Macromedia today announced Macromedia Flex 1.5, the newest version of Flex, a presentation server and application framework that enables enterprise development teams to put more effective interfaces on critical business applications. This new version is being released alongside growing adoption of Flex by leading organizations in a broad range of industries (see attached quote sheet). Companies such as Pfizer, Dow Jones, BskyB, Meredith Corporation, Standard Bank, Optus, SAIC, Northrop Grumann, and CSC use Flex to build and deploy rich Internet applications for guided selling, business process automation, and interactive data presentation.
“Flex momentum is growing because enterprises are crying out for more effective applications,” said David Mendels, general manager, Macromedia. “Flex 1.5 will significantly accelerate customer success in building rich Internet applications. We’re extremely excited to offer this new release to the general public.”
“The application we created with Flex is a vital component of our effort to improve children’s health care,” said Chris Ogden, director of software development, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. “It allows us to create a way for doctors to display data in ways that were previously impossible and use this data more effectively to improve the quality of care they provide. The ease of use promotes adoption by busy doctors, and we expect to dramatically reduce training and support time. Ultimately, this application will be an important way to improve the health of children.”
Flex 1.5 includes four key benefits that allow developers to build and deploy more effective applications than ever before: improved data display and visualization, more versatile skinning and styling, additional new deployment platforms, and enhanced performance.
First, developers can create more effective data visualization and data interactivity using dynamic, animated, and interactive charts and graphs and a new, more capable datagrid. Second, an expanded set of component styles empowers developers to quickly make a broader range of look and feel adjustments, while easier skinning allows infinite control over the look and feel of the application. Third, Flex 1.5 includes new support for Oracle Application Server 10g, IBM AIX, and Fujitsu Interstage 6 on the server side, while on the client side developers can deploy their applications to the browser or the Macromedia Central desktop deployment environment. Fourth, runtime shared libraries and faster application startup time can mean dramatically faster application downloads and performance.
“The performance enhancements in Flex 1.5 are immediately apparent,” said Clint Tredway, senior developer, Lee Financial Group. “Flex 1.5 gives our rich Internet application a 50 percent performance increase. Our end users will definitely appreciate this combination of performance and a rich user interface.”
PRICING AND AVAILABILITY
Flex 1.0 customers who are on a maintenance plan will receive a free upgrade to Flex 1.5. Pricing information on Flex is available at http://www.macromedia.com/go/flex. Flex 1.5 is expected to be available in English in November. Localized documentation and packaging for the Japanese market will also be available. Flex 1.5 and Flex Builder will be available to download for free trial at http://www.macromedia.com/go/flex. To learn more about new features in Flex 1.5, and to sign up to be notified about availability of Flex 1.5, visit www.macromedia.com/go/flex.
