use JSON instead of XML for file format

src/Token.as

@@ -21,10 +21,10 @@ package
 		private var drag: Drag;
 		public var posReal: Point;
 		private var urff: String;
-		private var xml: XML;
+		private var json: Object;
 		private var filewatcher: FileWatcher;
 		
-		public function Token(source:BitmapData, urff: String, x: int, y: int, xml:XML = null) 
+		public function Token(source:BitmapData, urff: String, x: int, y: int, json: Object = null) 
 		{
 			this.posReal = new Point(x, y);
 			super(x, y, new Image(source));
@@ -32,14 +32,15 @@ package
 			this.layer = WorldStage.LAYER_TOKENS;
 			this.drag = null;
 			this.urff = urff;
-			if (xml === null)
+
-				this.xml = XML("<token/>");
+			if (json === null)
+				this.json = { };
 			else
-				this.xml = xml;
+				this.json = json;
 		}
 		public function FDirty():Boolean
 		{
-			return int(xml.@x) !== posReal.x || int(xml.@y) !== posReal.y;
+			return json.x !== posReal.x || json.y !== posReal.y;
 		}
 		public function FSelected(): Boolean
 		{
@@ -139,15 +140,12 @@ package
 			if (FSelected())
 				Draw.hitbox(this);
 		}
-		
+		public function GenJSON(): Object
-		public function GenXML(): XML
 		{
-			var xml: XML = this.xml.copy();
+			this.json.x = int(posReal.x);
-			xml.@x = int(posReal.x);
+			this.json.y = int(posReal.y);
-			xml.@y = int(posReal.y);
+			this.json.path = urff;
-			xml.@path = urff;
+			return this.json;
-			this.xml = xml;
-			return xml;
 		}
 	}
 

src/WorldMenu.as

@@ -65,11 +65,11 @@ package
 		}
 		public function OpenStage(): void
 		{
-			FileForBrowse().browseForOpen("Find your thing", [new FileFilter("Stages", "*.xml")]);
+			FileForBrowse().browseForOpen("Find your thing", [new FileFilter("Stages", "*.stage")]);
 		}
 		private function FileForBrowse(): File
 		{
-			var file: File = new File(File.userDirectory.nativePath + File.separator + "NewStage.xml");
+			var file: File = new File(File.userDirectory.nativePath + File.separator + "NewStage.stage");
 			file.addEventListener(Event.SELECT, function():void {
 				FP.world = new WorldStage(file.url, function():World { return new WorldMenu(); });
 			});

src/WorldStage.as

@@ -42,6 +42,7 @@ package
 	import net.flashpunk.utils.Key;
 	import net.flashpunk.World;
 	import net.flashpunk.utils.Input;
+	import com.adobe.serialization.json.JSON;
 	/**
 	 * ...
 	 * @author jjp
@@ -355,12 +356,12 @@ package
 			zoom = 1;
 		}
 		
-		// persistence (save/load/XML generation)
+		// persistence (save/load/json generation)
 		public function Save(): void
 		{
 			var stream: FileStream = new FileStream();
 			stream.open(new File(UabFromUrf(urff)), FileMode.WRITE);
-			stream.writeUTFBytes(GenXML().toXMLString());
+			stream.writeUTFBytes(JSON.encode(GenJSON()));
 			stream.close();
 			ShowMsg("Saved.");
 		}
@@ -371,24 +372,24 @@ package
 			{
 				var stream: FileStream = new FileStream();
 				stream.open(file, FileMode.READ);
-				var xml: XML = XML(stream.readUTFBytes(file.size));
+				var json: Object = JSON.decode(stream.readUTFBytes(file.size));
 				var itoken:int = 0;
-				var rgtoken:Object = { ctokenLoaded: 0, ctoken: xml.children().length(), rgtoken: [] };
+				var rgtoken:Object = { ctokenLoaded: 0, ctoken: json.tokens.length, rgtoken: [] };
-				for each (var xmlToken: XML in xml.children())
+				for each (var jsonToken:Object in json.tokens)
 				{
-					LoadToken(xmlToken, itoken, rgtoken);
+					LoadToken(jsonToken, itoken, rgtoken);
 					itoken = itoken + 1;
 				}
 				ShowMsg("Loaded.");
 			}
 		}
-		private function LoadToken(xml: XML, itoken: int, rgtoken:Object): void
+		private function LoadToken(json: Object, itoken: int, rgtoken:Object): void
 		{
-			trace("loading " + xml.@path);
+			trace("loading " + json.path);
-			Imgdir.LoadBmp(new File(UabFromUrf(xml.@path)), 
+			Imgdir.LoadBmp(new File(UabFromUrf(json.path)), 
 				function(bmp: BitmapData, file: File):void {
-					trace("loadtoken: " + xml.@path);
+					trace("loadtoken: " + json.path);
-					var token: Token = new Token(bmp, xml.@path.toString(), int(xml.@x), int(xml.@y), xml);
+					var token: Token = new Token(bmp, json.path, json.x, json.y, json);
 					FixupTokens(rgtoken, token, itoken);
 				},
 				function():void 
@@ -410,15 +411,15 @@ package
 				}
 			}
 		}
-		public function GenXML():XML
+		public function GenJSON(): Object
 		{
-			var xml: XML = XML("<stage/>");
+			var jsonTokens: Array = [];
-			var rgtoken:Array = [];
+			var json: Object = { "tokens": jsonTokens };
+			var rgtoken: Array = [];
 			this.getLayer(LAYER_TOKENS, rgtoken);
 			for each(var token: Token in rgtoken)
-				xml.appendChild(token.GenXML());
+				jsonTokens.push(token.GenJSON());
-			
+			return json;
-			return xml;
 		}
 	}
 }

