Andrew Shorten @ Adobe

For those based in or around London, I wanted to provide a quick update on the Adobe Flash Platform user groups that are available and encourage you to find out more about each of the groups and the events they are running…

One of the longest established groups, the London Flash Platform User Group (LFPUG) isn’t an official Adobe user group (so you won’t find it on groups.adobe.com), but it does offer a unique mix of presentations in an informal setting and attracts a good crowd every month. Meetings take place regularly on the last Thursday of the month near Farringdon – the next meeting is on July 30th, with presentations on UML for AS3 and the Mate Framework.

Next up is the Flex London User Group (FLUG) – with a large membership registered on MeetUp and a history of organizing several successful Flex Camp events, the FLUG is currently undergoing a change in leadership and the newly-formed team is starting to put ideas together for more regular meetings. Without any meetings currently scheduled, I’d recommend that you sign up to the MeetUp site so as to receive information on upcoming events as they are confirmed. If you’re interested in helping out with presentations or can contribute in other ways, then please do let me know I can put you in touch with the user group managers.

Finally, there is a new Adobe RIA User Group, which has been setup by Skills Matter to provide information on Flex, AIR and LiveCycle to more of an enterprise developer audience. I’ll be presenting an ‘Introduction to Flex 4′ at the inaugural meeting on August 19th, with my colleague Ben Forsaith presenting an ‘Introduction to BlazeDS and LiveCycle Data Services 3′ at the follow-up meeting in September. For more information about these meetings and to register visit the event website.

User groups are a great place to meet like-minded developers, watch technical presentations and get information on the latest tools, technologies and frameworks – if you’re developing with Flash in some way I’d strongly recommend you join one. If you’re not based in London, but would like to attend or start your own user group, then you can find more information at the Adobe Groups website.

After the success of last year’s Flex Camp in London, it’s great the we’re once again able to work with the community to put on another camp – this time, the focus is on everything creative and expressive related to the Flash Platform.

If you’re interested in learning about the latest features in Flash Player 10, Flash Professional CS4 and forthcoming developments for the Flash Platform then you should sign-up for Flash Camp London, taking place on the 26th February from 1pm – 8pm.

Featuring both Adobe speakers, including Mike Chambers, Lee Brimelow and Serge Jespers, along with a host of well-respected names from the Flash community, Flash Camp should have something for everyone.

For more details and to register check out the Flash Camp site.