Surfing on web I read Ted’s blog that talk about new feature of Flex 4 (codename Gumbo) about states!
So I take a look at opensource.adobe.com page that talks about this new feature… very cool!

Adobe creates a very simple way to add, remove, show and hide components in a Flex application with a new attributes: includeIn and excludeFrom.

In few code rows you can include or remove Flex components:

<!-- Given the states A,B,C -->
<m:states>
    <m:State name=“A”/>
    <m:State name=“B”/>
    <m:State name=“C”/>
</m:states>

<!– This button will appear in only states A and B –>
<Button label=“Click Me” includeIn=“A, B”/>

<!– This button will appear in states A and B –> 
<Button label=“Button C” excludeFrom=“C”/>

If you have a couple of minutes, please read about Flex 4 states, it’s so interesting!

Very cool way to do this! I think that Flex 4 will become the BEST solution to make RIA and desktop application (with AIR obviusly) in IT market!

Finally a wonderful news for all mobile developers! Sony Ericsson are developing some API that allow to create content with Flash Lite and J2ME and those technologies work toghether.

Yes! It’s not a dream, it’s Capuchin a true bridge for those technologies.
From eetimes.eu:

“The aim of the project is to provide developers with an intuitive tool to create applications with a cleaner user interface (UI) without sacrificing the strong, feature rich and widely deployed Java ME infrastructure, including secure, well-developed content distribution.” 

Probably we start a new era, in other site I read that those API will be available on Autumn probably… we stay tuned with Sony Ericsson dev labs.
Let’s go! 

I must thank you so much Shunjie that gives me opportunity to speak about Flex BitmapData during next Singapore UG meeting this wednesday.

I’ll also go to Singapore this year for work and with Shunjie and (I hope) Dale, we are organizing a great meeting there about Flex, AIR and Flash Lite, so thank you again to Singapore Flex UG.

For more information about meeting, take a look at UG meeting page. 

PS: Congratultaions to Dale that tomorrow will make “Talk to guru session” about Flash Lite.

UPDATE
If you want follow this session you only enter in meeting room at 2:25PM Italian time or 8.25PM Singapore time.
See you on Wednesday! 

Today was last day at 360Flex Europe, I spent great time there!

Talking with 2 Flex team guys, they said to us that if you’d like some new features in Flex 4, only make a feature request to Adobe jira system.
So I said: “One of the most cool feature that you could implement in next version of Flex Builder, it could be to compile Flash Lite projects and maybe Flex Builder could interact with Device Central.” They said me: “It’s first time that ask me this implementation“.

So I make a feature request for next version of Flex Builder, I think it could be so interesting working with Flex IDE and when I compile a Flash Lite project open directly into Device Central.
What do you think about it? If you’d like this feature too, vote please!

Make comments and we could create a great discussion about it.

That’s it! Second day is finished, but it was very interesting! I know better a lots of speakers and attendees, I love share experience and points of view with them.
I go to Piergiorgio session on Papervision and he was amazing! Very cool session man!
So I go to Giorgio session on Accessibility with Flex and he found a great solution to interact with screen readers, that was cool!
Finally, I can’t miss it, I see an introduction on Cairngorm by Neil Webb (you rock man!) very cool session and so funny preso, I love it!
Sorry Zohar if I can’t come in your session but I hear that you made a very cool stuff!
Also, if you’d like to take a look at some cool video about the conference, please view Zohar mix!

Tomorrow is the final day, I spent great time here, I hope to keep in touch with a lots of attendees and speakers that I met here.

In this weekend I’ll also put in my Flickr account some photos.

It’s just finished this long day, I slept 2 hours to finish my preso and samples, I hope that people enjoy my Flex BitmapData session!
I’ll put preso and samples in the next few days in this blog, so take a look everyday guys!

There weren’t a lots of people at 360Flex, but I met a lots of strong developers for all over the world, there were great share moments and all speakers help toghether to make a better session ( I love so much this atmosphere).
I’m so glad that a lots of italian developers and companies are lost this cool appointment to know better Flex and AIR technologies!

In fact you could talk with Adobe people (Evangelist, marketing people and so on) and with cool speakers that help you to understand better the power of flash platform! I hope tomorrow I can see more people here!
This evening all speakers go out with Adobe people to have dinner and to know us better and talk about Adobe softwares and strategies, that’s cool!

I’ll put also new event photos in my Flickr account, so please take a look sometimes!

UPDATE

You can download my preso and my samples NOW!
Enjoy

OK, it’s coming… tomorrow start 360Flex Europe!

