FLASH: How does Flash 4 Magic compares to Flash Web Design?

[Tom Green]

Helen Triolo wrote:


> Haven't seen much about the Flash 4 Bible on the list yet.  Anyone spent

> any time with it?


It is a great reference tome. and�


>

>

> Jason Bouwmeester wrote:

> >

> ><snip>

> >

> > Flash 4 Magic was very much Actionscript oriented and is a great resource

> > for that, the code and stuff on the CD is well worth the cost of the books

> > itself.

> >


Gimme a break on that observation. For months I have been screaming for an AS

book that explains what you are doing and why. Flash Magic fails, abysmally, on

both parts.


There are some really neat techniques presented and, if you really need some

typing practice, this is the one for you. What is not covered in any way shape or

form is how all the code hangs together. The calculator is a great example. Here

you have a whack of variables that call variables that are already in the AS

scripts attached to symbols in the score. Why not do the whole thing from scratch

and explain what each line does? There is no explanation of what to do when you

get a syntax error or what to do if it doesn't work. Most egregious error of all

is not telling the "newbie" whether the variable is a string or expression. The

authors  just assume you know this from looking at the scripts you type in.


Also, the first technique- the preloader- won't boot up on a Mac PB G3 (mine)

that has over 176 mB of RAM ( 90 of it earmarked for Flash) and a 333 mhz PPC

chip. Keep getting told I need more memory. Bush league.


The book is full of lots of technique and nothing else. Sorta like those sites I

"dis" on a semi-regular basis.


Finally, you can't compare Hillman's book to this one. Different beasts. If

someone were to write an AS book that used the FLash 4 Magic approach of project

based technique that started small and worked up to complex, then that and

Hillman's works would be a fdynamic one-two duo.



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