Macromedia Flash to the Core: An interactive Sketchbook by Joshua Davis

Joshua Davis' Flash projects are among the most interesting pieces of interactive art on the Web. So it was quite understandable that I wanted to read his 'interactive sketchbook' as soon as I had heard about it. Would it blow my mind? Would it teach me something I did already know?

Author: Joshua Davis
Pages: 308
CD-ROM: yes
ISBN: 0-7357-1288-3
Publisher: New Riders
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Well, I did expect to be surprised, but I was still caught off guard, when I unwrapped Flash to the Core: An Interactive Sketchbook by Joshua Davis. My first reaction was that this book is too small for the subject. I know it's stupid, to judge the value of a book by it's thickness, but after seeing hundreds of thick books printed on thin cardboard paper, I sort of came to expect that a computer book ought to be thick and heavy. No such thing here. The Josh's book is small, thin, and fairly light, so you will not feel its weight too much if you are going to carry it around.

The next surprise was the introduction, which actually tells the readers something about the author, his views on how art, Web, and Flash can be used to create a new kind of experience. Josh emphasizes the power of experimentation and imagination in the process of creation of art or commercial sites. But don't worry, you will not find here any of the 'artsy' musings that nobody, including the author himself, can understand. This is one of the most enjoyable introductions to a computer book that I have read in a long while.

The main contents of the book is divided into twenty seven chapters grouped in three parts. Each chapter is a short (often less than a dozen pages) discussion of each important component of Flash. Unlike many computer book authors, Josh does not shy away from expressing his opinions and explains all merits of his choices. While some readers might complain that he doesn't go deep into details, I find his approach much better in teaching and learning Flash than the detail overload found in many other Flash books. Josh simply gives the right advice every time it is needed. Hence, the chapters are short, easy to digest chunks of knowledge, which makes it easier to learn Flash and leaves plenty of room for free experimentation, which is one of the things Josh likes to emphasize throughout his book.

Another thing that you will notice is the fact that Josh uses screenshots and diagrams very sparingly, relying on his excellent command of the language and the reader's imagination instead of tons of screenshots, which often distract the reader instead of focusing his attention on the given subject.

Joshua Davis' Flash to the Core is one of the most intriguing and useful Flash books on the market. But don't think about it as yet another computer book, but rather as an idea sketchbook. This book ought to be required reading for all students of art who want to use Flash as an interactive art tool.

Josh managed something, which I was quite convinced to be impossible--write a book on Flash that teaches everything a creative person needs to know, but does not fill 1,000+ pages. How does he do it? By teaching just enough of Flash that the reader might need and showing how each component of Flash can be used to serve the imagination of the artist, instead of trying to cram everything there is to know into the reader's mind. This book will make you think. Recommended!

 

Copyright 2002 Jacek Artymiak

 

 

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