adobe air vs flex vs flash builder --- i need an explanation please

Question

Can someone explain to me the difference between Adobe Air, Flex, and Flash Builder?

I went to the Adobe website and it said that with Air I can build standalone apps for the desktop or mobile. They said the same thing with Flex.

It said Flash Builider is an Eclipse based development tool. What does THAT mean? And then it said that I could again build applications for the desktop and mobile.

There is so much overlap, I don't really understand what first to learn and what direction to take. (I know Flash and AS2 & AS3 very well.)

Answer 1

What is Flex

Flex is a powerful, open source application framework that allows you to easily build mobile applications for iOS, Android™, and BlackBerry Tablet OS devices, as well as traditional applications for browser and desktop application.

Flex has different SDK Version, more details

The Flex SDK contains hundreds of out-of-the-box components. DataGrids, Charts, Formatters, Validators, and numerous other UI controls are the building blocks for applications of all sizes. Components can be styled and skinned to fit the look and feel you want. There are also hundreds of third party open source and commercial components available for Flex. Mapping APIs, Data Visualization libraries, and Cloud APIs provide the building blocks for assembling great applications.

You will use the following two languages two develop flex applications.

1 . MXML is an XML-based markup language that is primarily used to layout application display elements.

2 . ActionScript is an ECMAScript-compliant object-oriented programming language that is primarily used for application logic

What is Flash Builder

Flash Builder is an enterprise-class Eclipse-based IDE to develop Flex applications. Flash Builder includes state-of-the-art productivity features (code assist, refactoring, etc), on-device debugging, and mobile simulators that allow developers to test their applications on different screen sizes and densities. Flash Builder allows developers to package native application files (ipa, apk, bar) for release on the Apple App Store, Android Marketplace, and BlackBerry App world.

What is AIR

Adobe AIR is a cross-operating system runtime that enables you to use your existing ActionScript or HTML/JavaScript development skills and tools to build and deploy rich Internet applications (RIAs) outside the browser(Desktop) and on mobile devices.

Answer 2

It's very easy:

• Adobe Air is a Flash Runtime for desktops and mobile devices. In other words, Flash applications use, and need it to work in the desktop or in mobile devices. This would be the equivalent to the Flash Player that you use in your web browser every day.
• Flex is a framework that provides you with a set of user interface components, containers and utilities that make it easier to develop visual applications.
• Flash Builder is the software you use to edit the code, to "compile" it, to test it, to debug it...

Answer 3

Starting from flash, Inventor of RIA(Rich internet applications). First came as a much designer friendly platform where the users can develop some cool animations and banners. Become a big success. Then making the animation interactive like listening for end users actions through keyboard and mouse added a programming language (Actionscript).

Flex a much developer friendly tool, which felicitate the development of rich internet applications in the beginning, They put Flex SDK(Software Development Tool) along with flex which makes the application development much easier.

Adobe AIR is a flash runtime running on your desktop and mobile devices, making the same user experience and to allow the developers to create multi platform desktop applications and giving some sort of access to the developers to the os level. Later on have put their effort in Mobile devices and put forward an idea of creating cross platform applications for mobile devices.

Answer 4

In a nutshell.

Flex can be considered as a development toolkit for for the Flash Player.

AIR is a runtime environment that enables you to run your application on the desktop/mobile device.

Flash builder is a development tool for creating applications