Flash the Future was a title I anticipated seeing on the shelves for quite some time. I was very excited when I finally found it, particularly since it is published by an upcoming publishing company called No Starch Press (which has some very exciting titles out, but I didn't know if they would actually make it to Canada). This book fulfills a need on the Flash MX bookshelf for a title devoted to diverse authoring requirements. There are very few places on the Web or in the bookstore that answer the questions about creating Flash movies for playback on a television, or even wireless devices.

What struck me most, just from reading the table of contents, was the breadth of the content that is found in Flash the Future. Not only is there information on creating Flash content for PocketPC 2002, but the book also covers Flash for Broadcast (DVD, iTV, and consoles), as well as the Nokia 9200 series. That is a lot for 370 pages to cover - so do the authors cover these topics well?

Certainly. You should note, though, that you can expect to find over half of the book devoted to developing content for the Pocket PC. After a general introduction that sets you up with movie dimensions and the basics about devices, you will read about design issues, hardware issues, creating apps, games and so on.

There are several different authors who contribute chapters in this section, and each authors' respective expertise in each different topic is evident throughout the section. For example, in each chapter you will find valuable tips and tricks that only come from such experience.

I was really looking forward to the second half of this book, as "broadcast Flash" since it's an area I am particularly interested in. Chapter 9 is all about video hardware and playback, and was extremely well done. I've studied this area in some detail, and found that I learnt a number of subtle aspects about video formats. This subject area is quite timely with the number of new computer systems coming with DVD burners installed. Preparing Flash for DVD has slight differences than preparing it for a television - from color handling to menu creation. DVD Studio Pro is used in this chapter, which could be seen as a down side for "the rest of us" (er, the majority) using PCs. That said, I think Mac users are well deserving of attention, since they usually get the shaft in most PC oriented computer books! I should also mention Brett's chapter - I found it a very nice introduction to authoring Flash for interactive TV (ITV). Many very interesting and useful points were made regarding the "Do's and Don'ts" of the medium.

Flash the Future is easy to read thanks to a clear and interesting writing style. Also, the book is well edited because I noticed very few typos or errors. The chapters have a good balance of screen shots, listings and tables to break up paragraphs. I find that a good balance can be a great organizational tool - since it is quite conducive to the learning process.

Finally, it should be noted that this book does not replicate the content in Flash Enabled, from New Riders. I was certainly apprehensive that purchasing this book might mean that I should avoid the other. But judging from the table of contents in the other book, and what was digested in this one - there is nothing to worry about. Both titles deserve attention by any serious wireless/broadcast/DVD inclined Flash author.

Apart from the odd area I would like to have seen covered in a bit more depth (which is true for most books, I guess!) - such as workarounds using Director to maintain movie clips for broadcast flash - I couldn't find anything wrong with this book at all. For that reason, I think it should get

(5/5).