Which Flex Framework Is Right For You? - By Andrew Powell

Frameworks. They can be both a blessing and a curse. Recently, I was asked, by an aspiring Flex developer, which framework they should learn. They were looking at Cairngorm (and the UM Extensions) and Mate. Each framework has their high points and their low points. Mate is very slick and simplifies a lot of tasks that Cairngorm can make, well...obtuse. It's just plain facts.

Cairngorm however, is the iPod of the Flex framework market. Just as you think "iPod" when you think mp3 player, you think "Cairngorm" when you think Flex frameworks. Within the last four months we have seen the introduction of two new major players to the Flex framework scene: Mate and Swiz. Mate is the brainchild of our fine friends at AsFusion. Swiz is the fruit of Chris Scott's efforts. Mate is a totally tag-based approach to a Flex framework, while Swiz is much more focused on inversion of control (IOC). 

So, which framework should you learn? Well, I can assure you that, as a Flex developer, you will run into a Cairngorm project at least once during your career. Its prevalence lends itself to this. Does this mean you should be thoroughly proficient in Cairngorm? Absolutely not. I do believe however, that every Flex developer should be able to recognize a Cairngorm application and be able to work within its patterns (side note: look to the Core J2EE Patterns for Cairngorm's inspiration.). I think that Cairngorm will make more sense to developers coming from the Java world. Developers coming to Flex from ColdFusion would probably be much more comfortable in Mate, due to its tag-based nature. Does this mean that any one is more right for you than another? No. As with anything else in this field, it depends on the task, the developer's skill and comfort levels with different technologies, and the time you have to learn something new. 

If you take all this into consideration and then do your own research, you should be able to come up with which framework fits right for you. Don't rely simply on my advice or the advice of others. Frameworks tend to gather semi-religious followings, so try to wade through the zealotry and find your best solution.