Chapter 2: Flex Builder Tutorials; Tutorial: Setting Up A Development Environment - MACROMEDIA FLEX BUILDER-USING FLEX BUILDER Use Manual

This series of four interconnected tutorials explains how you can build a simple Macromedia Flex
application using Macromedia Flex Builder. The application is part of a website for the fictitious
Flex Store company. The application gives visitors the ability to view a product catalog, find out
more about each product, and add products to a shopping cart. The application is a simplified
version of the Flex Store application installed with the Flex server.
The tutorials focus on using the development tools in Flex Builder, not on developing Flex
applications. The goal is to show you how to use Flex Builder to develop a Flex application more
rapidly and with less coding.
You can complete each tutorial as a stand-alone unit or as a part of a larger four-part tutorial. You
don't have to complete all the tutorials or complete them in order, except for the first tutorial,
which you must complete before you can start any of the others.
The first tutorial shows you how to set up a Flex development environment. The second shows
you how to lay out a Flex user interface with Flex Builder. The third shows you how to use Flex
Builder to create custom components, the building blocks of Flex applications. The fourth shows
you how to visually bind components to data with Flex Builder.
This chapter includes the following tutorials:
•
"Tutorial: Setting up a development environment" on page 21
•
"Tutorial: Creating a layout with Flex Builder" on page 26
•
"Tutorial: Building custom components with Flex Builder" on page 34
•
"Tutorial: Binding components to data with Flex Builder" on page 58

Tutorial: Setting up a development environment

This tutorial shows you how to install the Flex server on your computer, copy sample files to a
folder, and define a Flex Builder site. You must complete these tasks to complete the other
tutorials in this chapter.
In this tutorial, you'll accomplish the following tasks:
•
"Install the Flex server on your computer" on page 22
•
"Copy the tutorial folders to the Flex samples folder" on page 24
•
"Define a Flex Builder site" on page 25
CHAPTER 2
Flex Builder Tutorials
21