HTML5 for Flash Developers Leverage your Flash skill set and learn to create content using a wide range of HTML5 web development features Matt Fisher BIRMINGHAM - MUMBAI HTML5 for Flash Developers Copyright © 2013 Packt Publishing All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embedded in critical articles or reviews. Every effort has been made in the preparation of this book to ensure the accuracy of the information presented. However, the information contained in this book is sold without warranty, either express or implied. Neither the author, nor Packt Publishing, and its dealers and distributors will be held liable for any damages caused or alleged to be caused directly or indirectly by this book. Packt Publishing has endeavored to provide trademark information about all of the companies and products mentioned in this book by the appropriate use of capitals. However, Packt Publishing cannot guarantee the accuracy of this information. First published: July 2013 Production Reference: 1220713 Published by Packt Publishing Ltd. Livery Place 35 Livery Street Birmingham B3 2PB, UK. ISBN 978-1-84969-332-5 www.packtpub.com Cover Image by Siddharth Ravishankar ([email protected]) Credits Author Project Coordinator Matt Fisher Amey Sawant Reviewers Proofreader Brad Manderscheid Stephen Swaney Anirudh Prabhu Mike Robinson Indexer Rekha Nair Acquisition Editors Antony Lowe Production Coordinator Melwyn D'sa Rukhsana Khambatta Cover Work Lead Technical Editor Melwyn D'sa Neeshma Ramakrishnan Technical Editors Vrinda Nitesh Bhosale Aniruddha Vanage Zafeer Rais Copy Editors Alfida Paiva Gladson Monteiro About the Author Matt Fisher, Senior Developer at Jam3 (www jam3.com), is passionate about technology. Whether it is building large-scale multi-user online applications or programming a model plane to fly itself, he brings that passion with him to every project. An interactive web and systems developer by day and an electronics-obsessed person by night, Matt's diverse and highly-valued skill set makes him stand out from the crowd. Matt's fascination with technology and programming began at a young age and today, most of his technical and programming skills are self-taught. In the recent past, Matt has also been a part-time professor at both colleges and universities in Toronto, as well as an advisory board member. His website, www.fisherinnovation.com, gives a detailed description of his work. I would like to thank all of my colleagues at Jam3 (www.jam3.com), my close friends, family, and of course my beautiful better half, Lindsay Munro, for all of their inspiration and support during the time spent writing this book. It would have been impossible without all of you. About the Reviewers Brad Manderscheid is currently a Senior Developer for Bader Rutter and Associates and lives in Milwaukee, WI. He specializes in mobile and games and has a strong passion for creating rich, interactive experiences for both desktop and mobile devices. He previously spent the better part of a decade making documentary films, working as a freelance developer and consultant for large companies and agencies across the country, and has built everything from mobile applications to large CMS applications and multi-player games for the Web. He is currently working on his own publication, Beginning HTML5 Game Development Using CreateJS. Anirudh Prabhu is a software engineer at Xoriant Solutions with four years experience in web designing and development. He is responsible for JavaScript development and maintenance in his project. His areas of expertise are HTML, CSS, JavaScript, jQuery, and SASS. He has completed an MSc in Information Technology from Mumbai University. He has also been a technical reviewer for Apress's Pro JavaScript Performance. When not working, Anirudh loves to read, listen to music, and do photography. Mike Robinson is a Senior Web Developer at Globacore. Solving problems with code is something he loves to do and has been fortunate enough to have made a great career of it for over 10 years. He's passionate about crafting beautiful experiences and intuitive interactions using clean, concise, and manageable code. I would like to thank my lovely wife Jessica and my son Will for their ongoing love and support while I spent my free nights and weekends reviewing this book. www.packtpub.com Support files, eBooks, discount offers and more You might want to visit www.packtpub.com for support files and downloads related to your book. Did you know that Packt offers eBook versions of every book published, with PDF and ePub files available? You can upgrade to the eBook version at www.packtpub.com and as a print book customer, you are entitled to a discount on the eBook copy. Get in touch with us at [email protected] for more details. 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Table of Contents Preface 1 Chapter 1: Why HTML5? 7 Understanding HTML5 7 What is HTML5? 8 HTML standards 9 HTML syntax 9 HTML elements 10 Bringing in the style 10 Passing it over to JavaScript 13 What is JavaScript? 14 JavaScript in action 14 Why bother learning HTML5? 20 Write once, deploy everywhere 21 Exciting new features 21 canvas – 2D drawing API 21 Media playback 22 Offline storage 22 Document editing 22 Drag-and-drop 23 Geolocation 23 File API 23 Mobile accessibility 23 Flash Player on Mobile 24 Build on your existing skillset 24 ECMAScript 25 Avoiding the initial road blocks 25 Stage versus DOM 25 Positioning assets in the DOM 25 Dealing with media elements 26