[Xerte] Xerte 3.0 Beta

Mon Oct 11 13:39:07 BST 2010

Mxml Editor True Object Orientation

:)

From: Julian.Tenney at nottingham.ac.uk
To: xerte at lists.nottingham.ac.uk
Date: Mon, 11 Oct 2010 10:12:37 +0100
Subject: RE: [Xerte] Xerte 3.0 Beta

This is the change I alluded to. Changing the software to
compile swfs rather than interpret .xml at runtime to create the content means
changing the file format: there are a load of good reasons to do this, and some
recent changes to Air that made it possible:

-         
Air 2.0 allows communication to native processes. This means
Xerte can communicate directly with fcsh.exe in the FlexSDK to compile the
swfs, and also to the debugger. This wasn’t possible with Zinc or older
versions of Air.

-         
The interpreted code was slow. Compiled swfs are much much much faster.

-         
Interpreted code still didn’t allow true functions to be
created. You could use the function keyword to create pseudo functions, but
they weren’t of the type ‘function’ and couldn’t be
passed as properties to components; this was particularly troublesome for event
handlers;

-         
It was very difficult / impossible to create new classes at
runtime. Any component property that needs a class (like an icon on a tab bar) needed
a fiddly workaround, nd iti didn’t work in all cases;

-         
Style sheets needed compiling with the Flex SDK. Now inline
styles can be defined and compiled directly into the swf;

-         
Extending with your own classes was more difficult than it
needed to be. This still needs a bit of work, but you’ll be able to add
your own classes, written in AS3 to the application.

-         
You can now use all the skinning stuff to create your own skins,
and Xerte can create / edit skins. I’ve an example, but this is pretty
nifty.

-         
You have support for states that are much better managed in .mxml
than ActionScript. States are also pretty nifty.

-         
You’ll be able to use components from the vast array of Flex
resources out there;

-         
You’re no longer dependent on my runtime. This means less
work for me, and means that all the existing Flex books / tutorials / resources
are relevant to you. Xerte is essentially now an .mxml editor. You are getting
into a very marketable and transferable set of knowledge and skills;

-         
It will be much easier to keep up with future changes to the
Flex SDK. This is another big weight off my mind / desk.

The older files more or less translate, as the xml had initialisation
info for each component in it, so <ButtonIcon…/> is much the same
as <Button…/>

I think the changes are well worth it.

J

From:
xerte-bounces at lists.nottingham.ac.uk
[mailto:xerte-bounces at lists.nottingham.ac.uk] On Behalf Of Kemp
Johnathan

Sent: 09 October 2010 21:44

To: Xerte discussion list

Subject: Re: [Xerte] Xerte 3.0 Beta

Congratulations on your new
version of Xerte 3.

I have downloaded and installed
the new version, but find that it will not open any of the examples that you
created for the earlier version of Xerte 3.

It looks very interesting, I am
looking forward to the tutorials.

Kind regards

Johnathan

On 7 October 2010 14:02, Ron
Mitchell <ronm at mitchellmedia.co.uk>
wrote:

Brilliant!
Wish I had time to play. 

Congrats to
all involved.

From: xerte-bounces at lists.nottingham.ac.uk
[mailto:xerte-bounces at lists.nottingham.ac.uk]
On Behalf Of Dave Burnett

Sent: 07 October 2010 13:50

To: Xerte list

Subject: RE: [Xerte] Xerte 3.0 Beta

Kudos to all involved.

A major undertaking.

Dave

From: Julian.Tenney at nottingham.ac.uk

To: xerte at lists.nottingham.ac.uk

Date: Thu, 7 Oct 2010 13:41:42 +0100

Subject: [Xerte] Xerte 3.0 Beta

Hi,

There is a new beta of Xerte
3.0 to play with that you can download here: http://www.nottingham.ac.uk/xerte/xerte3.htm.
Xerte 3.0 is a complete rewrite of Xerte 2.x, using the Flex framework. There
is a major difference between this latest version and previous versions which I
wanted to say something about. Anyone following Xerte 3.0 developments, or
starting to use Xerte 3.0 to develop content needs to be aware of these
changes.

Xerte 3.0 now compiles .swf files. It creates, from your code, the actual .swf
file. There is no engine.swf unlike previous versions of Xerte 3.0 and Xerte
2.x. There are a number of good reasons why this was a good step to take. 

Xerte 3.0 is really an .mxml
editor and compiler using the Flex SDK to compile.swfs. You will need to
download and install the Flex SDK to use Xerte 3.0 (see instructions on the web
site). This means that Xerte 3.0 is quite clearly a tool for developers. It
also means that you are interacting with the Flex SDK directly, rather than
having our code parse and play your code. There are major performance benefits
to doing this, as well as getting access to all the benefits of the Flex SDK,
and it means that you can directly draw on all the Flex community’s
knowledge to create content with Xerte 3.0. Xerte 3.0 can compile many of the
examples on Adobe’s website and in the help system, as well as dozens of
samples already available from the Flex community. It also means you are
developing marketable skills in an established software development
environment.

Flex is a very powerful,
flexible (pardon the pun) and extensible suite of tools. Xerte 3.0 aims to fill
a gap in the market of tools that sits somewhere between the hardcode
coder’s IDEs such as FlashDevelop or FlashBuilder, and something like
Xerte 2.x or Authorware, and as time goes on Xerte 3.0 will contain more and
more elearning specific features.

Xerte 3.0 can build
‘normal’  flash applications. It can also build Air
applications, and package them into installers, and when the Flex 4.5 SDK is
complete, Xerte 3.0 will be able to build Mobile Applications. Being able to
target all these platforms is exciting, particularly the mobile Air
applications. Xerte 3.0 development is now closely following the development of
the Flex 4.5 SDK – when that is complete I’ll be able to finish
Xerte 3.0 and draw on all the new features in Flex 4.5.

There’s loads more to
say about Flex, but not enough time or space here. I’m going to start a
series of short tutorials to introduce you to the new environment and features,
and walk you through all the new components, and other stuff you’ll want
to know about: components, styles, skinning, states, effects, transitions, data
binding, using your own custom classes…

In the meantime, download
and install the beta, and let me know any comments,

Thanks to Peter Huppertz -
who has made a major contribution,

Have fun.

J

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This message and any attachment are intended solely for the addressee and may contain confidential information. If you have received this message in error, please send it back to me, and immediately delete it.   Please do not use, copy or disclose the information contained in this message or in any attachment.  Any views or opinions expressed by the author of this email do not necessarily reflect the views of the University of Nottingham.

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