The facilities for designers to build Flash animations and graphics have always been good - can Flash Builder 4 do the same for programmers?
Adobe's new ActionScript API will allow Flash apps to work with social website APIs.

Adobe has released Flash Builder 4, the upgrade for the development environment formerly known as Flex Builder. Flash Builder 4 is an Eclipse-based IDE aimed at programmers wanting to create web or desktop applications targeting the Flash platform. Most of its facilities have been upgraded and new features include a tool that works with web data services, a network monitor, command line build and unit testing support. Overall Flash Builder 4 makes Flash development more like application development for other multi-target environments and makes it easier for .NET or Java programmers to move to using ActionScript and MXML.

The underlying framework has also been overhauled with the addition of skinning and improved component architecture. The newly released ColdFusion Builder gives the Eclipse IDE the ability to work with ColdFusion 9 to generate database backed websites.

A new social web service acts as a sort of plug conversion layer that allows you to interface your application with a range of social websites - Facebook, Twitter, Yahoo!, Google, AOL and MySpace. The Social service API provides a uniform interface between your ActionScript code and the different social site APIs. Cross site authentication is supported and you can access users profiles. To use the service you need to register and obtain a key. The service is free for non-commercial use and licensable otherwise.

A trial version of Flash Builder is available and Flash Builder 4 is available in two editions - Premium ($699) and Standard ($249) with upgrade terms available.

Look out later in the year for the release of Flash
Player 10.1.

More info: Adobe

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