Frank makes a good point about the AIR runtime...it's about 9
megabytes and
it is a bit of an annoyance. A possible solution to this
two-step process is
to use an install maker like Inno Setup that can grab the
runtime from a web
site (if not already installed) and then install the included
AIR
application once done. But it is extra work.
Zinc is a great option. Another option from my Canadian
brothers is
SWFStudio by Northcode. I played with this one quite a bit
and prefer it to
Zinc (really mostly a perfonal preference...the feature set
is generally
comparable as are the prices). Screenweaver was an excellent
product (though
much more limited) but I've found that its inclusion in the
haXe language
has somewhat dimished its usefulness. Still, it's open source
so it may be
worth a try. It certainly could make a useful "bridge"
application to allow
you to do all the things that AIR doesn't.
One of the biggest drawbacks to using pure AIR, at least as
of the current
release, is the lack of command-line support (if AIR can't do
it, you don't
have much choice), and no support for external application
window
interaction (like controlling another application from AIR).
I'm hoping
Adobe will include this in a future release.
However, one thing that AIR boasts is cross-platform
compatability. It's
*very* similar to Java in this way...the same AIR application
(like a JAR
file) will run on Windows, OSX, and Linux (among others).
This does broaden
the market of AIR applications considerably. Also, the fact
that you can use
JavaScript/HTML to develop AIR applications is a big plus on
the
money-saving side (i.e. it can be free if you want it to be).
My two cents'
Regards,
Patrick Bay
BAY NEW MEDIA
"Frank_Elley" <webforumsuser@macromedia.com> wrote in
message
news:fmijdt$lbj$1@forums.macromedia.com...
>I do the same thing - use Flash to create Windows (and
also Mac) programs;
>in
> my case, front ends for CDs.
>
> Another option besides AIR is to use one of the
"swf2exe" third-party
> tools to
> recompile the SWF as a native Windows .exe file. They
will let you remove
> the
> OS chrome, and some have alternatives skins you can use
instead. Many also
> provide ActionScript extensions for functions such as
interacting with the
> file
> system, printing, etc.
>
> Be sure to select one that's standalone -- that is, can
create a .exe that
> doesn't require the Flash Player to be installed on the
host system.
>
> One hesitation I have about AIR is that it will require
the runtime to be
> installed on the system where the .exe runs, and as it's
just been
> released it
> doesn't have a lot of penetration. So for now I prefer
to deliver the
> Flash-based app as a completely standalone .exe using
one of those
> third-party
> apps.
>
> Wikipedia has a short article on the subject and links
to many of the
> major
> third-party vendors:
>
>
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SWF2EXE_Software
>
> I've tried several, but have stayed with Zinc, primarily
because their
> support
> forum is excellent - their main tech support guy is
highly knowledgeable
> and
> helpful.
>
> Hope that's what you're looking for.
>
>
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