I want to develop an iPhone app using AIR and ActionScript 3 and I need the app to receive MIDI. How?

Question

I am not entirely sure of how these associations work. iOS implements CoreMIDI. Ok. It's possible to build an app with CoreMIDI support with XCode and objective C. I don't own a Mac and I am absolutely appalled at the look of Objective C. I don't know if I want to learn that. I just stumbled upon the possibility of coding an app with Flash CS5 using actionscript 3.0.

My understanding is that I code my source in AS3 and during compilation it is ported into a native iOS app. Is that correct?

I want to develop an app that plays backing tracks during a live performance with the ability to loop regions of the currently playing track and the ability to control it with MIDI, more specifically a foot pedal / MIDI keyboard, etc...

Can I do that with AS3 & AIR? Or do I have to bow down to the fact that in order to make MIDI work I need to learn Objective C and do the thing with XCode?

Answer 1

Applications writing on as3 for iOS running in AVM. They are not compiled in native iOS code.

If you want to use CoreMIDI, you can write NativeExtension, that allow call native code wrapped with an ActionScript.

Or you can try use some of ActionScript MIDI libraries. For exapmle MidAs3