Well, I'll probably skip 10 billion details including IDE features, but here
goes my 2 minute stint on the good stuff:
Flash Player 5
---
- introduced ActionScript the programming language, matching JavaScript
- introduced the XML object. Slow as nuts, but she worked
- introduced the XMLSocket object... AJAX still ain't got sockets
- introduced the Object structure to the language
- prototype was born (at least, you could screw with it)
- ... and so was the rebel alliance (Class.prototype = new MovieClip() vs.
Class.prototype.__proto__ = MovieClip.prototype)
- attachMovie; make something from nothing vs. duplicateMovieClip; create a
something from something
Flash Player 6
---
- introduced object events (like onPress, onRelease, onMouseMove)
- #initclip/#endinitclip born to allow control of initialization order of
components
- Object.registerClass used in tandem with above led to re-usable
components, and the birth of re-usable Flash widgets (SmartClips existed in
Flash 5 but didn't take off like they did in 6)
- TextFields became a class, and you could create them dynamically
- non-progressive JPG's could be loaded dynamically
- mp3's could be loaded dynamically
- you could draw vectors via the drawing API
- you could play real-time streaming video audio, as well as broadcast
video audio from your webcam and microphone
- Local Shared Objects (aka Flash cookies)
- Remote Shared Objects
- mask device text at 6.0.41.0
- bytecode optimizations at 6.0.65.0
- remote EXE installation into secure sandbox at 6.0.65.0 via System.Product
from https://www.macromedia.com. Currently only 3 exist (Flash Player 8,
Breeze Player, Central)
- helpful methods added to the ActionScript language
- zLib compression
- infamous settings panel
- faster XML parsing
Flash Player 7
---
- ActionScript 2 - ECMA 2-3 'ish. We now have a class based language. Cool
thing is, it still allows you to compile to Flash Player 6 since
ActionScript 2 creates ActionScript 1 bytecode.
- middle-mouse scrolling
- TextSnapshot added so FlashPaper could be made
- dynamic loading of FLV's (don't need Flash Communication Server)
- MovieClip context menu
- a few helpful methods added to AS2
- faster XML parsing
Flash Player 8
---
- effects - Blur, DropShadow, etc. all built into the player
- Bitmap drawing features with API's for AS2
- hardware accelerated Mac Player
- load any JPG, GIF, and PNG dynamically
- new garbage collector
- sub-movie clip context menus
- a few helpful methods added to AS2
- the f'ing annoying local remote security (but needed to quite the
h8ters)
- File Upload
- other various blitting operations (cacheAsBitmap, scrollRect, etc)
- faster XML parsing because of player code optimizations
Flash Player 8.5 (as of beta 1)
- ActionScript 3 - ECMA 4 compliant, not backwards compatible. JIT compiler
goes to machine code, and is a true class based language
- runtime exceptions
- read-only prototype
- traits helpful in speeding up inheritance lookups
- additional datatypes like int, uint, and *
- EventDispatcher built-in (biggest bottleneck in pre-8.5 projects)
- binary Sockets
- E4X - ecma for xml
- a new Sprite; like a MovieClip, but without the frames
- DisplayList - visual objects are no longer required to use factory
functions. attachMovie(SymbolName, name, depth) becomes var a:MovieClip
= new MovieClip(); addChild(a);
- ActionScript language cleaned up
- faster XML parsing (still faster than E4X, suckaz!)
There are tons of other things, but that's the good stuff.
- Original Message -
From: zikey Han [EMAIL PROTECTED]
To: Flashcoders mailing list flashcoders@chattyfig.figleaf.com
Sent: Wednesday, February 08, 2006 12:26 AM
Subject: Re: [Flashcoders] what are differences between Flash5 and FlashMX?
The new player features!
Thank you!
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