Degrafa

"Degrafa", meaning declarative graphics framework, is an open-source effort to bring the power of the Flash Drawing API up to the MXML level in Flex application development. It allows for drawing graphics in MXML, provides advanced CSS support and data-binding capabilities.
Overview
Some Adobe Flex development workflows require the use of static graphics created by a designer and handed off to a developer to be reinterpreted. Degrafa is a declarative graphics framework for Adobe Flex that hopes to minimize the problems that arise with this type of workflow. Degrafa markup is based on MXML which is familiar Flex developers and less abstract than ActionScript, which makes it more approachable for designers as well. It is derived from other markup languages and syntax including MXML, SVG, XAML and others. Degrafa allows for drawing graphics at the MXML level by utilizing and extending the Flash Drawing API.

In a Model-view-controller architectural pattern Degrafa serves as the View. Unlike HTML and commonly used methods involving static graphics, Degrafa allows for the creation of programmatic graphics that can be manipulated at runtime to create very rich user interfaces, data visualizations, graphic elements, visual components, random art and more. This offers as a huge advantage for creating dynamic graphics that can be very flexible for a solution that could be game changing for Flex development.

Other graphics frameworks or implementations that are compared to Degrafa include SVG, XAML, MXML-G and some references to HTML 5.

The Degrafa framework is open-source, licensed under MIT, and is a collaborative effort by a number of rich Internet application developers. It represents a part of a community effort that is not waiting for Flex 4.

Release History
* Degrafa Beta .1 - January 2008
* Degrafa Beta .2 - March 2008
* Degrafa Beta .21 - March 2008

Notable Examples Using Degrafa
* Form Function Gauge Components
* Paranoid Ferret Gaming
* Open Flux Flex Component Framework
 
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