Ajaxian.com has posted about the new "AIR for JavaScript Developers Pocketguide" which has been updated for Adobe AIR v1.0. The PDF download is FREE! Get it while it's hot!

To coincide with the release of Adobe's AIR v1.0, the Ext team released v2.0.2 of the Ext framework with enhanced support for the new AIR runtime. The Ext and Adobe teams collaborated during the AIR beta process to ensure that support for the updated AIR API and security sandbox would be available to Ext users from day one.

To demonstrate Ext's AIR capabilities, founder Jack Slocum went about updating the Simple Tasks application he initially created during the early AIR beta process.

Making extensive use of the newly updated AIR API, the Ext team enhanced the Ext.air package to handle such functionality as:

• Managing native windows, event listeners and automatic state management for the windows.
• Use of the new synchronous database access introduced in AIR beta 3.
• Native drag and drop and clipboard access.
• Playing sounds.
• Minimizing AIR applications to the system tray.

Adding an icon to the system tray is now a trivial task as can be seen in this code sample:

[javascript] var win = new Ext.air.NativeWindow({ id: 'mainWindow', instance: window.nativeWindow, // System tray config minimizeToTray: true, trayIcon: 'ext-air/resources/icons/extlogo16.png', trayTip: 'Simple Tasks', trayMenu : [{ text: 'Open Simple Tasks', handler: function(){ win.activate(); } }, '-', { text: 'Exit', handler: function(){ air.NativeApplication.nativeApplication.exit(); } }] }); [/javascript]

In addition to demonstrating AIR apis, Simple Tasks v2 also includes several advanced samples to demonstrate creating custom Ext components. These samples include:

ListTree - Allows for a hierarchical list of options, similar to a treeview, but within a drop-down listbox

Custom Grid Columns - Allows for grid columns to be represented as buttons or menus

Switch - Provides a collection of buttons, one of which can be "pressed" at a time. This is used as an alternative for radio buttons.

Ext v2.0.2 is immediately available for download as is Adobe AIR v1.0

Continuing their march into the RIA space, Adobe announced today the official release of AIR v1.0 and Flex 3.0.

Adobe AIR

The AIR runtime and SDK has gone through an especially long beta cycle (since June 2007) to ensure that both security and compatibility with existing frameworks was achieved. Some key new and/or updated features include:

• Enhanced Desktop Fucntionality: Drag and drop to the operating system, copy and paste between applications, launching of AIR applications from the desktop or the browser, and run in the background with notifications.
• Data Access: Adobe AIR now provides both synchronous and asynchronous access to the local file system, as well as structured data within a local database. This database is implemented using the open source SQLite database.
• JS Library Support: Most major Ajax frameworks can be used to build AIR applications. Supported frameworks include jQuery, Ext JS, Dojo, and Spry. Adobe AIR integrates JavaScript and ActionScript to allow cross-scripting between the two languages, and integrated rendering of Flash and HTML content.
• Security: Applications built on Adobe AIR can only be installed through a trustworthy install process that verifies that the application is signed via industry standard certificates, providing users with information about the source and capabilities of the application.

Flex 3.0

Adobe's Flash-based RIA development platform, Flex, continues to mature and has been picking up steam in both the corporate space as well as sites such as blist and Scrapblog who have embraced Flex whole-heartedly. Some of the new features in Flex 3.0 include:

• Intelligent coding, interactive step-through debugging, and visual design of user interface layout
• New capabilities for creating RIAs and building applications on Adobe AIR
• Integrates with Adobe Creative Suite® 3 making it easy for designers and developers to work together more efficiently.
• New testing tools, including memory and performance profilers and integrated support for automated functional testing, speed up development and lead to higher performing RIAs.

One of the most compelling parts of the Flex announcement is the fact that Adobe has released the Flex SDK under the open source Mozilla Public License.

Adobe is working hard to raise the bar in the RIA space by giving developers more tools with great functionality. 2008 is panning out to be an interesting year in web development.

Adobe has released AIR Beta 2.

What's new: http://labs.adobe.com/wiki/index.php/AIR:Developer_FAQ#What_are_some_of_the_features_included_in_Adobe_AIR_Beta_2.3F

• System Tray icon/Dock Bar Bounce
• Synchronous database API
• Native menus
• Drag and drop enhancements including bitmap support
• Windowing improvements such as Z-order control and enhanced
• Activation and focus support
• Improved Install dialog look and feel
• Application-initiated runtime updates
• HTML security model improvements
• Mouse support for double-click and scroll-wheel
• Per-machine runtime installs
• Performance and memory enhancements
• XSLT support
• Support for Windows 2000
• Hundreds of bug fixes

Adobe AIR
http://labs.adobe.com/technologies/air/

Develop with Adobe AIR with HTML and JavaScript
http://labs.adobe.com/technologies/air/develop_ajax.html

Developer FAQ
http://labs.adobe.com/wiki/index.php/AIR:Developer_FAQ

Migration instructions (moving from Beta 2 to Beta 1)
http://labs.adobe.com/wiki/index.php/AIR:Migration

AIR HTML Security FAQ (covers additional changes)
http://labs.adobe.com/wiki/index.php/AIR:HTML_Security_FAQ

Get it here.

Flash developer Sean Moore has created a very nice Adobe Air cheat sheet. Be sure to get a copy here:

AIR Cheatsheets! FREE 7 Page PDF Download!