FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

This page covers some frequently asked questions that we get on the mailing lists. We will be updating it with more content as time goes on.

1. General Questions

Can I contribute to Apache Royale?

Of course! We are always looking for new contributors for Apache Royale. If you are interested, we recommend you read how to do it in the Get Involved page.

Can I have write access to the Git respository?

Due to legal reasons, only people who have been elected as committers have write access to directly update the code in version control. We at Apache take the legal status of code seriously, and nothing would be worse than somebody contributing code that they don't own and a third party then having a legal claim to our framework. That being said, you can submit code by providing a pull request to the project in Github. Check out the Get Involved page for more details on how to do that.

Does Apache Royale cost money?

No. This is a completely open-source project and uses the Apache License v. 2.0. This allows you to use the SDK and any outputs of the SDK for personal and commercial use with virtually no restrictions. Some of the recommended tooling (not produced by Apache) could cost money, however you are more than free to use the included command-line compilers and toolsets and other open source tools to ease your development.

Why choose Apache Royale over other solutions?

Apache Royale is the evolution of Apache Flex, summarizing all lessons learned during the last 15 years in Application framework development for the web and mobile devices. The resulting technology brings lots of improvements and is designed to be a solution that will remain for many years to come supporting the changes in standards and global fashions by separating the tools and languages you use to develop from the final output you get.

Where can I find the Apache Royale roadmap?

We do not have a roadmap. That is not the Apache Way™. Apache Royale is a project run and maintained by volunteers. The way that Apache works is that each developer does what they are passionate about. There is no release schedule, and therefore, there is no official roadmap. You can always make suggestions via Github Issues or the mailing lists for new features that you wish to see and if they are good enough a developer will pick them up. You can always contribute your own code for new features as well. You can find out more about contributing code on the Get Involved page.

2. Flex Questions

How is Apache Royale related to Apache Flex?

Apache Royale started as a new project inside the Apache Flex project and was called Apache FlexJS at that time. Apache Royale was designed from scratch with the mission to get a modern frontend technology that takes advantage of the same languages and tools that made Apache Flex great, but making it also capable of outputting to more than one format (HTML, SWF, etc.)

I'm migrating away from Apache Flex. Is Apache Royale for me?

If you are looking to make modern frontend applications for the web and/or multiple devices the short response is yes. Apache Royale is for you. If you come from building Apache Flex applications and don't want to depend exclusively on the Adobe Flash Player to deploy your solutions, this technology is suited for you too. People who want to migrate from Apache Flex to HTML/JS/CSS stack should find the best solution in Apache Royale since the development paradigm should be very similar to what they already have in their current Flex applications.

I'm experienced with Apache Flex. How do I start using Apache Royale?

Royale allows you to continue working with AS3 and MXML. You can use as well a variety of IDEs to speed your development workflow. You'll also find many similarities with Apache Flex. To name just a few you'll find compiled .swc libraries, data binding, AMF and RemoteObject, List-based data providers, item renderers, and more! The quickest way to start is following the instructions in our Getting Started page.

3. Miscellaneous Questions

Why is it called Apache Royale?

"Royale" was the codename used by Macromedia (original creators of the product) in 2003 prior to releasing the product under the final name of "Flex". The rest is history. We thought Royale was a great name and for that reason we brought it back in part as a tribute for this new framework incarnation. We want to clearly differentiate Apache Royale from Apache Flex since is completely new technology that takes the best concepts from Apache Flex and the best new concepts in modern application development from the last few years, combining all in Apache Royale.