I’m so excite to take part on this big event, now I’m waiting my friends Piergiorgio and Marco (others 360Flex speakers) and at 2PM we drive to Milan to meet other speakers and Tom and John!!!
Tomorrow I’ll have my seminar on Flex BitmapData, I hope that it will be ok.
In next few days I’ll describe event atmosphere in this blog, so stay tuned guys! 

I wake up 30 mins ago and the first thing that I do every morning is looking MXNA and download my emails.

Reading MXNA posts, I see Photoshop Express from Ryan Stewart blog… Adobe release it this night, oh my god, I must try it!

So I go to the official link I register myself and I start to work with Photoshop Express.
This version of Photoshop is made with Flex and it’s amazing! I love so much how is clear and simple use this RIA.
Adobe done a great work also with instruments and with manage of images, you can create personal album, send the photo to a friend via mail, put own photos on Picasa or Facebook (I love that!).

Please take a look at this RIA, it’s so interesting and I’m sure that Adobe adds new functionalities and they’ll grow up this project so much!

Hi All,

360 Flex Europe is behind the corner, 10 days more or less and… it starts!
So to all attendes of this big Flex event I made the mobile application with Flash Lite 2.0, you can find the same things of Atlanta version but with another graphics and the final 360Flex schedule!

I hope to see you at the event.
Enjoy

UPDATE
Actionscript.it, italian Adobe UG, organize Birds of father event during 360Flex on Monday 7 from 6PM to 9PM, where attendes could ask any questions about 360Flex sessions, Flex and AIR, so please take a look at event page (it’s in italian) and register to the event!

PS: I’m making the sys files in next few days! Stay tuned!

UPDATE II
Thank you again to chall3ng3r to make sis files!  Download file for Symbian 2nd edition and for Symbian 3rd edition

See you next week at 360Flex Europe guys!

1 month more or less and in Milan I’ll partecipate at 360|Flex the most important Flex event in Italy (maybe in Europe?).
In the last schedule I saw my seminar is in the first day (7 April), now I’m waiting the final one.
I’ll talk about BitmapData class, I’m making 3 samples and a real case history made with Flex and AIR to manipulate images.

There will be lots of important and great developer that are coming from all over the world, I love this event, it will be amazing!
You can find a lots of Adobe employees, Adobe partners, Adobe UG and so on, an event that you can’t lost.

So see you at 360 Flex guys!

I don’t write on Silverlight mobile version yet because I was waiting more news from MIX and I also talked with Italian Microsoft guys and others developers.

So, Silverlight will be out the second quarter of 2008 but with 1.0 version and if you take a look at desktop version you know that isn’t so powerful!
In the end of 2008 we could see 2.0 Beta version and finally in the second quarter of 2009 Silverlight 2 will install in mobile devices.
The last version in so interesting, they add a very good zoom functionality and they add .net framework built in the player.
Mobile version will be use in IE browser for PDA so probably the same way on Nokia, so the first question is:
Can I interact OS on Nokia and PDA to save and manipulate data like desktop version or I’ll have some security issues?

Another thing that I see is a good video look and feel, I’d like to know what kind of video files I could play on own mobile player.
It could be interesting how Microsoft decide to update own mobile player on devices…

I think that Adobe must start to take new way to deliver and help own developers to create mobile contents, we have a cool platform but with a lots limits and also there is a bad interaction with OS.

Sincerly I hope that Adobe could develop the AIR mobile version because with this technology we could take new market quotes and opportunities.
AIR is the new powerfull technology that helps developers and desginers to deliver own contents with a new interaction way, if you can create an online app with Flex and then porting it on desktop and finally porting it on own mobile device… that it could be COOOOOL!

My 2 cents

Feel free to comment and share your view!

Today 360|Flex starts in Atlanta, if you are an attendee or a speaker I make the “official” 360 flex mobile application in Flash Lite 2.

In this app you can find 3 sections:

• speakers
• schedule
• twitter

In the last section (twitter) you can read last post in your twitter and write one in your account.
I use SWX API to create this mesh up, very cool API made by Aral Balkan (thank you man!) that allow to make mesh up of twitter, flickr and so on.

Download zip file and put swf and XML files in your Flash Lite 2 phone….Enjoy!

Obviusly you can have one for Europe event… stay tuned!