src/com/adobe/serialization/json/JSON.as

@@ -0,0 +1,86 @@
+/*
+  Copyright (c) 2008, Adobe Systems Incorporated
+  All rights reserved.
+
+  Redistribution and use in source and binary forms, with or without 
+  modification, are permitted provided that the following conditions are
+  met:
+
+  * Redistributions of source code must retain the above copyright notice, 
+    this list of conditions and the following disclaimer.
+  
+  * Redistributions in binary form must reproduce the above copyright
+    notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer in the 
+    documentation and/or other materials provided with the distribution.
+  
+  * Neither the name of Adobe Systems Incorporated nor the names of its 
+    contributors may be used to endorse or promote products derived from 
+    this software without specific prior written permission.
+
+  THIS SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED BY THE COPYRIGHT HOLDERS AND CONTRIBUTORS "AS
+  IS" AND ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO,
+  THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR
+  PURPOSE ARE DISCLAIMED. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE COPYRIGHT OWNER OR 
+  CONTRIBUTORS BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL,
+  EXEMPLARY, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO,
+  PROCUREMENT OF SUBSTITUTE GOODS OR SERVICES; LOSS OF USE, DATA, OR
+  PROFITS; OR BUSINESS INTERRUPTION) HOWEVER CAUSED AND ON ANY THEORY OF
+  LIABILITY, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, STRICT LIABILITY, OR TORT (INCLUDING
+  NEGLIGENCE OR OTHERWISE) ARISING IN ANY WAY OUT OF THE USE OF THIS
+  SOFTWARE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.
+*/
+
+package com.adobe.serialization.json
+{
+
+	/**
+	 * This class provides encoding and decoding of the JSON format.
+	 *
+	 * Example usage:
+	 * <code>
+	 * 		// create a JSON string from an internal object
+	 * 		JSON.encode( myObject );
+	 *
+	 *		// read a JSON string into an internal object
+	 *		var myObject:Object = JSON.decode( jsonString );
+	 *	</code>
+	 */
+	public class JSON
+	{
+		/**
+		 * Encodes a object into a JSON string.
+		 *
+		 * @param o The object to create a JSON string for
+		 * @return the JSON string representing o
+		 * @langversion ActionScript 3.0
+		 * @playerversion Flash 9.0
+		 * @tiptext
+		 */
+		public static function encode( o:Object ):String
+		{	
+			return new JSONEncoder( o ).getString();
+		}
+		
+		/**
+		 * Decodes a JSON string into a native object.
+		 * 
+		 * @param s The JSON string representing the object
+		 * @param strict Flag indicating if the decoder should strictly adhere
+		 * 		to the JSON standard or not.  The default of <code>true</code>
+		 * 		throws errors if the format does not match the JSON syntax exactly.
+		 * 		Pass <code>false</code> to allow for non-properly-formatted JSON
+		 * 		strings to be decoded with more leniancy.
+		 * @return A native object as specified by s
+		 * @throw JSONParseError
+		 * @langversion ActionScript 3.0
+		 * @playerversion Flash 9.0
+		 * @tiptext
+		 */
+		public static function decode( s:String, strict:Boolean = true ):*
+		{	
+			return new JSONDecoder( s, strict ).getValue();	
+		}
+	
+	}
+
+}

