Flash Application Design Solutions: The Flash Usability Handbook

Flash Application Design Solutions shows you how to harness the power of ActionScript 2.0 and make the most of the improved design tools of Flash 8 to create usable, intuitive Flash interfaces.

In this book, you’ll find a number of concrete Flash usability solutions that use elements such as navigation menus, data filtering, forms, content loaders, Flash liquid layouts, help tips, and many other features. You’ll learn how each of these solutions actually improves on what is possible with HTML and JavaScript. In each case, you’ll see how users interact with the website feature, and how it gives users the most intuitive, enjoyable experience possible while using your application. You’ll get a step-by-step analysis of how to program and build each solution, and how to make it scalable, maintainable, and reusable.

The book concludes with a case study that showcases the solutions developed in the previous chapters, all working together in a single application. This example puts all the pieces together and highlights just how, with some thought and consideration, Flash can improve usability on the Web.

This book is essential reading for all Flash designers and developers, from beginners seeking valid solutions to veteran Flashers looking for a fresh perspective on application design, interaction, and reusability.

Flash Application Design Solutions shows you how to harness the power of ActionScript 2.0 and make the most of the improved design tools of Flash 8 to create usable, intuitive Flash interfaces.

In this book, you'll find a number of concrete Flash usability solutions that use elements such as navigation menus, data filtering, forms, content loaders, Flash liquid layouts, help tips, and many other features. You'll learn how each of these solutions actually improves on what is possible with HTML and JavaScript. In each case, you'll see how users interact with the website feature, and how it gives users the most intuitive, enjoyable experience possible while using your application. You'll get a step-by-step analysis of how to program and build each solution, and how to make it scalable, maintainable, and reusable.

The book concludes with a case study that showcases the solutions developed in the previous chapters, all working together in a single application. This example puts all the pieces together and highlights just how, with some thought and consideration, Flash can improve usability on the Web.

This book is essential reading for all Flash designers and developers, from beginners seeking valid solutions to veteran Flashers looking for a fresh perspective on application design, interaction, and reusability.

You'll learn:

• Important Web usability theory
• How to build usable Flash applications
• Effective object-oriented programming using ActionScript
• How to use new Flash 8 features
• Object-oriented ActionScript programming

Summary of Contents:

• PART ONE: INTRODUCING FLASH USABILITY

  • Chapter 1: Flash: Then, Now, Later
  • Chapter 2: Setting Up Your Flash Environment

• PART TWO: THE USABILITY SOLUTIONS

  • Chapter 3: A Basic Selection System
  • Chapter 4: Navigation Menus
  • Chapter 5: Content Loading
  • Chapter 6: Inventory Views and Selection Devices
  • Chapter 7: Data Filtering
  • Chapter 8: Forms
  • Chapter 9: State Management and Storage
  • Chapter 10: Help Tips
  • Chapter 11: Browser History
  • Chapter 12: Liquid Layouts
  • Chapter 13: Embedding Flash

• PART THREE: PUTTING THE PIECES TOGETHER

  • Chapter 14: Planning for Usability
  • Chapter 15: The Usable Bookstore

Ka Wai Cheung is a software architect and award-winning web designer specializing in developing usable web applications. He has a particular interest in creating rich internet experiences in Macromedia Flash and object-oriented programming theory.

Having developed over a hundred web applications for industries ranging from law to entertainment, Ka Wai is currently a lead architect at Dizpersion Technologies, a company focused on RSS content distribution. Ka Wai has written for several online publications and resource sites including Digital Web Magazine (http://www.digital-web.com), ActionScript.org (http://www.actionscript.org), and HOW design online (http://www.howdesign.com). He writes on anything from web standards and usability design to software development theory. He logs his past web projects and writings on his personal portfolio site, Project99 (http://www.project99.tv). Ka Wai has degrees in Computing and Information Systems, Mathematics, and Integrated Science from Northwestern University.

When not working on the web, Ka Wai enjoys playing guitar, eating foods from all four corners of the world, attending sporting events and soaking up the always warm Chicago sun.

Craig is a full-time Flash engineer living and working in Chicago and has been advocating the use of Flash in delivering rich internet applications to top-ranked online communications agencies around the world for the past five years with great success. Currently, Craig is a Senior Art Director at Arc Worldwide in Chicago.

From car configurators to video learning applications, Craig's devotion to Flash has driven his creative intrigue while providing him with a technical expertise and perspective that only a Flash developer can attain.

Like many other Flash developers, Craig's background is not strictly programming oriented; he has a degree in musical composition from Berklee College of Music in Boston.

When he isn't crankin' out Actionscript and his eyes aren't glued to the screen gawkin' at the spectacular work of his contemporaries, Craig is seekin' out great music, catchin' up on 20th century American fiction or awaiting a deep dish pizza being delivered to his doorstep.