[News] ActionScript 3.0 ?

**andross_88** · 10-07-2005, 04:15 AM

Seems like Macromedia will be releasing Flash Player 8.5, which will have a new Flash Virtual Machine and AS 3.0. Could this be good news for us?

Direct link here: http://forums.ultrashock.com/forums/...threadid=74469

**andross_88** · 10-07-2005, 04:28 AM

"It includes binary socket support, allowing developers to extend the player to work with any binary protocol."

What the heck is binary protocol? How important is this feature?

**mr_malee** · 10-07-2005, 04:37 AM

Man, i just got Flash 8 and now there gonna do another update. Maybe there saving the release of AS 3 until they release a version with adobe. Not sure what Binary Protocols are, probably something to do with external data.

**lapo73** · 10-07-2005, 04:59 AM

Originally Posted by andross_88

"It includes binary socket support, allowing developers to extend the player to work with any binary protocol."

What the heck is binary protocol? How important is this feature?

It refers to the XMLSocket object and to the way Flash can handle data coming from a socket connection.
Up to now the XMLSocket object could transfer string data terminated by a byte zero (0x00). This is great for transferring text but if you need to transfer binary data it can be limiting because the 0x00 byte has a special meaning (the end of the message)

XMLSocket are mainly used in multiuser / multiplayer applications and the fact that we'll be able to use a full-binary protocol is a cool news, because it will allow higher data compression (faster interaction) and the ability to transfer file data etc...

**tomsamson** · 10-07-2005, 05:37 AM

okies some more interesting facts on the news:
Soon (no dates for now,but believe me,really soon,i can only speak about what´s been publicly announced here

) the flash player 8.5 and the flex builder 2.0 will be released as public alpha versions.
The Flash Player 8.5 has a second Virtual Machine (~Player Engine) added which has been written newly from the ground up. It also has the old VM added so that it can still also play back "old" flash content.
Next to XML Handling improvements Lapo explained it features runtime error handling,regular expressions,heavily improved performance and some other juicy stuff.
It also executes actionscript 3 (that´s one of the things the VM2 is for).
Actionscript 3 is based on the newest Ecmascript Specification and is closer to other languages like Java and C#.
Flex Builder 2 is the second version of Macromedia´s Pro Application Development Environment. Initially you will "only"be able to create actionscript 3 featuring content with Flex Builder 2.
I´ve heard strong rumors about this already a few months before flash 8 was released.
I think some of the reasons why Macromedia is doing such an in between Major Versions introduction of such big changes is on the one side to make a blast introduction for Flex Builder 2 and on the other side to have a soft introduction for the new Player which will surely dramatically change things.
It could have been not that ideal to release the completely new Language and Engine to the mass of Flash developers right away without prior "smaller circle" testing of lots of new content.
So we will see content making use of the new player features step by step in small piles in the next months and also people who are into getting and trying the new player can do so with the public alpha soon.
All of this will change many things boys

**lapo73** · 10-07-2005, 06:22 AM

Yeah!
... and on the XML front iw till be able to easily manipulate XML data structures using the E4X (Ecma-For-XML) extensions, which are really interesting.

I've posted a couple of resources and examples here >> http://www.gotoandplay.it/_forums/viewtopic.php?t=1506

Lapo

**ihoss.com** · 10-07-2005, 06:36 AM

But flash can upload stuff now, isnt that using binary data? An image is binary and not ascii, unless I'm very mistaken.

**joa__** · 10-07-2005, 06:37 AM

If they really introduce binary sockets we would be able to do nice things like ftp clients, pop3 clients etc.

This would be so lovely :o)

I would like to know if there are also other protocols (not just TCP/IP) and listening sockets (because of P2P multiplayer games).

**lapo73** · 10-07-2005, 06:43 AM

yep, but it's done using the HTTP protocol, while multiplayer games/apps don't use HTTP because it's a state-less protocol. Every time you send or receive data in HTTP you establish a socket connection, send your request, receive the data and close the connection.

This continuos open/close connection thing is too slow for multiplayer stuff, where you usually establish a persistent connection. (Actually you might also use UDP which is connection less, but that's another story and FLash does not support it)

**ihoss.com** · 10-07-2005, 06:48 AM

so that means you can send images and files with sockets? that would be cool!

**mr_malee** · 10-07-2005, 06:50 AM

so lapo would you say using these new protocols, it could be possible to create close to or realtime flash games. I've heard that it can be quite frustrating to code an in sync multiplayer game with current flash technologies.

**kidoo** · 10-07-2005, 08:52 AM

Originally Posted by tomsamson

2nd VM: Lapo explained it features runtime error handling.

this is pretty much a pre-requisite of "industrial strength" web-apps. No more loop limiting for crash timeouts.

..regular expressions.

string pattern recognition, in laymans terms *.* wildcards!

It also has the old VM added so that it can still also play back "old" flash content.