src/com/adobe/serialization/json/JSONDecoder.as

@@ -0,0 +1,327 @@
+/*
+  Copyright (c) 2008, Adobe Systems Incorporated
+  All rights reserved.
+
+  Redistribution and use in source and binary forms, with or without 
+  modification, are permitted provided that the following conditions are
+  met:
+
+  * Redistributions of source code must retain the above copyright notice, 
+    this list of conditions and the following disclaimer.
+  
+  * Redistributions in binary form must reproduce the above copyright
+    notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer in the 
+    documentation and/or other materials provided with the distribution.
+  
+  * Neither the name of Adobe Systems Incorporated nor the names of its 
+    contributors may be used to endorse or promote products derived from 
+    this software without specific prior written permission.
+
+  THIS SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED BY THE COPYRIGHT HOLDERS AND CONTRIBUTORS "AS
+  IS" AND ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO,
+  THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR
+  PURPOSE ARE DISCLAIMED. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE COPYRIGHT OWNER OR 
+  CONTRIBUTORS BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL,
+  EXEMPLARY, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO,
+  PROCUREMENT OF SUBSTITUTE GOODS OR SERVICES; LOSS OF USE, DATA, OR
+  PROFITS; OR BUSINESS INTERRUPTION) HOWEVER CAUSED AND ON ANY THEORY OF
+  LIABILITY, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, STRICT LIABILITY, OR TORT (INCLUDING
+  NEGLIGENCE OR OTHERWISE) ARISING IN ANY WAY OUT OF THE USE OF THIS
+  SOFTWARE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.
+*/
+
+package com.adobe.serialization.json
+{
+	
+	public class JSONDecoder
+	{	
+	
+		/** 
+		 * Flag indicating if the parser should be strict about the format
+		 * of the JSON string it is attempting to decode.
+		 */
+		private var strict:Boolean;
+		
+		/** The value that will get parsed from the JSON string */
+		private var value:*;
+		
+		/** The tokenizer designated to read the JSON string */
+		private var tokenizer:JSONTokenizer;
+		
+		/** The current token from the tokenizer */
+		private var token:JSONToken;
+		
+		/**
+		 * Constructs a new JSONDecoder to parse a JSON string 
+		 * into a native object.
+		 *
+		 * @param s The JSON string to be converted
+		 *		into a native object
+		 * @param strict Flag indicating if the JSON string needs to
+		 * 		strictly match the JSON standard or not.
+		 * @langversion ActionScript 3.0
+		 * @playerversion Flash 9.0
+		 * @tiptext
+		 */
+		public function JSONDecoder( s:String, strict:Boolean )
+		{	
+			this.strict = strict;
+			tokenizer = new JSONTokenizer( s, strict );
+			
+			nextToken();
+			value = parseValue();
+			
+			// Make sure the input stream is empty
+			if ( strict && nextToken() != null )
+			{
+				tokenizer.parseError( "Unexpected characters left in input stream" );
+			}
+		}
+		
+		/**
+		 * Gets the internal object that was created by parsing
+		 * the JSON string passed to the constructor.
+		 *
+		 * @return The internal object representation of the JSON
+		 * 		string that was passed to the constructor
+		 * @langversion ActionScript 3.0
+		 * @playerversion Flash 9.0
+		 * @tiptext
+		 */
+		public function getValue():*
+		{
+			return value;
+		}
+		
+		/**
+		 * Returns the next token from the tokenzier reading
+		 * the JSON string
+		 */
+		private function nextToken():JSONToken
+		{
+			return token = tokenizer.getNextToken();
+		}
+		
+		/**
+		 * Attempt to parse an array.
+		 */
+		private function parseArray():Array
+		{
+			// create an array internally that we're going to attempt
+			// to parse from the tokenizer
+			var a:Array = new Array();
+			
+			// grab the next token from the tokenizer to move
+			// past the opening [
+			nextToken();
+			
+			// check to see if we have an empty array
+			if ( token.type == JSONTokenType.RIGHT_BRACKET )
+			{
+				// we're done reading the array, so return it
+				return a;
+			}
+			// in non-strict mode an empty array is also a comma
+			// followed by a right bracket
+			else if ( !strict && token.type == JSONTokenType.COMMA )
+			{
+				// move past the comma
+				nextToken();
+				
+				// check to see if we're reached the end of the array
+				if ( token.type == JSONTokenType.RIGHT_BRACKET )
+				{
+					return a;	
+				}
+				else
+				{
+					tokenizer.parseError( "Leading commas are not supported.  Expecting ']' but found " + token.value );
+				}
+			}
+			
+			// deal with elements of the array, and use an "infinite"
+			// loop because we could have any amount of elements
+			while ( true )
+			{
+				// read in the value and add it to the array
+				a.push( parseValue() );
+			
+				// after the value there should be a ] or a ,
+				nextToken();
+				
+				if ( token.type == JSONTokenType.RIGHT_BRACKET )
+				{
+					// we're done reading the array, so return it
+					return a;
+				}
+				else if ( token.type == JSONTokenType.COMMA )
+				{
+					// move past the comma and read another value
+					nextToken();
+					
+					// Allow arrays to have a comma after the last element
+					// if the decoder is not in strict mode
+					if ( !strict )
+					{
+						// Reached ",]" as the end of the array, so return it
+						if ( token.type == JSONTokenType.RIGHT_BRACKET )
+						{
+							return a;
+						}
+					}
+				}
+				else
+				{
+					tokenizer.parseError( "Expecting ] or , but found " + token.value );
+				}
+			}
+            return null;
+		}
+		
+		/**
+		 * Attempt to parse an object.
+		 */
+		private function parseObject():Object
+		{
+			// create the object internally that we're going to
+			// attempt to parse from the tokenizer
+			var o:Object = new Object();
+						
+			// store the string part of an object member so
+			// that we can assign it a value in the object
+			var key:String
+			
+			// grab the next token from the tokenizer
+			nextToken();
+			
+			// check to see if we have an empty object
+			if ( token.type == JSONTokenType.RIGHT_BRACE )
+			{
+				// we're done reading the object, so return it
+				return o;
+			}
+			// in non-strict mode an empty object is also a comma
+			// followed by a right bracket
+			else if ( !strict && token.type == JSONTokenType.COMMA )
+			{
+				// move past the comma
+				nextToken();
+				
+				// check to see if we're reached the end of the object
+				if ( token.type == JSONTokenType.RIGHT_BRACE )
+				{
+					return o;
+				}
+				else
+				{
+					tokenizer.parseError( "Leading commas are not supported.  Expecting '}' but found " + token.value );
+				}
+			}
+			
+			// deal with members of the object, and use an "infinite"
+			// loop because we could have any amount of members
+			while ( true )
+			{
+				if ( token.type == JSONTokenType.STRING )
+				{
+					// the string value we read is the key for the object
+					key = String( token.value );
+					
+					// move past the string to see what's next
+					nextToken();
+					
+					// after the string there should be a :
+					if ( token.type == JSONTokenType.COLON )
+					{	
+						// move past the : and read/assign a value for the key
+						nextToken();
+						o[key] = parseValue();	
+						
+						// move past the value to see what's next
+						nextToken();
+						
+						// after the value there's either a } or a ,
+						if ( token.type == JSONTokenType.RIGHT_BRACE )
+						{
+							// we're done reading the object, so return it
+							return o;	
+						}
+						else if ( token.type == JSONTokenType.COMMA )
+						{
+							// skip past the comma and read another member
+							nextToken();
+							
+							// Allow objects to have a comma after the last member
+							// if the decoder is not in strict mode
+							if ( !strict )
+							{
+								// Reached ",}" as the end of the object, so return it
+								if ( token.type == JSONTokenType.RIGHT_BRACE )
+								{
+									return o;
+								}
+							}
+						}
+						else
+						{
+							tokenizer.parseError( "Expecting } or , but found " + token.value );
+						}
+					}
+					else
+					{
+						tokenizer.parseError( "Expecting : but found " + token.value );
+					}
+				}
+				else
+				{	
+					tokenizer.parseError( "Expecting string but found " + token.value );
+				}
+			}
+            return null;
+		}
+		
+		/**
+		 * Attempt to parse a value
+		 */
+		private function parseValue():Object
+		{
+			// Catch errors when the input stream ends abruptly
+			if ( token == null )
+			{
+				tokenizer.parseError( "Unexpected end of input" );
+			}
+					
+			switch ( token.type )
+			{
+				case JSONTokenType.LEFT_BRACE:
+					return parseObject();
+					
+				case JSONTokenType.LEFT_BRACKET:
+					return parseArray();
+					
+				case JSONTokenType.STRING:
+				case JSONTokenType.NUMBER:
+				case JSONTokenType.TRUE:
+				case JSONTokenType.FALSE:
+				case JSONTokenType.NULL:
+					return token.value;
+					
+				case JSONTokenType.NAN:
+					if ( !strict )
+					{
+						return token.value;
+					}
+					else
+					{
+						tokenizer.parseError( "Unexpected " + token.value );
+					}
+
+				default:
+					tokenizer.parseError( "Unexpected " + token.value );
+					
+			}
+			
+            return null;
+		}
+	}
+}

