ACTIONSCRIPT 3 Developer’s Guide en

ACTIONSCRIPT 3.0 DEVELOPER’S GUIDE
Working with Pixel Bender shaders
var loader:URLLoader = new URLLoader();
loader.dataFormat = URLLoaderDataFormat.BINARY;
loader.addEventListener(Event.COMPLETE, onLoadComplete);
loader.load(new URLRequest("myShader.pbj"));
var shader:Shader;
function onLoadComplete(event:Event):void {
// Create a new shader and set the loaded data as its bytecode
shader = new Shader();
shader.byteCode = loader.data;
}
// You can also pass the bytecode to the Shader() constructor like this:
// shader = new Shader(loader.data);
// do something with the shader
Embedded in the SWF file: the shader file can be embedded in the SWF file at compile time using the [Embed]
metadata tag. The [Embed] metadata tag is only available if you use the Flex SDK to compile the SWF file. The
[Embed] tag’s source parameter points to the shader file, and its mimeType parameter is "application/octetstream",
as in this example:
[Embed(source="myShader.pbj", mimeType="application/octet-stream")]
var MyShaderClass:Class;
// ...
// create a shader and set the embedded shader as its bytecode
var shader:Shader = new Shader();
shader.byteCode = new MyShaderClass();
// You can also pass the bytecode to the Shader() constructor like this:
// var shader:Shader = new Shader(new MyShaderClass());
// do something with the shader
In either case, you link the raw shader bytecode (the URLLoader.data property or an instance of the [Embed] data
class) to the Shader instance. As the previous examples demonstrate, you can assign the bytecode to the Shader
instance in two ways. You can pass the shader bytecode as an argument to the Shader() constructor. Alternatively,
you can set it as the Shader instance's byteCode property.
Once a Pixel Bender shader has been created and linked to a Shader object, you can use the shader to create effects in
several ways. You can use it as a filter, a blend mode, a bitmap fill, or for stand-alone processing of bitmap or other
data. You can also use the Shader object’s data property to access the shader’s metadata, specify input images, and set
parameter values.
Accessing shader metadata
Flash Player 10 and later, Adobe AIR 1.5 and later
While creating a Pixel Bender shader kernel, the author can specify metadata about the shader in the Pixel Bender
source code. While using a shader in ActionScript, you can examine the shader and extract its metadata.
Last updated 6/6/2012
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