Heck, no complaints from me. By the time we get to F10 we'll need that redundant engine just to play todays games at "normal speed" on 10Ghz machines. It'll be like a built in emulator that'll still play everything down to SPL files.

Actionscript 3 is based on the newest Ecmascript Specification and is closer to other languages like Java and C#.

how close can you get without "being" that other language? :^|

full runtime error reporting, improved debugging

[i]~had to be![i] Fate is bugging me mad it doesn't report we're trying to assign values to "non-existant" variables.

Alpha of Flash Player 8.5 are expected to be available for download on October 17

oh boy! Another early Christmas!!!

**lapo73** · 10-07-2005, 11:58 AM

Originally Posted by mr_malee

so lapo would you say using these new protocols, it could be possible to create close to or realtime flash games. I've heard that it can be quite frustrating to code an in sync multiplayer game with current flash technologies.

humm... actually there's no problem with creating realtime stuff even today with a good socket server

The problem of keeping the sync between clients is not too much related with the technology itself or a specific protocol. It has more to due with the nature of networked games.

Binary sockets won't help too much in this department, but they will surely make socket flash applications more versatile and flexible.

Lapo

**lapo73** · 10-07-2005, 12:01 PM

maybe you were talking about UDP support in Flash? Ah! in that case I don't know. UDP might help for realtime games, but nobody mentioned it... so I don't think it will be part of the new release

**tonypa** · 10-07-2005, 12:24 PM

After reading through the press release I still dont understand why would it be good idea to spend another 1000USD on the "Flex 2.0". I dont see how it will help to make better games.

Plus I think its disappointing to see all the new stuff appearing Flex-only. That makes the not-so-old Flash8 look bad, having latest Flash which can not produce content for latest Flash player is nonsense.

**chuckury** · 10-07-2005, 12:26 PM

And adobe f***s up.

**lapo73** · 10-07-2005, 12:34 PM

Originally Posted by tonypa

After reading through the press release I still dont understand why would it be good idea to spend another 1000USD on the "Flex 2.0". I dont see how it will help to make better games.

Well, actually Flex isn't really targeted at games. It is a specialized application server for flash based apps... the so called RIAs (rich internet applications)

I guess it's very good that MM is pushing the flash player towards better performance and making it a powerful tool for deploying web apps. We'll all benefit from this whether we use the very expensive Flex thingy or if we go the open source way, with MTASC and eclipse without tossing a single penny.

It looks like we'll see a lot of new stuff happening in the next months ...

Lapo

**tonypa** · 10-07-2005, 12:53 PM

Originally Posted by lapo73

Well, actually Flex isn't really targeted at games. It is a specialized application server for flash based apps... the so called RIAs (rich internet applications)

Quote from here http://www.andersblog.com/archives/2...uilder_2.html:

"So when I refer to the Flex Framework, I'm talking about the client side portion of Flex. This will ship with Flex Builder 2, and you can use Flex Builder's built in compiler to produce SWFs that can deployed without the server."

It is not server anymore. It is application which you run in your computer to create swf. How exactly is this any different from Flash8? Except of course Flash8 can not make swf files which would benefit from new Flash player 8.5.

Games are applications too you know

They may call them RIAs, but its still same thing - user clicks, something happens.

P.S. Flash has never been targeted at games either and so far this hasnt prevented us making games with it.

**lapo73** · 10-07-2005, 03:32 PM

Games are applications too you know They may call them RIAs, but its still same thing - user clicks, something happens

Nay... we're talking about 2 different things here.
Flex was born as an enterprise level application server for those "boring" data-driven web applications, full of datagrids and combo boxes ... no fancy colorful sprites moving on a fast parallax scrolling

The Flex framework was thought for making it easier to bind data to visual components, handle the businness logic and connect it to the server side (usually large web apps based on J2EE or .Net)

The fact that now the client part of the framework can be used to develop client-only applications doesn't change anything in particular. We're always talking about a specialised set of classes and components that won't capture the interest of any game developer.

Rather, I'd be more interested in knowing when the AS 3.0 and the other flash player 8.5 features will be accessible from the Flash8 IDE. Maybe a Flash 8.5 will be released? Sort of a patch like the previous MX 2004 7.2?

**pentru** · 10-07-2005, 04:27 PM

Originally Posted by lapo73

Rather, I'd be more interested in knowing when the AS 3.0 and the other flash player 8.5 features will be accessible from the Flash8 IDE. Maybe a Flash 8.5 will be released? Sort of a patch like the previous MX 2004 7.2?

yep...same here.....

although I have to say it would've been a better move from MM to incorporate the new features of code handling in the F8 player....so that devs could've start deploying apps with some of the new improvements already in the player.....it just all seems a bit backwards to me.....

hope there will be a patch soon....since they seem to consider this 8.5 player a large improvement over the 8 player....only a month old...LOL

paul.

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