src/com/adobe/serialization/json/JSONEncoder.as

@@ -0,0 +1,312 @@
+/*
+  Copyright (c) 2008, Adobe Systems Incorporated
+  All rights reserved.
+
+  Redistribution and use in source and binary forms, with or without 
+  modification, are permitted provided that the following conditions are
+  met:
+
+  * Redistributions of source code must retain the above copyright notice, 
+    this list of conditions and the following disclaimer.
+  
+  * Redistributions in binary form must reproduce the above copyright
+    notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer in the 
+    documentation and/or other materials provided with the distribution.
+  
+  * Neither the name of Adobe Systems Incorporated nor the names of its 
+    contributors may be used to endorse or promote products derived from 
+    this software without specific prior written permission.
+
+  THIS SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED BY THE COPYRIGHT HOLDERS AND CONTRIBUTORS "AS
+  IS" AND ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO,
+  THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR
+  PURPOSE ARE DISCLAIMED. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE COPYRIGHT OWNER OR 
+  CONTRIBUTORS BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL,
+  EXEMPLARY, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO,
+  PROCUREMENT OF SUBSTITUTE GOODS OR SERVICES; LOSS OF USE, DATA, OR
+  PROFITS; OR BUSINESS INTERRUPTION) HOWEVER CAUSED AND ON ANY THEORY OF
+  LIABILITY, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, STRICT LIABILITY, OR TORT (INCLUDING
+  NEGLIGENCE OR OTHERWISE) ARISING IN ANY WAY OUT OF THE USE OF THIS
+  SOFTWARE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.
+*/
+
+package com.adobe.serialization.json 
+{
+
+	import flash.utils.describeType;
+
+	public class JSONEncoder {
+	
+		/** The string that is going to represent the object we're encoding */
+		private var jsonString:String;
+		
+		/**
+		 * Creates a new JSONEncoder.
+		 *
+		 * @param o The object to encode as a JSON string
+		 * @langversion ActionScript 3.0
+		 * @playerversion Flash 9.0
+		 * @tiptext
+		 */
+		public function JSONEncoder( value:* ) {
+			jsonString = convertToString( value );
+		
+		}
+		
+		/**
+		 * Gets the JSON string from the encoder.
+		 *
+		 * @return The JSON string representation of the object
+		 * 		that was passed to the constructor
+		 * @langversion ActionScript 3.0
+		 * @playerversion Flash 9.0
+		 * @tiptext
+		 */
+		public function getString():String {
+			return jsonString;
+		}
+		
+		/**
+		 * Converts a value to it's JSON string equivalent.
+		 *
+		 * @param value The value to convert.  Could be any 
+		 *		type (object, number, array, etc)
+		 */
+		private function convertToString( value:* ):String {
+			
+			// determine what value is and convert it based on it's type
+			if ( value is String ) {
+				
+				// escape the string so it's formatted correctly
+				return escapeString( value as String );
+				
+			} else if ( value is Number ) {
+				
+				// only encode numbers that finate
+				return isFinite( value as Number) ? value.toString() : "null";
+
+			} else if ( value is Boolean ) {
+				
+				// convert boolean to string easily
+				return value ? "true" : "false";
+
+			} else if ( value is Array ) {
+			
+				// call the helper method to convert an array
+				return arrayToString( value as Array );
+			
+			} else if ( value is Object && value != null ) {
+			
+				// call the helper method to convert an object
+				return objectToString( value );
+			}
+            return "null";
+		}
+		
+		/**
+		 * Escapes a string accoding to the JSON specification.
+		 *
+		 * @param str The string to be escaped
+		 * @return The string with escaped special characters
+		 * 		according to the JSON specification
+		 */
+		private function escapeString( str:String ):String {
+			// create a string to store the string's jsonstring value
+			var s:String = "";
+			// current character in the string we're processing
+			var ch:String;
+			// store the length in a local variable to reduce lookups
+			var len:Number = str.length;
+			
+			// loop over all of the characters in the string
+			for ( var i:int = 0; i < len; i++ ) {
+			
+				// examine the character to determine if we have to escape it
+				ch = str.charAt( i );
+				switch ( ch ) {
+				
+					case '"':	// quotation mark
+						s += "\\\"";
+						break;
+						
+					//case '/':	// solidus
+					//	s += "\\/";
+					//	break;
+						
+					case '\\':	// reverse solidus
+						s += "\\\\";
+						break;
+						
+					case '\b':	// bell
+						s += "\\b";
+						break;
+						
+					case '\f':	// form feed
+						s += "\\f";
+						break;
+						
+					case '\n':	// newline
+						s += "\\n";
+						break;
+						
+					case '\r':	// carriage return
+						s += "\\r";
+						break;
+						
+					case '\t':	// horizontal tab
+						s += "\\t";
+						break;
+						
+					default:	// everything else
+						
+						// check for a control character and escape as unicode
+						if ( ch < ' ' ) {
+							// get the hex digit(s) of the character (either 1 or 2 digits)
+							var hexCode:String = ch.charCodeAt( 0 ).toString( 16 );
+							
+							// ensure that there are 4 digits by adjusting
+							// the # of zeros accordingly.
+							var zeroPad:String = hexCode.length == 2 ? "00" : "000";
+							
+							// create the unicode escape sequence with 4 hex digits
+							s += "\\u" + zeroPad + hexCode;
+						} else {
+						
+							// no need to do any special encoding, just pass-through
+							s += ch;
+							
+						}
+				}	// end switch
+				
+			}	// end for loop
+						
+			return "\"" + s + "\"";
+		}
+		
+		/**
+		 * Converts an array to it's JSON string equivalent
+		 *
+		 * @param a The array to convert
+		 * @return The JSON string representation of <code>a</code>
+		 */
+		private function arrayToString( a:Array ):String {
+			// create a string to store the array's jsonstring value
+			var s:String = "";
+			
+			// loop over the elements in the array and add their converted
+			// values to the string
+			for ( var i:int = 0; i < a.length; i++ ) {
+				// when the length is 0 we're adding the first element so
+				// no comma is necessary
+				if ( s.length > 0 ) {
+					// we've already added an element, so add the comma separator
+					s += ","
+				}
+				
+				// convert the value to a string
+				s += convertToString( a[i] );	
+			}
+			
+			// KNOWN ISSUE:  In ActionScript, Arrays can also be associative
+			// objects and you can put anything in them, ie:
+			//		myArray["foo"] = "bar";
+			//
+			// These properties aren't picked up in the for loop above because
+			// the properties don't correspond to indexes.  However, we're
+			// sort of out luck because the JSON specification doesn't allow
+			// these types of array properties.
+			//
+			// So, if the array was also used as an associative object, there
+			// may be some values in the array that don't get properly encoded.
+			//
+			// A possible solution is to instead encode the Array as an Object
+			// but then it won't get decoded correctly (and won't be an
+			// Array instance)
+						
+			// close the array and return it's string value
+			return "[" + s + "]";
+		}
+		
+		/**
+		 * Converts an object to it's JSON string equivalent
+		 *
+		 * @param o The object to convert
+		 * @return The JSON string representation of <code>o</code>
+		 */
+		private function objectToString( o:Object ):String
+		{
+			// create a string to store the object's jsonstring value
+			var s:String = "";
+			
+			// determine if o is a class instance or a plain object
+			var classInfo:XML = describeType( o );
+			if ( classInfo.@name.toString() == "Object" )
+			{
+				// the value of o[key] in the loop below - store this 
+				// as a variable so we don't have to keep looking up o[key]
+				// when testing for valid values to convert
+				var value:Object;
+				
+				// loop over the keys in the object and add their converted
+				// values to the string
+				for ( var key:String in o )
+				{
+					// assign value to a variable for quick lookup
+					value = o[key];
+					
+					// don't add function's to the JSON string
+					if ( value is Function )
+					{
+						// skip this key and try another
+						continue;
+					}
+					
+					// when the length is 0 we're adding the first item so
+					// no comma is necessary
+					if ( s.length > 0 ) {
+						// we've already added an item, so add the comma separator
+						s += ","
+					}
+					
+					s += escapeString( key ) + ":" + convertToString( value );
+				}
+			}
+			else // o is a class instance
+			{
+				// Loop over all of the variables and accessors in the class and 
+				// serialize them along with their values.
+				for each ( var v:XML in classInfo..*.( 
+					name() == "variable"
+					||
+					( 
+						name() == "accessor"
+						// Issue #116 - Make sure accessors are readable
+						&& attribute( "access" ).charAt( 0 ) == "r" ) 
+					) )
+				{
+					// Issue #110 - If [Transient] metadata exists, then we should skip
+					if ( v.metadata && v.metadata.( @name == "Transient" ).length() > 0 )
+					{
+						continue;
+					}
+					
+					// When the length is 0 we're adding the first item so
+					// no comma is necessary
+					if ( s.length > 0 ) {
+						// We've already added an item, so add the comma separator
+						s += ","
+					}
+					
+					s += escapeString( v.@name.toString() ) + ":" 
+							+ convertToString( o[ v.@name ] );
+				}
+				
+			}
+			
+			return "{" + s + "}";
+		}
+
+		
+	}
+	
+}

