Adobe Releases Flash Builder 4 and Flex 4!

Mar 22, 2010

by Judith Dinowitz, Master Editor-in-Chief

After many months of beta, Adobe has announced the release of Flash Builder 4 and Flex 4. Michael and I sat down with Dave Gruber, Group Product Marketing Manager, Flash Platform Tooling, to discuss this news. Let's take a look at the two products.

Flash Builder 4

Some of Flash Builder 4's important new features include:

Data-centric development features: Adobe has made it a whole lot easier to connect your data on the backend to your components and to write your backend code. These features include service and data introspection, a drag and drop approach within the IDE, and binding data to visual components in the Flex application. In Flash Builder, it's now much easier to connect to ColdFursion components, data types, web services or RestFul services.
Network Monitor: The Network Monitor allows you to see the data that goes back and forth between client and server; basically, it creates a data audit trail of what's happening and when. This feature, which is available only in Flash Builder Premium, fills a missing link in debugging, testing and troubleshooting.
New Testing tools and debugging features include integration to testing frameworks such as FlexUnit. Many of these features are available only in Flash Builder Premium and not in Flash Builder Standard.

Flash Catalyst Integration

Flash Builder 4 integrates with Adobe's new Flash Catalyst tool, creating an easy workflow for both designer and developer. Gruber explained, "With this new workflow between Flash Catalyst and Flash Builder, you'll be able to create your functional user interface, save it as a Flex project (FXP) file and you can open that FXP file right up in Flash Builder." Flash Catalyst is not shipping today, but you can use the Flash Builder 4 product with the beta product, and Flash Builder 4 will work with the Flash Catalyst release as soon as it ships.

The Flex 4 framework

I'll just touch on two important points from our conversation with Dave Gruber.

Introducing Spark

The most striking change in the Flex 4 framework is its new Spark component model. The Spark skinning and component architecture provides a complete separation of the visual aspects of the user interface from the actual code that sits behind the components. Gruber emphasized the benefits of the Spark component architecture. "With this complete separation, Spark allows designers to provide whatever visual details they want to the component," said Gruber.

Gruber admitted that going from the older Halo components (in Flex 2 and 3) to the Spark components does require people to think a little bit differently about their architecture. To help developers make the leap, Adobe has created Flex Test Drive, a video-based learning resource. In about two hours, you can go through multiple videos with detailed instructions on how to use Flex 4 and Flash Builder 4. They have also completely redone the Flex in a Week resource, so that it covers the Spark component architecture. Finally, they have created a migration guide in the Adobe Devcenter that tells people how to migrate from Flex 3 to Flex 4.

Gruber stressed that the new features in Flash Builder 4 work on the Flex 3 framework as well. "Flex 3 developers will be able to use the Network Monitor capabilities and the new enhancements as they migrate to the new Spark component architecture. You don't have to make a wholesale switch. If you like one of the Spark comoponents, you can use it, and you can use the older MX components as well, together in the same application."

A More Open-Source Flex

An important move (and another step towards making Flex even more open-source): Adobe has decided to move all the data visualization components and charting components into the SDK, so that those who don't buy Flash Builder 4 can have access to all the components in the Flex framework.

Looking to the Future with Flex

In Flex Authority Volume 2 Issue 2, which will be released shortly, Leif Wells, Editor-in-Chief of Flex Authority, writes:

"With the release of Flex 4 we are only beginning to see a glimpse into an exciting future. Our workflow is becoming more efficient with the new skinning features of Flex 4 and the assistance of designers using Flash Catalyst. Using and creating components has become easier with Flex 4's new component architecture. And with Flash Player 10.1, the Flash Platform expands to mobile devices, giving us a new business sector to provide solutions for our existing and new clients. In other words, the future looks bright indeed."

So How Much Does Flash Builder 4 Cost?

Flash Builder 4 comes in two versions, Standard ($249) and Premium ($699). Premium contains the following features, which are not found in Flash Builder Standard:

Testing tools
Memory and performance profilers
An automated testing harness so you can connect to all the leading testing tools
FlexUnit support
command-line build capability
The new Network Monitor

For detailed information on Flash Builder 4, please go to: http://www.adobe.com/go/flashbuilder4.

A Special Deal: Buy ColdFusion Builder, Get Flash Builder 4 Standard Free!

ColdFusion Builder is priced at $299, and comes with a free copy of Flash Builder Standard. As Sean Corfield notes:

"WTF? Flash Builder is $249 on its own! Yikes, they're pretty much giving ColdFusion Builder away at that price — it's a complete steal!"

For detailed information on the new features and to download, please visit: http://www.adobe.com/go/cfbuilder. Like ColdFusion itself, ColdFusion Builder is free for educational purposes.

Judith Dinowitz is the Master Editor-in-Chief of the House of Fusion magazines and journals, where she enjoys serving up ColdFusion and Flex goodness on a weekly and quarterly basis.