Budding Flash Developer- NEED Guidance!

[ruedaminute]

Hi there,

I've been studying flash for around a year and a half now, and after reading "Essential Actionscript" by O'Reilly and studying OOP, have decided to concentrate on becoming a developer instead of a designer. I'm thinking that my next steps will be learning PHP/mySQL and XML interaction with flash, and perhaps a bit of game programming if I have the time.

Am I on the right track skillswise?

Also, what kind of stuff goes into a successful developer portfolio? Do I need to have projects done for others in my portfolio in order for people to consider hiring me, or can I just include projects I developed for myself... And what kinds of projects really impress those who are hiring when it comes to developers?

Feeling a bit lost, and panicking a little. How did you guys develop that portfolio that got you your freelance jobs/steady gigs?

Thanks in advance.

[earl223]

Anything can go into a portfolio. It really depends on what you want prospective clients to see what you can do. Simple Flash experiments using Math, API's or even simple menu structures will give them an idea of your level of knowledge in actrionscripting. Being a designer is good because seldom do we see a good developer who is also a good designer.

Having stuff in your portfolio depends on who your showing it to. If the client is looking for Flash Applications then websites or games wont interest him much. At this point, it would be best to determine who your target market is, then build a portfolio from there. A portfolio need not contain samples from past projects; but it should contain something you client will see useful. e.g. If you have a client that has a website for kids, he may be interested to see something which caters to kids, compared to say a client from NASA.

Different portfolios for different set of clients. But you have to take note though that some clients do not know what they want/need until they see it. So it would be good to bring along some other stuff for them to see just in case.

Always let the client know what you can do. If he's looking for Applications, tell him that you can also do websites. You may find yourself doing 2 or more projects for a particular client at the same time.