Well I dove headfirst into some Flash programming this weekend and came out with a success. Now I know this is probably not the most efficient way, correct way, or best way to do this, but it got my XML parsing chops up, and I learned how to tap into the Amazon API while creating it. I’m stoked at the result.
What it’s doing is it’s taking my last played song’s Album Title and Artist Name (thanks to Audioscrobbler/last.fm) and sending it along to Amazon as a keyword search. Amazon then gives back an XML file with the results, and then my Flash app parses the XML and finds the node with the CD cover that matches the keyword’s search results. So if you look over there in the sidebar, you’ll see that the cover appears as it would show on Amazon. Pretty neat huh?
And here’s the code, if any Flash junkies want to see what I was working on. If you have any questions about it, email me or hit me up on IM. I still have to add something if there is no image available, and maybe try another service (Google, AllMusic) if Amazon comes up short.
// Allow this Flash app to show the loaded images consistently from the remote server, images.amazon.comSystem.security.allowDomain("http://images.amazon.com");////var audioscrobblerURL = "http://ws.audioscrobbler.com/rdf/history/[YOURPROFILENAMEHERE]";var audioscrobblerReply_xml:XML = new XML();audioscrobblerReply_xml.ignoreWhite = true;audioscrobblerReply_xml.onLoad = function(success) { if (success) { // trace(audioscrobblerReply_xml); processAudioScrobblerXML(audioscrobblerReply_xml); } else { trace("error loading"); }};audioscrobblerReply_xml.load(audioscrobblerURL);function processAudioScrobblerXML(audioscrobbler_xml) { audioscrobblerArtistTitle = audioscrobbler_xml.firstChild.firstChild.nextSibling.firstChild.nextSibling.nextSibling.nextSibling.nextSibling.nextSibling.firstChild.firstChild.firstChild; trace(audioscrobblerArtistTitle); audioscrobblerAlbumTitle = audioscrobbler_xml.firstChild.firstChild.nextSibling.firstChild.nextSibling.nextSibling.nextSibling.nextSibling.nextSibling.nextSibling.firstChild.firstChild.firstChild; trace(audioscrobblerAlbumTitle); // set the standard Amazon URL var amazonURL = "http://webservices.amazon.com/onca/xml?Service=AWSECommerceService&SubscriptionId=[YOURDEVIDHERE]&Operation=ItemSearch&Keywords="; var urlEnd = "&SearchIndex=Music&ResponseGroup=Images"; var keyword = audioscrobblerAlbumTitle+" "+audioscrobblerArtistTitle; // create new XML var amazonReply_xml:XML = new XML(); // ignore the whitespace amazonReply_xml.ignoreWhite = true; // trace the returned XML and process it amazonReply_xml.onLoad = function(success) { // trace(amazonReply_xml); if (success) { processXML(amazonReply_xml); } error = "error loading"; }; // send off the URL to pull back the new XML data from Amazon (note variable "keyword" comes from textfield on stage) amazonReply_xml.load(amazonURL+keyword+urlEnd); // create the function of processing the returned XML function processXML(amazon_xml) { // amazon_xml is now a reference to the XML // object where information is stored // trace(amazon_xml.firstChild.firstChild.nextSibling.firstChild.nextSibling.nextSibling.nextSibling.firstChild.nextSibling.nextSibling.nextSibling.firstChild.firstChild); albumCoverURL = amazon_xml.firstChild.firstChild.nextSibling.firstChild.nextSibling.nextSibling.nextSibling.firstChild.nextSibling.nextSibling.firstChild.firstChild; //load CD Cover image into movieclip on stage imageHolder.loadMovie(albumCoverURL); }}
Design, Miscellaneous, The Web /
allmusic, Amazon, API, audio, audioscrobbler, Flash, Google, keyword search, last.fm, movie, Music, remote server, search results, sidebar, XML /
I had a strange moment today when visiting out the new Winter Garden Library – I was checking out the new facility, looking through the books, DVDs, and CDs. I noticed they had a substantial jazz section, so I flipped through to see if there was anything interesting. Up comes a cool blue cover with a peculiar name for a jazz group -
So I check out the CD, pop it into the car CD player, and sure enough – it is the one and the same track I heard on the radio. My wife says it’s proof that destiny exists. I say it’s just wild coincidence. Regardless, I have a new favorite CD, and also found about an awesome group, Halloween, Alaska, that features the same drummer from The Bad Plus.
