Book excerpt: Discover what's possible with the latest version of Flash Builder and Flex. This hands-on guide helps you dive into the Adobe Flash Platform: through a series of quick step-by-step tutorials, you'll learn the process of building, debugging, and deploying a complete Rich Internet Application with Flex 4. Each tutorial includes complete code samples and pre-built Flex components. Follow the tutorials in sequence or simply jump to the areas that interest you. Ideal for experienced developers with or without a background in Flex, Getting Started with Flex 4 shows you how to take advantage of your existing skills. You'll quickly discover how easy RIA development can be. Create a Flex application that retrieves, displays, and modifies database records Easily add, update, and delete data in the database Test and debug the application Deploy your Flex application to a web server Change the application’s appearance with styling and skinning Use Flex components to add charts and graphs "Alaric and Elijah do a great job of guiding a newbie Flex developer through the myriad of components offered by this hugely popular framework. Flex novices will find it well worth a read." --Jodie O'Rourke, Adobe Certified Expert (Flash Platform) & Community Professional Community Leader, Adobe User Group Program