123ArticleOnline Logo
Welcome to 123ArticleOnline.com!
ALL >> Web-Design >> View Article

Flex Development - Difference Between Flex 4 And Flex 3

Profile Picture
By Author: aaric sage
Total Articles: 9
Comment this article
Facebook ShareTwitter ShareGoogle+ ShareTwitter Share

The success or failure of a software development platform depends to a large extent on the unique features it offers. Flex is a wonderful platform evolving to greater heights each time a new version is created. Flex 3 and Flex 4 both are extensively used for Flex development and the former has much better features as compared to the latter. Here is a comparison between both the flex development versions.

The release of Flex 4 was a significant transformation from Flex 3 so far as inclusion of skinning architecture and new components are considered. Though Flex 4 has extravagant features the good thing is that it is still backward compatible. Hence a Flex developer who has worked on Flex 3 will find it relatively easy to embed the features of Flex 3 into Flex 4.

A Flex developer can see a wider difference between the themes of both the versions. MX components as seen in Flex 3 are enriched and called Spark in the latest version. Spark makes the application look and feel different. However if a Flex developer wants they can still use the Halo theme by compiling it using the control panel.

Though Spark relates ...
... to the latest version of Flex for Flex development it supports only limited number of styles. To get more details on which styles are supported a Flex developer should refer ASDoc. Styles which do not have any theme dedicated should be considered to be common with both the themes. Wireframe skin of flex 4 can also be used for fast mock-ups but it should be remembered that it does not support style changes.

Another change that is evident in Flex 4 is the default preloader, it has changed to the light weight mx.preloaders.SparkDownloadProgressBar which aims to make the start time shorter. Adding preloader="mx.preloaders.DownloadProgressBar" in the application tag can give Flex developer access to the preloader as in Flex 3. It would be wise for a developer to develop an application in Flex 4 then to transform it from Flex 3 to Flex 4 migrating each component.

The location of automation library in Flex 4 is {sdk}/frameworks/libs/automation. For Flex development using Flex 4 a developer should ensure that the location in the given version is not {sdk}/frameworks/libs. Design in Mind theme of Flex 4 aims to make the application development flow smoother between the developers and designers. Unlike Flex 3 the theme here separates designing from the rest of the part of the application development.

For components, utils, effects, primitives, filters, skins, core classes and layouts Flex 4 SDK to facilitate Flex development introduces spark.* packages whereas in Flex 3 it is mx.* packages. Class names of many new effects and components in Flex 4 are similar to those in Flex 3 and to avoid name confusion Flex 4 SDK uses 4 different namespaces MXML 2009, Mx, Spark and MXML 2006.

When a feature based comparison is made between the two it is quite clear that Flex 4 is much better as compared to Flex 3. Still most of the Flex development companies use Flex 3 because they are unable to switch between the two. Also there are some companies which work in both the versions.

A Flex development company iFlexweb can develop Flex based applications using either Flex 3 or Flex 4. What we use depends completely on our clients requirements.

Total Views: 153Word Count: 559See All articles From Author

Add Comment

Web Design Articles

1. Dark Mode, Light Speed: Modern Ux Trends In Web Development
Author: Suganya, Digital Marketing Intern.

2. Seo Service On A Low Budget With Brightara Media
Author: Brightara Media

3. New Technologies Booming In Mobile App Development
Author: Levontehcno

4. The Top Benefits Of Partnering With A Good Seo Company
Author: Liam Mackie

5. Why Choosing The Right Software Development Company In Delhi Can Boost Your Business
Author: Vikki kumar

6. Why Enseur Is A Top Event Management App For Modern Planners
Author: Enseur Tech

7. Customizable Web-based Erp Software In Noida Designed For Schools And Colleges
Author: CONTENT EDITOR FOR SAMPHIRE IT SOLUTIONS PVT LTD

8. How Custom Websites Drive Smarter Lead Generation And Crm Efficiency
Author: Wise Code Studio

9. Advanced Mobile Tracking Sg | Attendance 1 Sgd Monthly
Author: chinni jyothi

10. Employee Attendance Sg | Biometric Scanner 1 Sgd Per Month
Author: chinni jyothi

11. Top Seo Services In Delhi For Business Growth
Author: ayraphics

12. Advantages And Disadvantages Of A Static Website
Author: Manoj Singh

13. Top Dental Website Design Trends In 2025: What Your Clinic Needs To Stand Out Online
Author: PSM

14. How Can The Ecommerce Website Design Make Or Break Your Online Business?
Author: Liam Mackie

15. Best Practices To Boost Your Health & Wellness Products Selling Online
Author: Miten Shah

Login To Account
Login Email:
Password:
Forgot Password?
New User?
Sign Up Newsletter
Email Address: