MACROMEDIA ColdFusion MX, Develop Manual, Page: 32 / 860

32 Chapter 1: Introduction to ColdFusion MX
Server-side ActionScript
Another feature of the ColdFusion scripting environment is server-side ActionScript.
ActionScript is the JavaScript-based language used to write application logic in Macromedia Flash
MX. By bringing this language to the server, ColdFusion MX enables Flash developers to use their
familiar scripting environment to connect to ColdFusion resources and deliver the results to
client-side applications using the integrated Macromedia Flash Remoting service. Using
server-side ActionScript, Flash programmers can create ColdFusion services, such as SQL queries,
for use by Flash clients.
For more information about using server-side ActionScript in ColdFusion MX, see Chapter 30,
“Using Server-Side ActionScript,” on page 651 .
ColdFusion application services
ColdFusion application services are a set of built-in services that extend the capabilities of the
ColdFusion scripting environment. These services include the following:
•
Charting and graphing service
Generates visual data representations, including line, bar, and
pie charts.
•
Full-text search service
Searches documents and databases using the Verity search engine.
•
Flash Remoting service Provides a high-performance protocol for exchanging data with
Flash MX clients.
ColdFusion MX Administrator
ColdFusion MX Administrator configures and manages the ColdFusion application server. It is a
secure web-based application that you can access using any web browser, from any computer with
an Internet connection.
You can manage the following options with ColdFusion MX Administrator:
•
ColdFusion data sources
•
Debugging and logging output
•
Server settings
•
Application security
For more information about ColdFusion MX Administrator, see Configuring and Administering
ColdFusion MX .
Using ColdFusion MX with Macromedia Flash MX
Macromedia Flash MX is designed to overcome the many limitations of HTML and solve the
problem of providing efficient, interactive, user interfaces for Internet applications. ColdFusion
MX is designed to provide a fast, efficient environment for developing and providing data-driven
Internet applications on your server. Using the following features, ColdFusion MX and Flash MX
can work together in a seamless manner to provide complete interactive Internet applications:
•
ColdFusion MX native Flash connectivity Lets Flash MX clients interact with ColdFusion
MX in an efficient, secure, and reliable way. Flash MX includes ActionScript commands that
connect to ColdFusion components (CFCs) and ColdFusion pages. Flash clients communicate
with ColdFusion applications using Action Message Format protocol over HTTP, which
provides fast, lightweight, binary data transfer between the Flash client and ColdFusion.