I've been using them for a project and all was going well until we hit a limitation in the libraries. We can do rich formatting and we can do automatic line wrapping and pagination, but we can't do the both together.

This would have been an enormous problem if this was a piece of commercial software as we would be completely at the mercy of the creators. However, as it is Open Source we have access to the code and we can extend it as we see fit.

And that's exactly what we did. I've added a new version of the writeText() method called very imaginatively writeText2().

It takes the same parameters but instead of taking a standard string it will render a string that has html markup. I.e. you can put a <b> tag in and your text will be bold. Eg:

For the curious you can download a sample document generated by it.

It currently supports the following tags:

• <b> Make it bold
• <u> Underline it
• <i> Make it italic
• <center> Center it
• <br /> Add a line break

The code still needs a some cleanup and more testing but it seems to be reliable now.

The two files that were changed are available for download. Or alternatively you can download the full version with changes included. Give it a try and let me know what you think.

Cheers, Mark Lynch

If you are looking to work with the latest technogies and are a motivated self starter with a positive "can do" attitude this is the job for you. The ability to take problems and deliver solutions is a must.

There will be significant on the job learning as we are always pushing the boundaries and using the latest and greatest technologies. We are currently working on projects using Actionscript/Flex, ColdFusion, PHP, and Javascript, and are leveraging technologies such as VOIP, SMS, Instant Messenger (Jabber XMPP) to deliver cutting edge solutions.

Suitable applicants will have a Bachelors Degree in Computer Science or Engineering, or similar tertiary qualification. Remuneration commensurate with experience.

Responsibilities would include:

• Developing new functionality for Asterisk and VOIP applications
• Creating Rich Internet Applications with Adobe Flex
• Creation of Desktop applications with Adobe AIR
• Design and development of new Web applications

Must haves:

• A robust foundation in Object Oriented programming
• Demonstrated experience in at least one OO language
• Motivation to learn and push the boundaries
• Understanding of XHTML and CSS

Preferable:

• Experience with PHP, ColdFusion, Farcry CMS, XML, Web Standards etc
• Competency using linux-based tools (SSH, bash, etc)
• Familiar with using source control tools (Subversion, etc)
• Familiarity with Actionscript or Flash

This role may be full time, part-time or on a contract basis depending on the candidates skills and experience. You will be working in a casual workplace with flexible hours in the centre of Sydney.

If this sounds like the job for you email your resume to mark@lynchconsulting.com.au if interested - no agencies please.

It also mentioned the swfdump tool which looked interesting

I downloaded it and went to the bin directory to try swddump but it didn't work straight away complaining about a missing jar file.

I thought this would mean a lot of pain to get it all compiling but I was very surprised. Here were the steps to get it working on Ubuntu 8.04 Hardy Heron.

Step 1

Get the tools to compile flex

Compile

Some couple of minutes later you should get the following message

Now you have a build of Flex4. Next step is to figure out how to configure Flex Builder to use the new compiler.

NOTE: This is not a finished version of Flex4 yet. Just the work in progress.

Cheers, Mark

A bit of googling turned up this Technote from Adobe which mentioned the same problem on RedHat Linux.

The redhat solution is also documented on Talking Tree but it doesn't cover Ubuntu.

For Ubuntu it's very simple - you need to install 3 libraries and you are good to go - one single line.

This will install a dozen or so packages - then restart ColdFusion and you have a shiny working install.

Cheers, Mark Lynch