Comments on: What is the Best Way to Learn Flash & Actionscript for Visualization? http://flowingdata.com/2007/10/19/what-is-the-best-way-to-learn-flashactionscript-for-data-visualization/ Strength in Numbers Sun, 12 Feb 2012 03:48:24 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Andrew http://flowingdata.com/2007/10/19/what-is-the-best-way-to-learn-flashactionscript-for-data-visualization/#comment-1128 Andrew Wed, 09 Jan 2008 23:20:02 +0000 http://flowingdata.com/2007/10/19/what-is-the-best-way-to-learn-flashactionscript-for-data-visualization/#comment-1128 Prefuse just came out in an ActionScript flavor called Flare: http://flare.prefuse.org/ There's a tutorial to get you started with AS and Flare along with pointers to other AS resources. Prefuse just came out in an ActionScript flavor called Flare:
http://flare.prefuse.org/

There’s a tutorial to get you started with AS and Flare along with pointers to other AS resources.

]]> By: Tom Carden http://flowingdata.com/2007/10/19/what-is-the-best-way-to-learn-flashactionscript-for-data-visualization/#comment-49716 Tom Carden Sat, 20 Oct 2007 07:50:00 +0000 http://flowingdata.com/2007/10/19/what-is-the-best-way-to-learn-flashactionscript-for-data-visualization/#comment-49716 Just to clarify: if you're learning this stuff now then unless there's a really good reason you should skip Flash 8 and Actionscript 2 in favour of Flash 9 and Actionscript 3. There are fewer great tutorials so far but the language is so much cleaner, especially if you have a CS background and if you're familiar with Java or Javascript. Just to clarify: if you’re learning this stuff now then unless there’s a really good reason you should skip Flash 8 and Actionscript 2 in favour of Flash 9 and Actionscript 3. There are fewer great tutorials so far but the language is so much cleaner, especially if you have a CS background and if you’re familiar with Java or Javascript.

]]> By: Tom Carden http://flowingdata.com/2007/10/19/what-is-the-best-way-to-learn-flashactionscript-for-data-visualization/#comment-60 Tom Carden Sat, 20 Oct 2007 07:47:00 +0000 http://flowingdata.com/2007/10/19/what-is-the-best-way-to-learn-flashactionscript-for-data-visualization/#comment-60 The best way I found, with a similar background to yours as you describe it, was to start working on a project at Stamen Design :) If that's not available, the answer depends on whether you intend to use the Flash program itself or develop software that runs in the Flash environment. For the latter you can use Flex Builder (not free, but worth it in my experience) and pick up a book about Actionscript 3 development (e.g. Colin Moock's new book http://www.amazon.com/Essential-ActionScript-3-0-Colin-Moock/). Avoid books on Flex/MXML unless you want to get into the Adobe brand of 'RIA' development, which judging from your blog you probably want to avoid in favour of total control over the design. This tutorial has a few distracting elements, but is really the best I've seen at covering the initial 'getting started' phase. http://www.senocular.com/flash/tutorials/as3withmxmlc/ There's nothing like actually building something though... good luck! The best way I found, with a similar background to yours as you describe it, was to start working on a project at Stamen Design :)

If that’s not available, the answer depends on whether you intend to use the Flash program itself or develop software that runs in the Flash environment. For the latter you can use Flex Builder (not free, but worth it in my experience) and pick up a book about Actionscript 3 development (e.g. Colin Moock’s new book http://www.amazon.com/Essentia.....lin-Moock/).

Avoid books on Flex/MXML unless you want to get into the Adobe brand of ‘RIA’ development, which judging from your blog you probably want to avoid in favour of total control over the design.

This tutorial has a few distracting elements, but is really the best I’ve seen at covering the initial ‘getting started’ phase. http://www.senocular.com/flash.....withmxmlc/

There’s nothing like actually building something though… good luck!

]]> By: Hadley Wickham http://flowingdata.com/2007/10/19/what-is-the-best-way-to-learn-flashactionscript-for-data-visualization/#comment-49714 Hadley Wickham Sat, 20 Oct 2007 00:01:00 +0000 http://flowingdata.com/2007/10/19/what-is-the-best-way-to-learn-flashactionscript-for-data-visualization/#comment-49714 Have you considered processing (http://www.processing.org/) instead? Or maybe prefuse (http://prefuse.org/)? (They're both java based). If you don't want something web based, you could try experimenting with R based interactive graphics - maybe GGobi (http://www.ggobi.org) or iplots (http://rosuda.org/iplots/). What sort of interactions do you want to enable? Have you considered processing (http://www.processing.org/) instead? Or maybe prefuse (http://prefuse.org/)? (They’re both java based).

If you don’t want something web based, you could try experimenting with R based interactive graphics – maybe GGobi (http://www.ggobi.org) or iplots (http://rosuda.org/iplots/).

What sort of interactions do you want to enable?

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