Flash for the seasoned Javascripter?

[jkd]

I'm requiring Flash's well-deployed nature for a large-ish project. ActionScript is just ECMAScript, so I figured it shouldn't be rough transitioning from the web browser environment to the Flash environment, except that all tutorials I can find involve animation, and only barely touch on ActionScript.

My project is a MathML editor and renderer, so I just need to track keyboard events and selections, embed a font, parse some XML, and dynamically create textboxes positioned accordingly. I feel as though those things aren't terribly difficult, but when I can't even find where to write ActionScript when I fire up Flash MX, I think I am in trouble.


I've also looked into HaXe, which can compile to SWF, but its website is down for the moment so that will have to wait.

Any ideas for resources that would be more appropriate than laboriously explaining tweening and explaining var x:Int=5+2; in ActionScript?

[_Aerospace_Eng_]

Well if you have Flash MX at your disposal I wouldn't let it just sit there because IMO flash is far more superior than any other "flash editing" program out there. You are right in that Actionscript is like EMCAscript.
Tweening isn't too hard to understand. There are things that make it easier such as premade Classes or extensions. This tutorial might help.
http://www.echoecho.com/flashtweenings.htm

As for this
var x:Int=5+2;
Thats called strict data typing. Its a good thing to do to prevent errors later on if you try making x a string. Using :Int will only allow x to be an integer. The adobe livedocs documents this quite well: http://livedocs.adobe.com/flash/mx2004/main_7_2/wwhelp/wwhimpl/common/html/wwhelp.htm?context=Flash_MX_2004&file=00000780.html

Actionscript is only good when you have things to use it with. Actioscript can be used on movie clips, and buttons. I'm not sure if you can use it on a graphic or not. I think you can. If you intend on using actionscript on something you will want to be sure that you give it an instance name. Try keeping all of your actionscript in one frame. This will help if you have to go back and edit things. The actions panel should have been open by default after you click on Flash Document in the opening screen. If it isn't then press F9. The Library (no not the one you check out books from) can also be helpful when you want to put an instance of something on the timeline. To open this if it isn't already open you press CTRL+L.

A good tutorial site is www.gotoandlearn.com