Reflection class

I'm a Web 2.0/Apple copycat today, so here is a simple class for creating a reflection below any type of displayObject in AS3. View the source here.

Simple FullBrowser Class in ActionScript 2.0

You know those code snippets you use every few months or so, and you have to re-teach yourself how to use it every time? I had the same problem recently with full browser Flash apps, especially in Zinc. I needed to create an application that maintained a constant background, even if the window was resized to whatever the resolution could be. We've all learned how to do it, it was just one of those things that I got sick of relearning every time.
I wrote a simple class to handle a few different types of full screen/browser applications called FullBrowser. To use it, you initialize the class, pass in the reference to the stage and whatever content you want centered, and then call the setFill method, which allows you to pass either "Solid" (followed by a color [ex: "0x335599"]), "Gradient" (followed by two colors [ex: "0x000000", "0x220033"]), or "Bitmap" (followed by the linkage id to the bitmap in the library).

Go ahead and use it if you'd like. Any comments or feedback are appreciated!

Also, the zip includes an example .fla and the filed background was taken from Squidfingers.

Elemental Tower Defense

Anyone that knows me well enough, knows I'm a Wowaholic. I am addicted to all things Warcraft, all things Blizzard, and I will melt face and pwn you all with my leetness. (thats mmorpg talk for kick butt) Well, the latest time-waster around the office has become Flash Element TD by David Scott. This sweet flash game is based off the custom tower defense maps in Warcraft III. You build and upgrade towers to defend against an onslaught of peasants, lizards, greedy pigs, and even drug runners, oh my! Careful, this addicting flash game will hold you at bay for hours on end. Gratz to Cahlan on reaching level 35, now get back to work!

Phidgets in Flash

I'm not exactly a hardware guy, and I'm definitely no electrical engineer. That's why I got pretty excited the other day when I was able to use Phidget's RFID card reader with Flash to make a card reading application.

Working on interactive kiosks in my employment has been a lot of fun, and we've been exploring using Flash and .exe wrappers to make some cool kiosk applications. This card reader presents some cool possibilities, including language switching on the fly for international users, admin access with a card swipe, the list goes on. Plus, they offer documentation, Flash API's, and examples of how to integrate their stuff with your applications. It looks like they're pushing Actionscript 3.0 as they've stopped releasing AS 2.0 versions with their updates.

So if you're in a similar line of work, go check out some of the hardware that Phidgets offers.

Is it time for a switch? (iPhone)

My least favorite word of the day is "Cingular."

Call me a tech-geek, nerd, whatever you want. My F5 key is getting worn down, waiting for updates from San Fransisco. I see "iPhone," after my 250th refresh, and the whole world changes. The rumors are confirmed. I can't wait to get rid of my pocket PC with a crappy OS (guess which) and buy into the iPhone revolution. Then it happens. A single word, printed at the bottom of the screen: "Cingular." It's over. I'm in bondage to Verizon, I've practically sold my soul, and it will take a near act of heaven to release me from the "contract" I just signed only a few months ago.

Is it worth the switch? Believe me, if it weren't for the iPhone, I wouldn't even be considering this. I end up traveling a lot some of the more, let's say, "remote" parts of these United States, and Verizon seems to be the only carrier with enough coverage to help me out. I guess the "network" mumbo-jumbo isn't just marketing.

So please, send your comments and suggestions. I know it's completely off-topic compared to our previous posts. But what are your opinions, thoughts, rants about your cell phone providers? Is the Cingular going to crimp the iPhone's style?