UPDATE:

I must say THANK YOU to chall3ng3r that made for me .sis files with SWF2GO, his software that allow to create file for S60 phones.
Thank you man!
Now you can download also .sis file for S60 3rd edition and 2nd edition

Sign this date in your calendar, today guys are out Flex 3 and AIR 1.0

In the last years Adobe made an amazing work on those technologies and it could be a big pleasure start work on them.
Lots of us use Flex  3 since Beta in labs and we love it, because finally we have a true development software and with last release we increase the power of this technolgy.

Air, it’s my favourite software, I love it, it’s so simple and so powerful and has a lots of functionalities that help us to create fantastic and complex desktop application.

The first thing that I do this morning is watching Adobe.com and I suggest to take a look at AIR page and Flex page, you can find a lots of interesting things!

Today Adobe makes the history.

Finally it’s coming!!!

OnAIR tour is coming in Europe, 12 dates from March to June in all Europe… that’s wonderful!
Registrations are open so choose your city and register yourself, I’ll go to Italian date (13 June) in Milan with a lots of Italian developers and designers.

If you come in Milan, please send me an email so we could meet to have dinner togheter!

Adobe launches a new service at 3GSM World Congress in Barcelona for mobile operators and OEM that allow to create custom interface to deliver informations.

This service is ONLY for those categories and for designers and developers are so interesting because we have a new way to deliver flash lite contents.
In fact we could use Flash CS3 and Device Central to create and test our flash lite contents for Flash Home or Flash Cast.

So now we are waiting which operators are available to deliver Flash Lite content with Flash Home, in particular in Europe where there aren’t a lots of operators that believe in Flash Lite (Flash Cast or Flash Home), I hope this situation will change with Flash home coming.

If you want read more about 3GMS news and Flash Home, take a look at Adobe Flash Home page.

My last project is an Image manipulator made with Flex and AIR, so I guide a user to manipulate (rotation, resizing…) an image, choosen from own computer, with a wizard.
When I was at Rotation step, I said: “and now?!”.

Infact if you use rotation property of an Image component it rotates in 0,0, but there is a little trick to rotate an image or component with origin in the middle.
If you use Rotate effect, you can decide which is the origin point, so if you write:

var rotEff:Rotate = new Rotate();
//img is the ID of Image component in MXML file
rotEff.target = img;

rotEff.originX = img.width/2;
rotEff.originY = img.height/2;

rotEff.duration = 1500;
rotEff.angleFrom = img.rotation;
rotEff.angleTo = img.rotation + 90;

rotEff.play(); 

With those script you can rotate an image or component in the middle.
That’s a little trick!
Enjoy

… is a conference! It is the BIGGEST web conference of the world!

Over 100 speakers from all over the world we will suggest, inspire, teach and…
I’ve no word to describe this fantastic idea, one of the most important thing that I must do every January is choose what conference follow in the year… and Singularity I MUST FOLLOW from my office or home or everywhere and I love it!

Singularity is a 3 days web sessions that will start in the end of October, for now we haven’t a lots of informations but if you want to learn more, take a look at singularity site!

Aral you are a geek! 

I’ve just seen new MDM site where you can find the new release of Zinc!

I download it and I want to try in next few weeks, I hope to great new features and new performance.

You can find more information in Zinc page, take a look and stay tuned to read new Zinc 3 experiences!

Yes, Flex 3 is coming, we don’t know when, but there are pre-release conference around Europe, so I think it will come next few months.
Today I ask to myself: “Which books are coming on Flex 3?!”.
So I go to amazon and I make a search about Flex 3 books.
I find some interesting results, my favouorite are:

• Learning Flex 3: Getting up to Speed with Rich Internet Applications
• Flex 3 User Interface Design & Development: Creating User-Friendly Rich Internet Applications

Ribbit team has just released new API (BETA 2) with new features and better performance!

In Ribbit blog, Mr. Freedman said:
“- There are more than 30 new methods and events, as well as significant changes for improving existing methods. Methods for loading messages have been modified and now support a more sophisticated ‘tagging’ model. Virtually none of the calling methods and events have been changed.
- Key performance enhancements include firewall compatibility, better voice performance and improved calling stability. There is a new set of methods for managing account information through the API, including recording and saving your Voicemail greeting, changing password and uploading a user photo.”

And also:
“- New features on the developer site, to be announced later this week, will include the ability to share your Ribbit applications and projects with other developers. Developers, especially those coding apps for the contest, will benefit from having others in the community evaluate and give feedback on their ongoing projects.”

When I tried it I was shock for the performance but if they come better…WOW, what amazing tool!
For now Europe developers could only try it with skype or with others developers that are involved in this project… I want Europe calls, please!
I suggest to take a look at this project if you haven’t done it yet.

I love Apple so much!

This period is so interesting for MACWORLD and this year I’m so excite to view new iTV, new macbook AIR, new firmware upgrade for iPod Touch (finally I could see emails in my iPod Touch) and new services like rent video! That’s cool.

But also, I suggest to take a look at developer.apple.com, in particular in iPhone section, you must register for FREE and you’ll have a lots of materials about development on iPhone and so on.

There you can also submit your iPhone application and put in apple site. New opportunities ae growing up.
In 2008, I think that we’ll have a lots of changes from AIR to new Macbook AIR (everything we call AIR in 2008, it’s funny!).
I love Apple, I love AIR… and I love 2008!

Today I spent an hour to take a look at Ribbit api and to start a first flex example with them.
For now you make a call to USA phone numbers only, in fact when you enter your Ribbit profile, you receive a USA number to use for test.
So I use Skype to make a call to my Ribbit number.
Example is very easy but with this few code you can receive and  make call to USA number (Europe number  are available  in mid 2008 probably).

After registrarion and approval from Ribbit team you can download SWC from Ribbit site that you add in your Flex application.

First of all you must create a Ribbit istance and a CallObject:

 private var myRibbit:RibbitRequest = new RibbitRequest();  private var ribbitObj:CallObject; 

Then you add listner to know when you are logged in Ribbit server, when you are making a call and when you are receiving a call.

 myRibbit.addEventListener(RibbitResponseEvent.LOGGED_IN, handleLoggedIn);
 myRibbit.addEventListener(RibbitResponseEvent.RIBBIT_SERVER_CONNECTED, handleRibbitServerConnected);
 myRibbit.addEventListener(RibbitResponseEvent.CALL_CONNECTED, handleCallActive);
 myRibbit.addEventListener(RibbitResponseEvent.INCOMING_CALL, handleCallIncoming);

So you login with:

myRibbit.login(”user”, “psw”, “devID”, “appID”);

All data that you put in login method you can find in your Ribbit profile.

Then you create  function  that you define in Ribbit object listner:

private function handleCallIncoming(e:RibbitResponseEvent):void{                       receiveBtn.enabled = true;                       ribbitObj = new CallObject();      ribbitObj = e.data as CallObject;                  }              private function handleCallActive(e:RibbitResponseEvent):void{                 trace(”call active man!”)              }              private function handleLoggedIn(e:RibbitResponseEvent):void{                   trace(”you are logged in”)              }              private function handleRibbitServerConnected(e:RibbitResponseEvent):void{ 
    trace(”server ok”)                      makeBtn.enabled = true;              }

So now we only put in our flex project 2 buttons, one to receive a call and another one to make a call to a specific USA number.

<mx:VBox>
    <mx:Button id=”makeBtn” label=”make call” click=”{myRibbit.makeCall(’USAPhone’)}” enabled=”false” />
    <mx:Button id=”receiveBtn” label=”receive call” click=”{myRibbit.answerCall(ribbitObj)}” enabled=”false” />
</mx:VBox>  

Very easy to use and so powerfull API!

I remember to all that Ribbit team launch a phone contest, more information in Ribbit site

Enjoy!

This morning I talk with Fabio, a friend of mine, and he asks me if I’ve ever loaded an FLV file in Flash Lite 3 from web.

//video_vd is an istance of video object that is in library 

video_vd.play(”http://www.mart3.co.uk/video.3gp”);

var nc:NetConnection = new NetConnection;

nc.connect(null);

var ns:NetStream = new NetStream(nc);

ns.play(”http://www.mart3.co.uk/flvfl3/phone.flv”)

video_vd.attachVideo(ns); 

Surfing on web, I found Nimbuzz a mobile software to manage your IM accounts and add into new mobile community.
It’s a J2ME software and they have made porting for a lots of devices, it’s so easy to use and it has a very good user interface.

I think that is a very cool project and it’s totally FREE, I’ll follow it to understand better the way that it brings.
There are also a lots of vacant positions in this company, take a look at About page to see them.

So if you want to add me, search lucamezzalira in nimbuzz world, see around guys!

We are in Xmas time and a new gift made by Ribbit team is under our tree!

Ribbit is name of new project that give us the ability to make and receive calls or messages (and more!) with new API for flex and air projects, so the team announces a new flex and air contest with big prizes like $2.500 (first prize).