src/com/adobe/serialization/json/JSONParseError.as

@@ -0,0 +1,87 @@
+/*
+  Copyright (c) 2008, Adobe Systems Incorporated
+  All rights reserved.
+
+  Redistribution and use in source and binary forms, with or without 
+  modification, are permitted provided that the following conditions are
+  met:
+
+  * Redistributions of source code must retain the above copyright notice, 
+    this list of conditions and the following disclaimer.
+  
+  * Redistributions in binary form must reproduce the above copyright
+    notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer in the 
+    documentation and/or other materials provided with the distribution.
+  
+  * Neither the name of Adobe Systems Incorporated nor the names of its 
+    contributors may be used to endorse or promote products derived from 
+    this software without specific prior written permission.
+
+  THIS SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED BY THE COPYRIGHT HOLDERS AND CONTRIBUTORS "AS
+  IS" AND ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO,
+  THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR
+  PURPOSE ARE DISCLAIMED. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE COPYRIGHT OWNER OR 
+  CONTRIBUTORS BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL,
+  EXEMPLARY, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO,
+  PROCUREMENT OF SUBSTITUTE GOODS OR SERVICES; LOSS OF USE, DATA, OR
+  PROFITS; OR BUSINESS INTERRUPTION) HOWEVER CAUSED AND ON ANY THEORY OF
+  LIABILITY, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, STRICT LIABILITY, OR TORT (INCLUDING
+  NEGLIGENCE OR OTHERWISE) ARISING IN ANY WAY OUT OF THE USE OF THIS
+  SOFTWARE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.
+*/
+
+package com.adobe.serialization.json {
+
+	/**
+	 *
+	 *
+	 */
+	public class JSONParseError extends Error 	{
+	
+		/** The location in the string where the error occurred */
+		private var _location:int;
+		
+		/** The string in which the parse error occurred */
+		private var _text:String;
+	
+		/**
+		 * Constructs a new JSONParseError.
+		 *
+		 * @param message The error message that occured during parsing
+		 * @langversion ActionScript 3.0
+		 * @playerversion Flash 9.0
+		 * @tiptext
+		 */
+		public function JSONParseError( message:String = "", location:int = 0, text:String = "") {
+			super( message );
+			name = "JSONParseError";
+			_location = location;
+			_text = text;
+		}
+
+		/**
+		 * Provides read-only access to the location variable.
+		 *
+		 * @return The location in the string where the error occurred
+		 * @langversion ActionScript 3.0
+		 * @playerversion Flash 9.0
+		 * @tiptext
+		 */
+		public function get location():int {
+			return _location;
+		}
+		
+		/**
+		 * Provides read-only access to the text variable.
+		 *
+		 * @return The string in which the error occurred
+		 * @langversion ActionScript 3.0
+		 * @playerversion Flash 9.0
+		 * @tiptext
+		 */
+		public function get text():String {
+			return _text;
+		}
+	}
+	
+}

src/com/adobe/serialization/json/JSONToken.as

@@ -0,0 +1,104 @@
+/*
+  Copyright (c) 2008, Adobe Systems Incorporated
+  All rights reserved.
+
+  Redistribution and use in source and binary forms, with or without 
+  modification, are permitted provided that the following conditions are
+  met:
+
+  * Redistributions of source code must retain the above copyright notice, 
+    this list of conditions and the following disclaimer.
+  
+  * Redistributions in binary form must reproduce the above copyright
+    notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer in the 
+    documentation and/or other materials provided with the distribution.
+  
+  * Neither the name of Adobe Systems Incorporated nor the names of its 
+    contributors may be used to endorse or promote products derived from 
+    this software without specific prior written permission.
+
+  THIS SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED BY THE COPYRIGHT HOLDERS AND CONTRIBUTORS "AS
+  IS" AND ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO,
+  THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR
+  PURPOSE ARE DISCLAIMED. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE COPYRIGHT OWNER OR 
+  CONTRIBUTORS BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL,
+  EXEMPLARY, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO,
+  PROCUREMENT OF SUBSTITUTE GOODS OR SERVICES; LOSS OF USE, DATA, OR
+  PROFITS; OR BUSINESS INTERRUPTION) HOWEVER CAUSED AND ON ANY THEORY OF
+  LIABILITY, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, STRICT LIABILITY, OR TORT (INCLUDING
+  NEGLIGENCE OR OTHERWISE) ARISING IN ANY WAY OUT OF THE USE OF THIS
+  SOFTWARE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.
+*/
+
+package com.adobe.serialization.json {
+
+	public class JSONToken {
+	
+		private var _type:int;
+		private var _value:Object;
+		
+		/**
+		 * Creates a new JSONToken with a specific token type and value.
+		 *
+		 * @param type The JSONTokenType of the token
+		 * @param value The value of the token
+		 * @langversion ActionScript 3.0
+		 * @playerversion Flash 9.0
+		 * @tiptext
+		 */
+		public function JSONToken( type:int = -1 /* JSONTokenType.UNKNOWN */, value:Object = null ) {
+			_type = type;
+			_value = value;
+		}
+		
+		/**
+		 * Returns the type of the token.
+		 *
+		 * @see com.adobe.serialization.json.JSONTokenType
+		 * @langversion ActionScript 3.0
+		 * @playerversion Flash 9.0
+		 * @tiptext
+		 */
+		public function get type():int {
+			return _type;	
+		}
+		
+		/**
+		 * Sets the type of the token.
+		 *
+		 * @see com.adobe.serialization.json.JSONTokenType
+		 * @langversion ActionScript 3.0
+		 * @playerversion Flash 9.0
+		 * @tiptext
+		 */
+		public function set type( value:int ):void {
+			_type = value;	
+		}
+		
+		/**
+		 * Gets the value of the token
+		 *
+		 * @see com.adobe.serialization.json.JSONTokenType
+		 * @langversion ActionScript 3.0
+		 * @playerversion Flash 9.0
+		 * @tiptext
+		 */
+		public function get value():Object {
+			return _value;	
+		}
+		
+		/**
+		 * Sets the value of the token
+		 *
+		 * @see com.adobe.serialization.json.JSONTokenType
+		 * @langversion ActionScript 3.0
+		 * @playerversion Flash 9.0
+		 * @tiptext
+		 */
+		public function set value ( v:Object ):void {
+			_value = v;	
+		}
+
+	}
+	
+}

