Rating: 
Summary: ActionScripting
Review: These guys have a book on scripting that even I can understand. Easy to follow and explains what's going on in terms that make sense. I started doing the exercises and could not stop.
Rating: 
Summary: Bad choice
Review: Hoping it would be a great detail book(even more coming from who it's supposing to come from), it is no good at all.
In fact, although its name is "Macromedia FlashMX" most of the book talk about Flash 5 features.If you are a begginer, it might be a good book (Although there are a lot of them better than this one), for an expert guy, forget it and buy Branden Hall's one.
Rating:
Summary: Awesome Book.
Review: Hey,
I just got this book yesterday and I've done the first lesson and, I gotta say that this book is great! I've seen a few negative reviews out there and its stupid that they have to rate the book one star just to show off how advanced their skills are and how not-advanced this book is. I'll admit that the book isn't really advanced but if you look in the book it says that it calls it advance training because they go in-depth and more explanations. This really is an awesome book for someone that knows Flash but just can't get ActionScript. Later.
Rating: 
Summary: Great Book! Great Support!
Review: Being new to ActionScript I was a bit hesitant to get this book since this is an advance ActioScript book afterall. That hesitation quickly dissapeared as I walked through the detailed tutorials. Even though some concepts may be hard to grasp without prior ActionScript experience I still feel like I got a good dose of understanding out of the read. Though this may not be the best place to start for learning ActionScript it is definitely a valuable resource. Also, the customer support is outstanding. There is a website that goes along with the book that has updated corrections for the text. I was also amazed that the author, himself, responded to several of my emails containing questions about how to alter the book code to work with the applications I was developing. Now that is customer service! Overall, I recommend this book to anyone starting out with ActionScript. When you put a well written book together with great customer support you can't go wrong.
Rating:
Summary: Superb!!
Review: Ok, if you guys want the nitty and gritty on AS, this is the book to get. Too many books out there use other people's code or borrow someon's module blah blah..
This book primes you on the code, then teaches you how to use it with great examples!! The key is understanding what he said and not just doing the examples and watching them work. I had an issue with one of my codes and I wrote to him and he responded promptly.
You cannot go wrong with this book. Dont know how busy he is, but he seems to also find time to respond to his readers...
Not much I can say for other authors....
Rating:
Summary: Egads
Review: Bad decision to buy this book. Now we can argue semantics all day. But the title of the book is Flash MX actionscripting: Advanced Training from the Source. Tell me someone, where is the advanced training in this book? How can learning what a button does when you rollover it be considered advanced training? How can learning what movie clip events on(Load) and on(Enterframe) do be considered advanced? It is not advanced actionscripting... and it is not advanced training on actionscripting... I've read many posts here of people that praise the book and claim that the book is supposed to offer advanced training, not advanced actionscripting... well, after finishing this book I sure can make a cool button, and let me tell ya what, I know EXACTLY what the button is gonna do when I roll over it with my mouse, or if I press it... I owe that all to this book I guess. I'm not as nice as the other reviewers that gave poor reviews to this book but still gave it 1-2 stars because they liked the examples, even if they were simple. This book gets NO stars from me because it is not advanced anything. If you took away your moneies worth in information from this book then you were a complete flash newbie... which is fine, the book claims it's advanced training but it is really a beginner -intermediate book. Just because you tell someone 300 times over and over what a button does when you roll over it, does not make that advanced training. Lastly, if we continue to buy these books without voicing our opinions about how far they stray from the title, then publishers will continue to let these kinds of books be published! Voice your opinion here so that the authors know that their next book offering newbie content under the guise title of advanced will not be tolerated by the buyers! This book itself is NOT a bad book.. it just doesn't fit with the title. CHange it to Flash Actionscript: Beginning Training from the Source and you've solved all your problems and elimated all the negative posts this book has received. I used Franklins other starter book when I was just learning flash.. Loved it! The guy is a great author. However, I didn't need to buy the same starter book again with a different cover on it and a title of "advanced" placed on it just so someone other than me could make a few bucks. Any of you flash authors out there please heed the following! Create content according to that which you advertise on the title. If you are making an advanced Flash book (be it advanced training, scripting, or whatever) don't make the first 15 chapters of your 18 chapter book newbie review just so you can meet a page requirement and make a buck.. come on now! Honestly, I should be writing some of these books. I'm no better than intermediate in skill level yet every "advanced" book I buy on this subject yields me more "advanced" training on newbie material. Let me tell you what, after reading 4-5 of these "advanced" books, nobody knows how to make a button better than me! wahoo! People wanting to buy this book please realize that most of the 4-5 star reviews this book are getting also use comments that imply they are very new to the flash authoring environment. Don't be persuaded to buy this book expecting advanced scripting practices or advanced training on anything. If you are not expecting advanced training, and are new to flash mx, then by all means pick up the book.