In Ribbit site you can find more information about challenge:
“Build the best Personal Ribbit Phone Application for either the web (Flex) or Desktop (AIR). Similar to Joe Johnston’s award-winning AIR iPhone (now considered the most downloaded AIR app to date), your personal Ribbit Phone will provide an incredible and creative experience for someone to use and enjoy Ribbit services, primarily making and receiving phone calls. ”

Take a look at Ribbit blog and good luck guys! 

I’m working in a project where my application calls some web services to retrieve data for popolate SpringGraph component (very cool component made by Mark Shepherd).

After extends and change component’s classes, I find a documented issue with HTTPservice and Internet Explorer 7.

In fact you must put server header with no-cache because randomly calls to service don’t work!There is also some comments about this problem in Adobe livedocs (search “ie7″ in the page).

So be careful and Flex yourself! 

Zinc 3.0 codename Pandora will be release at Q1 of 2008, but now you can see first images for Macintosh and Windows directly from Jaspal Sohal blog.  You can also try to enter in Candidate BETA program if you are registered in multidmedia.comIn fact they said:“The Public Beta will be a Release Candidate Build with all functionality that will be in the final release. Registered Users will have an opportunity to download the Public Beta and test it over the Holiday period. The Zinc™ 3.0 Public Beta will be available for both Windows and Mac OSX.”

Adobe release a new BETA in labs.adobe.com called BRIO that is codename of new version of Acrobat Connect (ex Breeze).
I’m working with it now, there are many alert when you try to upload files or in other featuers BUT…
… what a great UI!

It’s more easy to use, main functions are available like icons and it’s so fast!

The most impressive features you could see when you share your desktop, in fact you have a “widget” to chat with others users, you can see other users in your room and you have a little panel control to manage.
Very cool!

Now you can test it and create your room for FREE!

So go to BRIO page and test it man! 

This weekend Adobe announced that is ready new flash lite version developer edition, dowloadable for free from labs.adobe.com.
Remember that you can develop flash lite 3 contents only if you upgrade Flash CS3 and Device Central.
More information about features and files to download you can see at Bill Perry’s blog.
If you test this developer release in your device, remember to write in Flash Lite 3 Forum which device you are using!

You can also see Flash Lite 3 application in action from Biskero’s blog, very cool video!

Finally multidmedia announce Pandora project that is new Zinc version with new big features and optimization.
New features are (from Pandora’s devlab):

. Mac OSX Output will now be in Native Universal Binary and optimized for Mac 10.5 “Leopard”
. Windows Projectors will have been specifically optimized for Vista
. Windows & Mac OSX Projectors almost 500% faster than Zinc 2.5 Projectors
. The entire {mdm}Script API will now be 100% Modularized
. Dynamic Form Creation
. An extensive Custom Command SDK will be available for both Windows and Mac OSX Developers
. {mdm}Script 3.0 - Completely re-written from scratch and now Unicode (UTF8/UTF16) Compliant
. {mdm}Script 3.0 - Greater Similarity between Windows & Mac OSX Classes
. Completely New GUI on Windows & Mac OSX - Screenshots available in December 2007!
. Several other “Industry Firsts” to be revealed in December 2007!

Probably Zinc 3.0 will go out in January 2008 but a public BETA will be release in December.
So take a look at Multidmedia site!

I love so much japanese people, they use technologies like no others!

Today on engadgetmobile.com I find an interesting post where in Japan they start with a new way to lear with mobile phones.
That’s is so interesting because next generations use technologies very well, they are born with mobile phones!
So I think that’s right change communication ways and learn ways.

When I went to FotB, I saw an interesting seminar made by Richard Legget that talks about how our life will change in next years, and I think that technologies revolution start NOW.
If you see what you could create with Adobe softwares, what opportunities give us new future softwares… that’s amazing!
We must start to educate better people on this revolution to help old generation to catch the best opportunities that a mobile phone, a computer a device give us to have a better life.

My 2 cents.

One of my customers ask me to pass some sensible data to server with MD5 algorithm.
So I don’t know what was MD5 algorithm and I start search some news about it… I love wikipedia!

MD5 (Message-Digest algorithm 5) is a cryptation algorithm made by Professor Ronald Rivest in ‘90.
In this algorithm you can pass a string to a hash function and it returns a new 128 bit hash value (a new string).

Surfing on web I search how it works to create an AS3 version, but I find some free libraries in riaforge.org that implements
this algorithm and many other!
Very useful if you must pass any important data, so you can take a look at Houser’s AS3 library and Torgemane’s library (I love this one).

For italian developers I also put a little flex example in flex developers UG.

Enjoy!