src/com/adobe/serialization/json/JSONTokenType.as

@@ -0,0 +1,69 @@
+/*
+  Copyright (c) 2008, Adobe Systems Incorporated
+  All rights reserved.
+
+  Redistribution and use in source and binary forms, with or without 
+  modification, are permitted provided that the following conditions are
+  met:
+
+  * Redistributions of source code must retain the above copyright notice, 
+    this list of conditions and the following disclaimer.
+  
+  * Redistributions in binary form must reproduce the above copyright
+    notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer in the 
+    documentation and/or other materials provided with the distribution.
+  
+  * Neither the name of Adobe Systems Incorporated nor the names of its 
+    contributors may be used to endorse or promote products derived from 
+    this software without specific prior written permission.
+
+  THIS SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED BY THE COPYRIGHT HOLDERS AND CONTRIBUTORS "AS
+  IS" AND ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO,
+  THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR
+  PURPOSE ARE DISCLAIMED. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE COPYRIGHT OWNER OR 
+  CONTRIBUTORS BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL,
+  EXEMPLARY, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO,
+  PROCUREMENT OF SUBSTITUTE GOODS OR SERVICES; LOSS OF USE, DATA, OR
+  PROFITS; OR BUSINESS INTERRUPTION) HOWEVER CAUSED AND ON ANY THEORY OF
+  LIABILITY, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, STRICT LIABILITY, OR TORT (INCLUDING
+  NEGLIGENCE OR OTHERWISE) ARISING IN ANY WAY OUT OF THE USE OF THIS
+  SOFTWARE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.
+*/
+
+package com.adobe.serialization.json {
+
+	/**
+	 * Class containing constant values for the different types
+	 * of tokens in a JSON encoded string.
+	 */
+	public class JSONTokenType {
+	
+		public static const UNKNOWN:int = -1;
+		
+		public static const COMMA:int = 0;
+		
+		public static const LEFT_BRACE:int = 1;
+		
+		public static const RIGHT_BRACE:int = 2;
+		
+		public static const LEFT_BRACKET:int = 3;
+		
+		public static const RIGHT_BRACKET:int = 4;
+		
+		public static const COLON:int = 6;
+		
+		public static const TRUE:int = 7;
+		
+		public static const FALSE:int = 8;
+		
+		public static const NULL:int = 9;
+		
+		public static const STRING:int = 10;
+		
+		public static const NUMBER:int = 11;
+		
+		public static const NAN:int = 12;
+		
+	}
+	
+}

