R – Flash vs. Flex: Why not skip Flex and use AS3’s URLLoader + server code entirely

apache-flexflashurlloader

I'm familiar with most of the Flash vs. Flex comparisons out there and most of them present some version of "Flex is better for RIA's while Flash is better for design work".

Yet isn't it entirely possible to write elaborate RIA's using the URLLoader class + server side code? In this regard, I'm unclear as to what Flex offers aside from a set of handy user controls.

The reason I ask is that I'm starting a fairly complex Flash piece that needs to take a lot of round-trips to the DB. I'm hoping to avoid introducing a new framework into the equation but don't want to get bit by performance, scaling issues down the road.

Thanks.

Best Answer

If all you need above basic Flash is to make HTTP requests to get data from the server, by all means, go ahead and use URLLoader.

Use Flex when:

You do want that nice GUI library. (This can be as simple as a desire to use Flex's automatic layout facilities, like VBoxes.)
You want to compile your app from the command line, like traditional software. (This is independent of the Flex framework. The Flex SDK build tools can also build plain old AS3 projects.)
You want to build your application in a traditional software development IDE, Flex/Flash Builder, rather than the graphics and animation centric Flash Professional environment.
Your UI is better declared in MXML than built graphically in Flash Professional.

Related Solutions

Xml – Flex – URLLoader and HTTPService

HTTPService inherits AbstractInvoker which allows you to use tokens and responders which you cannot use with URLLoader. Tokens are good when you need to pass specific variables that are relevant to the request, which you want returned with the response.

Other than that, using URLLoader or HttpService to load xml is the same.

Example:

var token:AsyncToken = httpService.send({someVariable: 123});
token.requestStartTime = getTimer();
token.addResponder(new AsyncResponder(
    function (evt:ResultEvent, token:Object):void {
        var xml:XML = evt.result as XML;
        var startTime = token.requestStartTime;
        var runTime = getTimer() - startTime;
        Alert.show("Request took " + runTime + " ms");
        //handle response here
    },
    function (info:Object, token:Object):void {
        //handle fault here
    },
    token
));

Vsync in Flex/Flash/AS3

I feel your pain as I'm currently in the trenches developing my own game. At default settings, the Flash renderer produces horrible screen tearing / v-sync issues, regardless of what code you produce.

This is why I was pleased to have found the most simple, elegant answer, that wasn't re-factoring code (which doesn't help a single bit, the problem is the Flash player, not code).

Just enable Hardware Acceleration in your Publish Settings. There's two different options:

Level 1: Direct; and Level 2: GPU.

Read more about it at the official documentation: Specify publish settings for SWF files, and decide what option is best for your game.

Target market does play a factor here, if it's a serious game for gamers, you don't need to worry about possible performance issues, as most gamers have GPU's.

This article did not provide me with the solution specifically, but lead me in the right direction. BUT, if your game is going to be in a browser window, you might have to use the same technique of setting wmode to direct or gpu as well.

Best Answer

Related Solutions

Xml – Flex – URLLoader and HTTPService

Vsync in Flex/Flash/AS3

Related Topic