Beginning Adobe AIR: Building Applications for the Adobe Integrated Runtime

I consider myself a pretty advanced developer and very resourceful in finding needed code samples online or in previous projects. Yet, AIR brings so many new capabilities to ActionScript that I am still very dependent on having the material in hand and ready to reference. Rich's book follows a long line of incredible code samples on his blog (http://blog.everythingflex.com). The samples featured in the book are simple and go right after the fundamental abilities of AIR. His chapter on working with SQLite in AIR is priceless and I've referenced it time and time again as I integrate database functionality into my Flex for AIR apps. I love the simplicity with which Rich teaches unique desktop integration features that AIR supports. Don't let the title mislead you. While this book is targeted for 'beginners', it will become one of your most valuable AIR references, no matter what level developer you are.

I've never been too fond of the Wrox books but am happy to note that this was an excellent starter book for AIR. I decided to roll the dice on it (based on poor experiences with other Wrox titles) because of the author (a noted Flex/AIR guru), whose blog I've read. Well, Rich Tretola (the author, that is!) did not disappoint. The book is concise and packed with good informaiton on AIR and the new APIs you'll want to use/learn. Speaking of the APIs, all code/examples in the book are useful and focused. If you are looking to get started with AIR, this is an excellent book for you.

It's solid. It has a "cookbook" feel to it, which I like. What I mean by that is that the book dishes out info in a succinct way and covers pretty much what you'd like to know when building an app. Things like, prepping the xml description file, accessing the local file system, connecting to remote data, interacting with the OS. Good stuff. I don't like how short it is, about 300 pages. The text is big, has lots of pictures (this is good but it inflates the page count), and a few tables that I thought were unnecessary. If you are competent in Actionscript, but don't know much about AIR, this is great. I'm an advanced ActionScripter, so this book really just fills in a few holes I had about AIR, and will serve as a good reference when I need to be reminded how to say, move a directory on the users computer or how to set the window chrome of an application.