Towes presents an introduction to the technology, as well a guide to implementation of successful applications. Part one provides ten quick steps to get readers familiar with the server. Part two explores the issues affecting appropriate integration of the Communication Server. Key concepts include understanding digital communication solutions, understanding objects, using server side ActionScripting, and more.

With the advent of Flash Communication Server MX (FCS), Macromedia believes that it's on the edge of a breakthrough in how people think about the Internet. FCS has been designed to provide web developers with the means to add polished interactive audio and video features to their sites, the sort of features that users have come to expect. Naturally, the process of efficiently integrating rich media into applications, web sites, and web content is a complex one, to say the least. That's where Programming Flash Communication Server factors in. As the foremost reference on FCS, it helps readers understand how FCS can facilitate: Video on demand Live webcasts Video chat and messaging Shared desktop conferences Live auctions Interactive whiteboard presentations Workflow collaboration Multi-user games Programming Flash Communication Server not only explains how to use the pre-built FCS components to construct a simple application, it also explains the architecture so that developers can program custom components to make even more advanced applications. In addition, the book explains how to truly optimize performance, and talks about considerations for networked applications as well as the media issues pertaining to FCS. Programming Flash Communication Server gives developers a sorely needed leg up on this potentially intimidating technology. It lets users develop cool web applications ranging from direct dating experiences with real-time video, to pre-recorded corporate presentations, to news services with video and audio, and much more. At last, the ability to build web sites with rich interactive features--minus the complex downloads and installation hassles--is a reality. And now, with Programming Flash Communication Server from O'Reilly by your side, you can do more quickly and easily than you ever dreamed possible.

This is the only reality-based guide to give readers a behind-the-scenes look at product development with Macromedia Flash Communication Server MX. The book shows how to develop practical and usable Macromedia Flash Communication applications.

Annotation The only comprehensive reference to Flash that creative professionals and Flash gurus will need! Covering basic skills quickly and concisely, it allows more time to be spent on more advanced topics.nbsp;Organised by topic, readers can jump in and learn only what they need to complete the task at hand. nbsp; Completely up20020828d and expanded to cover all aspects of Flash MX, including Flash's upgraded ActionScript and interface features. Concise and complete, containing the information that busy professionals need without any of the fluff. Includes contributions from several highly respected Flash professionals; they give real-world tasks and tips as well as answers to questions they've been hearing for years as trainers. Cyndy Cashman is the founder and president of Breakaway Interactive Training and Digital Media Center, located in Norman, Oklahoma. Her company is a Macromedia-authorized training center providing training and consulting services for interactive media. She has been using and teaching advanced Flash topics for many years. Michael Hurwicz has been using Flash 5 intensively since it first came out. He has written about Macromedia Director, discreet 3d Studio Max, and eRain Swift3D for WebTools. A full-time freelance writer for 16 years, he has written books on networks and architecture. nbsp.

As a designer using Flash you will see how you can apply your creative skills to the many stages of game production and produce your own interactive games with this versatile package. Creating games for mobile devices is now also covered! As an animator you will be able to add interactive functionality to your own animation and produce a game. As a web developer you will see how to make the best use of the sophisticated development environment Flash offers for the production of both artwork and code to create low bandwidth, animated web content that sells! The free CD-Rom includes all the code and files you need to try out each tutorial from the book so you can see exactly how each game was created. Learn from the many different types of games provided as examples, from simple quizzes to platform-based games. High score tables and multi-player games using sockets, vital to higher level online games, are also covered in detail to ensure you have the complete skill set needed to succeed in this competitive arena.

Distance learning technologies have reshaped the diffusion of communication within the educational system. Within this expanding field, the possibilities for an interactive, cross-boundary education are endless. Strategic Applications of Distance Learning Technologies provides tactical uses of distance education technologies to assist instructors and researchers in their quest to provide a progressive, alternative approach to traditional education techniques. This collection of advanced research incorporates global challenges and opportunities of technology integration while outlining strategies for distance learning within developing countries.

The new multimedia standards (for example, MPEG-21) facilitate the seamless integration of multiple modalities into interoperable multimedia frameworks, transforming the way people work and interact with multimedia data. These key technologies and multimedia solutions interact and collaborate with each other in increasingly effective ways, contributing to the multimedia revolution and having a significant impact across a wide spectrum of consumer, business, healthcare, education, and governmental domains. This book aims to provide a complete coverage of the areas outlined and to bring together the researchers from academic and industry as well as practitioners to share ideas, challenges, and solutions relating to the multifaceted aspects of this field.

Flash Remoting MX lets developers easily integrate rich Macromedia Flash content with applications that are built using Macromedia ColdFusion MX, Microsoft .NET, Java, PHP, or SOAP-based web services. The result is complex client/server applications that more closely resemble desktop applications than traditional web pages. Gone is the click/wait/reload approach of HTML. Your web application uses Flash as the front end while Flash Remoting handles the communication behind the scenes with the application server. All the end user knows is that it's fast and flexible.The potential uses for Flash Remoting are endless. Flash Remoting: The Definitive Guide will help you understand this breakthrough technology and use it to build your own Rich Internet Applications (RIAs). Build applications that connect to a database, file system, or other server-side technologies. Or, use Flash Remoting to create: online stores that feature catalogs and shopping cart systems sound and video clip libraries banner ads with built-in shopping carts, click-through tracking, and site search capabilities new controls that can be used in place of HTML extensions to Flash, Dreamweaver, Fireworks, and more front-ends to databases for administrators The book begins with Flash Remoting basics: setup, installation and an introduction to its underlying concepts. Next, you'll explore the Flash's User Interface components as they relate to Flash Remoting. Then, you'll gain insights into Flash Remoting internals and the Remoting API. The book is rich with examples that you will be able to run on your own system.The next section focuses on the server-side environment that you'll use for your applications. Individual chapters cover Flash Remoting with ColdFusion, Server-Side ActionScript, Java, ASP.NET, and PHP.The last section covers more advanced Flash Remoting techniques, such as calling web services from Flash Remoting, extending objects and UI controls, best practices, and debugging. Plus there is a detailed chapter demonstrating a real-world application. The book concludes with a Flash Remoting API reference.Developers who are looking to create Rich Internet Applications with Flash will find Flash Remoting: The Definitive Guide indispensable.

A guide for developing web sites by means of conceptualization, planning, modeling, and execution of electronic media delivery via Internet. Web development is a broad term for any activities related to developing a web site for the World Wide Web or an intranet. This can include e-commerce business development, web design, web content development, client-side/server-side coding, and web server configuration. However, among web professionals, "web development" usually refers only to the non-design aspects of building web sites, e.g. writing markup and coding. Web development can range from developing the simplest static single page of plain text to the most complex web-based internet applications, electronic businesses, or social network services. Web design is a process of conceptualization, planning, modeling, and execution of electronic media delivery via Internet in the form of Markup language suitable for interpretation by Web browser and display as Graphical user interface (GUI).

Updated to cover the functionality and ActionScripting changes that have come with the release of Flash MX Professional 2004, this edition brings more clarity to the use of object-oriented programming for developing Flash applications. Topics include object design, basic patterns, using components, and debugging applications, all covered with a backdrop of a sample application.