe has lost its focus and is trying to do too much in one product.

HTML applications are better kept within the browser. The AIR implementation is hobbled, particularly in its lack of support for plug-ins, with only Adobe's own Flash and PDF allowed, and the benefits are small. It is true that you get full access to the file system, but even browsers can load and save documents.

Adobe should have reserved AIR for Flash applications, but even here "the best of the desktop" is a stretch. AIR applications have no access to native libraries, which ensures cross-platform compatibility, but also means weak printing, and little integration with other applications beyond clipboard support. Considered purely as a desktop platform, AIR is poor compared to either Java or .Net, which have richer runtime libraries and greater extensibility.

Another issue is database access. AIR has a local database engine, but if you want to interact with a database server, the only option is web services, whereas other platforms have fast native drivers.

The most compelling benefit of AIR applications over browser-based equivalents is offline capability, but here Google has changed the rules with its Gears engine that lets browser applications also work offline.

If merely running outside the browser is enough, then AIR fits the bill. It will have a niche, particularly for consumer applications, but judging by the current beta it is hard to find many good reasons for enterprises to use it in place of Java or .Net on the desktop, or web applications running in their more familiar home, the browser.

source: http://www.itweek.co.uk/itweek/comment/2192884/adobe-air-leave-customers

Announcing "San Dimas", a new desktop application from eBay. It provides a new search interface, a fun way to bid, access to your personal eBay history, and much more. We are sharing this project in the very early stages because we want your input. Sign up for the Beta, and help us build this brand new way to use eBay.

http://www.projectsandimas.com/

Looks like my snooping was correct last week. The pictures that Ted posted where he had photoshoped out some of the titles wasn't a complete success. Some of the name was left and it looked like AIR:

Now that has been confirmed by MacWorld:

http://www.macworld.com/news/2007/06/11/apollo/index.php

It looks as though Ted wasn't so good at blurring out everything with the new name for Apollo. From what I can tell from the enlarged photo below that the name does start with an "A" and is more than likely 3 letter or so. It could be something like Aik, AiR, Aix or something like that. Can anyone else make anything out? I definately think the last letter is an "X" or an "R". Maybe I am completely wrong and it has nothing to do with the new name for Apollo.

http://www.onflex.org/ted/2007/06/flex-3-friday-apollo.php

"Everyone is talking about Apollo, the platform from Adobe that puts rich web apps on the desktop. But the tech-talk means very little to the average user who simply wants to see some cool stuff. Luckily, there are developers out there working diligently on producing Apollo applications, some of which are already fully usable. To try them out, you first need to download and install the Apollo runtime, which can be downloaded from the official Apollo site."

Check them out: http://mashable.com/2007/05/07/apollo-apps/