I will be seeking a refund for this purchase.
Rating:
Summary: Not a good one
Review: When Flash MX was released, I got my copy, and I was keen to discover new features like LoadVars, the new Event Models; which are Listeners and Event Handlers, and other new things. That was my first book since Flash MX release, knowing it was released from Macromedia's Press, I automatically assumed that this would be the comprehensive book I would ever get in this period. However, It really didn't cover much, for instance, the part where it was talking about Event Handlers was mostly Flash 5's style, LoadVars was not really 'covered', and most importantly, MovieClip subclasses, which is considered a new important role in Flash MX's ActionScript, was not discussed either. If want a book that would 'really' teaches what's Flash MX's Actionscript to the core, then get Actionscript for Flash MX, by Colin Moock.
Rating:
Summary: A Cut Above the Rest...
Review: Macromedia Flash is a not a tool for casual users. Getting used to its complex interface can be a daunting task. To add to the frustration for those of us who are self-taught Flash users, many Flash books are poorly written, rife with errors, and full of "examples" that have no practical application. In contrast, Derek Franklin and Jobe Makar's Actionscripting: Advanced Training from the Source towers above the rest. This book is simply one of the most comprehensive, well-written instructional texts on the market. You don't often find a book that could be used as a textbook in a university course and still serve the solitary learner equally well, as this one does. The authors have the rare gift of being able to explain concepts clearly while keeping their material engaging. The material is organized into manageable and logical sections, facilitating ease of use and ease of study. Kudos goes to Macromedia Press, too, for its clean presentation and use of color for the code samples. With its accompanying CD-ROM, Actionscripting provides hands-on, useful projects covering a wide range of topics and providing plenty of ideas and inspiration. Reading this book not only raised my Flash skills and understanding to new heights-its sample scripts served as springboards for my own projects. For example, after having used only streaming sounds with varying degrees of success, I learned from the book how to create sound objects inside movie clips. This gave me more control over sounds and their accompanying actions and changed my approach to how I was using sound. I'm not going to join in the discussion regarding semantics of the use of "advanced" in the title of this book. I will only say that no book provides a better, more rock-solid, foundation in the ActionScript language. Besides being a superb instructional tool, Actionscripting is also a handy reference. It remains on my desk, and I turn to it often for reinforcement of concepts and for its useful examples. Watch for Derek Franklin's forthcoming book, Macromedia Flash MX Creative Web Animation and Interactivity. It's already available for pre-ordering on this web site.
Rating:
Summary: The best book in the universe for learning action scripting
Review: This guy Derek really should be winning awards for the best book in the world. I can not stress enough that this book is great and starts off at the very begining (if you are new to action scripting) and progresses to a high level in a coherent and logical manar. I m a graduate of sheffield uni and have read many books in my time on 3ds max director etc.. but this really is the best book I have ever read. ...
Rating:
Summary: This is the book!!!!
Review: If you can only buy 1 Flash book geared towards actionscript then Derek's book is by far the best i've come across. I went through every exercise in the book and wasn't able to find any serious mistakes. The book is very easy to read and Derek not only tells you what to do, he clearly explains each line of code in layman's terms and why you are doing it that way. I read the first chapter of the book...and knew right away it would be well worth the money. He made so many things make sense and now i'm using custom objects, functions and arrays all together in some serious streamlined dynamic code... great job!!!! i would definately recommend this book to anyone wanting to learn actionscript in Flash MX.
| 