src/com/adobe/serialization/json/JSONTokenizer.as

@@ -0,0 +1,702 @@
+/*
+  Copyright (c) 2008, Adobe Systems Incorporated
+  All rights reserved.
+
+  Redistribution and use in source and binary forms, with or without 
+  modification, are permitted provided that the following conditions are
+  met:
+
+  * Redistributions of source code must retain the above copyright notice, 
+    this list of conditions and the following disclaimer.
+  
+  * Redistributions in binary form must reproduce the above copyright
+    notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer in the 
+    documentation and/or other materials provided with the distribution.
+  
+  * Neither the name of Adobe Systems Incorporated nor the names of its 
+    contributors may be used to endorse or promote products derived from 
+    this software without specific prior written permission.
+
+  THIS SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED BY THE COPYRIGHT HOLDERS AND CONTRIBUTORS "AS
+  IS" AND ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO,
+  THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR
+  PURPOSE ARE DISCLAIMED. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE COPYRIGHT OWNER OR 
+  CONTRIBUTORS BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL,
+  EXEMPLARY, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO,
+  PROCUREMENT OF SUBSTITUTE GOODS OR SERVICES; LOSS OF USE, DATA, OR
+  PROFITS; OR BUSINESS INTERRUPTION) HOWEVER CAUSED AND ON ANY THEORY OF
+  LIABILITY, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, STRICT LIABILITY, OR TORT (INCLUDING
+  NEGLIGENCE OR OTHERWISE) ARISING IN ANY WAY OUT OF THE USE OF THIS
+  SOFTWARE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.
+*/
+
+package com.adobe.serialization.json {
+
+	public class JSONTokenizer {
+		
+		/** 
+		 * Flag indicating if the tokenizer should only recognize
+		 * standard JSON tokens.  Setting to <code>false</code> allows
+		 * tokens such as NaN and allows numbers to be formatted as
+		 * hex, etc.
+		 */
+		private var strict:Boolean;
+	
+		/** The object that will get parsed from the JSON string */
+		private var obj:Object;
+		
+		/** The JSON string to be parsed */
+		private var jsonString:String;
+		
+		/** The current parsing location in the JSON string */
+		private var loc:int;
+		
+		/** The current character in the JSON string during parsing */
+		private var ch:String;
+		
+		/** 
+		 * The regular expression used to make sure the string does not
+		 * contain invalid control characters.
+		 */
+		private var controlCharsRegExp:RegExp = /[\x00-\x1F]/;
+		
+		/**
+		 * Constructs a new JSONDecoder to parse a JSON string 
+		 * into a native object.
+		 *
+		 * @param s The JSON string to be converted
+		 *		into a native object
+		 */
+		public function JSONTokenizer( s:String, strict:Boolean )
+		{
+			jsonString = s;
+			this.strict = strict;
+			loc = 0;
+			
+			// prime the pump by getting the first character
+			nextChar();
+		}
+		
+		/**
+		 * Gets the next token in the input sting and advances
+		* the character to the next character after the token
+		 */
+		public function getNextToken():JSONToken
+		{
+			var token:JSONToken = new JSONToken();
+			
+			// skip any whitespace / comments since the last 
+			// token was read
+			skipIgnored();
+						
+			// examine the new character and see what we have...
+			switch ( ch )
+			{	
+				case '{':
+					token.type = JSONTokenType.LEFT_BRACE;
+					token.value = '{';
+					nextChar();
+					break
+					
+				case '}':
+					token.type = JSONTokenType.RIGHT_BRACE;
+					token.value = '}';
+					nextChar();
+					break
+					
+				case '[':
+					token.type = JSONTokenType.LEFT_BRACKET;
+					token.value = '[';
+					nextChar();
+					break
+					
+				case ']':
+					token.type = JSONTokenType.RIGHT_BRACKET;
+					token.value = ']';
+					nextChar();
+					break
+				
+				case ',':
+					token.type = JSONTokenType.COMMA;
+					token.value = ',';
+					nextChar();
+					break
+					
+				case ':':
+					token.type = JSONTokenType.COLON;
+					token.value = ':';
+					nextChar();
+					break;
+					
+				case 't': // attempt to read true
+					var possibleTrue:String = "t" + nextChar() + nextChar() + nextChar();
+					
+					if ( possibleTrue == "true" )
+					{
+						token.type = JSONTokenType.TRUE;
+						token.value = true;
+						nextChar();
+					}
+					else
+					{
+						parseError( "Expecting 'true' but found " + possibleTrue );
+					}
+					
+					break;
+					
+				case 'f': // attempt to read false
+					var possibleFalse:String = "f" + nextChar() + nextChar() + nextChar() + nextChar();
+					
+					if ( possibleFalse == "false" )
+					{
+						token.type = JSONTokenType.FALSE;
+						token.value = false;
+						nextChar();
+					}
+					else
+					{
+						parseError( "Expecting 'false' but found " + possibleFalse );
+					}
+					
+					break;
+					
+				case 'n': // attempt to read null
+					var possibleNull:String = "n" + nextChar() + nextChar() + nextChar();
+					
+					if ( possibleNull == "null" )
+					{
+						token.type = JSONTokenType.NULL;
+						token.value = null;
+						nextChar();
+					}
+					else
+					{
+						parseError( "Expecting 'null' but found " + possibleNull );
+					}
+					
+					break;
+					
+				case 'N': // attempt to read NaN
+					var possibleNaN:String = "N" + nextChar() + nextChar();
+					
+					if ( possibleNaN == "NaN" )
+					{
+						token.type = JSONTokenType.NAN;
+						token.value = NaN;
+						nextChar();
+					}
+					else
+					{
+						parseError( "Expecting 'NaN' but found " + possibleNaN );
+					}
+					
+					break;
+					
+				case '"': // the start of a string
+					token = readString();
+					break;
+					
+				default: 
+					// see if we can read a number
+					if ( isDigit( ch ) || ch == '-' )
+					{
+						token = readNumber();
+					}
+					else if ( ch == '' )
+					{
+						// check for reading past the end of the string
+						return null;
+					}
+					else
+					{						
+						// not sure what was in the input string - it's not
+						// anything we expected
+						parseError( "Unexpected " + ch + " encountered" );
+					}
+			}
+			
+			return token;
+		}
+		
+		/**
+		 * Attempts to read a string from the input string.  Places
+		 * the character location at the first character after the
+		 * string.  It is assumed that ch is " before this method is called.
+		 *
+		 * @return the JSONToken with the string value if a string could
+		 *		be read.  Throws an error otherwise.
+		 */
+		private function readString():JSONToken
+		{
+			// Rather than examine the string character-by-character, it's
+			// faster to use indexOf to try to and find the closing quote character
+			// and then replace escape sequences after the fact.
+			
+			// Start at the current input stream position
+			var quoteIndex:int = loc;
+			do
+			{
+				// Find the next quote in the input stream
+				quoteIndex = jsonString.indexOf( "\"", quoteIndex );
+				
+				if ( quoteIndex >= 0 )
+				{
+					// We found the next double quote character in the string, but we need
+					// to make sure it is not part of an escape sequence.
+					
+					// Keep looping backwards while the previous character is a backslash
+					var backspaceCount:int = 0;
+					var backspaceIndex:int = quoteIndex - 1;
+					while ( jsonString.charAt( backspaceIndex ) == "\\" )
+					{
+						backspaceCount++;
+						backspaceIndex--;
+					}
+					
+					// If we have an even number of backslashes, that means this is the ending quote 
+					if ( backspaceCount % 2 == 0 )
+					{
+						break;
+					}
+					
+					// At this point, the quote was determined to be part of an escape sequence
+					// so we need to move past the quote index to look for the next one
+					quoteIndex++;
+				}
+				else // There are no more quotes in the string and we haven't found the end yet
+				{
+					parseError( "Unterminated string literal" );
+				}
+			} while ( true );
+			
+			// Unescape the string
+			// the token for the string we'll try to read
+			var token:JSONToken = new JSONToken();
+			token.type = JSONTokenType.STRING;
+			// Attach resulting string to the token to return it
+			token.value = unescapeString( jsonString.substr( loc, quoteIndex - loc ) );
+			
+			// Move past the closing quote in the input string.  This updates the next
+			// character in the input stream to be the character one after the closing quote
+			loc = quoteIndex + 1;
+			nextChar();
+			
+			return token;
+		}
+		
+		/**
+		 * Convert all JavaScript escape characters into normal characters
+		 *
+		 * @param input The input string to convert
+		 * @return Original string with escape characters replaced by real characters
+		 */
+		public function unescapeString( input:String ):String
+		{
+			// Issue #104 - If the string contains any unescaped control characters, this
+			// is an error in strict mode
