What you should know about Adobe Flash Builder

Adobe Flash Builder is an integrated development environment (IDE) that allows users to create games and applications meant for the web as well as mobile devices. The games developed using the development platform uses ActionScript and the open source Flex framework. A number of tools are included in the program such as intelligent coding, step-through debugging, and multi-platform publishing workflows.

Features

• Faster coding. The Flash Builder IDE makes it easier for users to write code thanks to syntax coloring, live highlighting of invalid references, interactive step-through debugging, code collapse, statement completion, and refactoring support.

The QuickAssist/Fix function of the IDE allows users to rename and manipulate variables, organize imports, and generate getters or setters. Users can also define methods from a superclass or interface through the override/implements feature.

Lastly, Flash Builder provides more than 100 best-practice code templates or snippets for ActionScript, CSS and MXML.

• Package software accordingly. Flash Builder makes it easier for developers to distribute their application to different desktop and mobile platforms. Users can easily package and sign installers for distribution to different mobile application stores.
• Better debug and test capabilities. Applications can be tested by connecting a mobile device or using a mobile emulator. The Flash Builder IDE also features memory and performance profilers so developers can check how much resources an application consumes.

The current stable version of Adobe Flash Builder is 4.7 and includes support for ActionScript workers and better workflows for mobile devices.

Although there is a Flash Professional tool that includes an ActionScript editor, most developers prefer to do ActionScript coding on Flash Builder. The IDE can be used with Adobe Game Developer Tools, Adobe Scout, ColdFusion, Java, PHP, and Facebook.

Adobe Flash Player may come with certain issues but Adobe still continues to improve the product and they still have gems like Flash Builder as well.