CHAPTER 1: Introduction For More Information 10
For More Information
For more information on InDesign scripting, you also can visit the InDesign Scripting User to User forum, at
http://www.adobeforums.com
. In the forum, scripters can ask questions, post answers, and share their
newest scripts. The forum contains hundreds of sample scripts.
Other JavaScript development options
You can use the ExtendScript Toolkit to create JavaScript scripts explicitly for InDesign, or you can use the
Creative Suite Extension Builder (CS Extension Builder) to develop CS extensions in ActionScript. CS
extensions are Flash-based (SWF) and can potentially work in a variety of Creative Suite applications.
In CS5, the applications have an extensibility infrastructure that allows developers to extend the
capabilities of the applications; the infrastructure is based on Flash/Flex technology, and each CS5
extension is delivered as a compiled Flash (SWF) file. CS5 includes the Extension Manager to enable
installation of CS5 extensions.
An example of a CS5 extension that ships with the point products is Adobe Kuler. Kuler has a consistent
user interface across the different suite applications, but has different logic in each, adapted to the host
application.
The user interface for an extension is written in ActionScript, using the Flex framework. A C5S extension is
typically accessed through its own menu item in the application’s Extensions menu. CS Extension Builder
allows you to design the user interface interactively using the Design view of FlashBuilder. It also allows
you to develop all of the application logic for your CS5 extension in ActionScript; you can develop and
debug your extension in the familiar FlashBuilder environment.
To develop your application logic, we recommend using the Creative Suite ActionScript Wrapper Library
(
CSAWLib), which exposes the scripting DOM of each host application as an ActionScript library. This is
tightly integrated with the CS Extension Builder environment, which includes wizards to help you build
your extension’s basic structure, and run and debug your code against suite applications such as Adobe
InDesign, Photoshop and Illustrator.
The methods, properties, and behavior of the scripting DOM is as described in the JavaScript Scripting
Reference for the host application. For details of how to use CS Extension Builder and the wrapper libraries,
see the Creative Suite SDK documentation, which is accessible from within the Flash Builder or Eclipse
Help system when you have installed CS Extension Builder.
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