+			if ( strict && controlCharsRegExp.test( input ) )
+			{
+				parseError( "String contains unescaped control character (0x00-0x1F)" );
+			}
+			
+			var result:String = "";
+			var backslashIndex:int = 0;
+			var nextSubstringStartPosition:int = 0;
+			var len:int = input.length;
+			do
+			{
+				// Find the next backslash in the input
+				backslashIndex = input.indexOf( '\\', nextSubstringStartPosition );
+				
+				if ( backslashIndex >= 0 )
+				{
+					result += input.substr( nextSubstringStartPosition, backslashIndex - nextSubstringStartPosition );
+					
+					// Move past the backslash and next character (all escape sequences are
+					// two characters, except for \u, which will advance this further)
+					nextSubstringStartPosition = backslashIndex + 2;
+					
+					// Check the next character so we know what to escape
+					var afterBackslashIndex:int = backslashIndex + 1;
+					var escapedChar:String = input.charAt( afterBackslashIndex );
+					switch ( escapedChar )
+					{	
+						// Try to list the most common expected cases first to improve performance
+						
+						case '"': result += '"'; break; // quotation mark
+						case '\\': result += '\\'; break; // reverse solidus	
+						case 'n': result += '\n'; break; // newline
+						case 'r': result += '\r'; break; // carriage return
+						case 't': result += '\t'; break; // horizontal tab	
+						
+						// Convert a unicode escape sequence to it's character value
+						case 'u':
+							
+							// Save the characters as a string we'll convert to an int
+							var hexValue:String = "";
+							
+							// Make sure there are enough characters in the string leftover
+							if ( nextSubstringStartPosition + 4 > len )
+							{
+								parseError( "Unexpected end of input.  Expecting 4 hex digits after \\u." );
+							}
+							
+							// Try to find 4 hex characters
+							for ( var i:int = nextSubstringStartPosition; i < nextSubstringStartPosition + 4; i++ )
+							{
+								// get the next character and determine
+								// if it's a valid hex digit or not
+								var possibleHexChar:String = input.charAt( i );
+								if ( !isHexDigit( possibleHexChar ) )
+								{
+									parseError( "Excepted a hex digit, but found: " + possibleHexChar );
+								}
+								
+								// Valid hex digit, add it to the value
+								hexValue += possibleHexChar;
+							}
+							
+							// Convert hexValue to an integer, and use that
+							// integer value to create a character to add
+							// to our string.
+							result += String.fromCharCode( parseInt( hexValue, 16 ) );
+							// Move past the 4 hex digits that we just read
+							nextSubstringStartPosition += 4;
+							break;
+						
+						case 'f': result += '\f'; break; // form feed
+						case '/': result += '/'; break; // solidus
+						case 'b': result += '\b'; break; // bell
+						default: result += '\\' + escapedChar; // Couldn't unescape the sequence, so just pass it through
+					}
+				}
+				else
+				{
+					// No more backslashes to replace, append the rest of the string
+					result += input.substr( nextSubstringStartPosition );
+					break;
+				}
+				
+			} while ( nextSubstringStartPosition < len );
+			
+			return result;
+		}
+		
+		/**
+		 * Attempts to read a number from the input string.  Places
+		 * the character location at the first character after the
+		 * number.
+		 * 
+		 * @return The JSONToken with the number value if a number could
+		 * 		be read.  Throws an error otherwise.
+		 */
+		private function readNumber():JSONToken
+		{
+			// the string to accumulate the number characters
+			// into that we'll convert to a number at the end
+			var input:String = "";
+			
+			// check for a negative number
+			if ( ch == '-' )
+			{
+				input += '-';
+				nextChar();
+			}
+			
+			// the number must start with a digit
+			if ( !isDigit( ch ) )
+			{
+				parseError( "Expecting a digit" );
+			}
+			
+			// 0 can only be the first digit if it
+			// is followed by a decimal point
+			if ( ch == '0' )
+			{
+				input += ch;
+				nextChar();
+				
+				// make sure no other digits come after 0
+				if ( isDigit( ch ) )
+				{
+					parseError( "A digit cannot immediately follow 0" );
+				}
+				// unless we have 0x which starts a hex number, but this
+				// doesn't match JSON spec so check for not strict mode.
+				else if ( !strict && ch == 'x' )
+				{
+					// include the x in the input
+					input += ch;
+					nextChar();
+					
+					// need at least one hex digit after 0x to
+					// be valid
+					if ( isHexDigit( ch ) )
+					{
+						input += ch;
+						nextChar();
+					}
+					else
+					{
+						parseError( "Number in hex format require at least one hex digit after \"0x\"" );	
+					}
+					
+					// consume all of the hex values
+					while ( isHexDigit( ch ) )
+					{
+						input += ch;
+						nextChar();
+					}
+				}
+			}
+			else
+			{
+				// read numbers while we can
+				while ( isDigit( ch ) )
+				{
+					input += ch;
+					nextChar();
+				}
+			}
+			
+			// check for a decimal value
+			if ( ch == '.' )
+			{
+				input += '.';
+				nextChar();
+				
+				// after the decimal there has to be a digit
+				if ( !isDigit( ch ) )
+				{
+					parseError( "Expecting a digit" );
+				}
+				
+				// read more numbers to get the decimal value
+				while ( isDigit( ch ) )
+				{
+					input += ch;
+					nextChar();
+				}
+			}
+			
+			// check for scientific notation
+			if ( ch == 'e' || ch == 'E' )
+			{
+				input += "e"
+				nextChar();
+				// check for sign
+				if ( ch == '+' || ch == '-' )
+				{
+					input += ch;
+					nextChar();
+				}
+				
+				// require at least one number for the exponent
+				// in this case
+				if ( !isDigit( ch ) )
+				{
+					parseError( "Scientific notation number needs exponent value" );
+				}
+							
+				// read in the exponent
+				while ( isDigit( ch ) )
+				{
+					input += ch;
+					nextChar();
+				}
+			}
+			
+			// convert the string to a number value
+			var num:Number = Number( input );
+			
+			if ( isFinite( num ) && !isNaN( num ) )
+			{
+				// the token for the number that we've read
+				var token:JSONToken = new JSONToken();
+				token.type = JSONTokenType.NUMBER;
+				token.value = num;
+				return token;
+			}
+			else
+			{
+				parseError( "Number " + num + " is not valid!" );
+			}
+			
+            return null;
+		}
+
+		/**
+		 * Reads the next character in the input
+		 * string and advances the character location.
+		 *
+		 * @return The next character in the input string, or
+		 *		null if we've read past the end.
+		 */
+		private function nextChar():String
+		{
+			return ch = jsonString.charAt( loc++ );
+		}
+		
+		/**
+		 * Advances the character location past any
+		 * sort of white space and comments
+		 */
+		private function skipIgnored():void
+		{
+			var originalLoc:int;
+			
+			// keep trying to skip whitespace and comments as long
+			// as we keep advancing past the original location 
+			do
+			{
+				originalLoc = loc;
+				skipWhite();
+				skipComments();
+			}
+			while ( originalLoc != loc );
+		}
+		
+		/**
+		 * Skips comments in the input string, either
+		 * single-line or multi-line.  Advances the character
+		 * to the first position after the end of the comment.
+		 */
+		private function skipComments():void
+		{
+			if ( ch == '/' )
+			{
+				// Advance past the first / to find out what type of comment
+				nextChar();
+				switch ( ch )
+				{
+					case '/': // single-line comment, read through end of line
+						
+						// Loop over the characters until we find
+						// a newline or until there's no more characters left
+						do
+						{
+							nextChar();
+						}
+						while ( ch != '\n' && ch != '' )
+						
+						// move past the \n
+						nextChar();
+						
+						break;
+					
+					case '*': // multi-line comment, read until closing */
+
+						// move past the opening *
+						nextChar();
+						
+						// try to find a trailing */
+						while ( true )
+						{
+							if ( ch == '*' )
+							{
+								// check to see if we have a closing /
+								nextChar();
+								if ( ch == '/')
+								{
+									// move past the end of the closing */
+									nextChar();
+									break;
+								}
+							}
+							else
+							{
+								// move along, looking if the next character is a *
+								nextChar();
+							}
+							
+							// when we're here we've read past the end of 
+							// the string without finding a closing */, so error
+							if ( ch == '' )
+							{
+								parseError( "Multi-line comment not closed" );
+							}
+						}
+
+						break;
+					
+					// Can't match a comment after a /, so it's a parsing error
+					default:
+						parseError( "Unexpected " + ch + " encountered (expecting '/' or '*' )" );
+				}
+			}
+			
+		}
+		
+		
+		/**
+		 * Skip any whitespace in the input string and advances
+		 * the character to the first character after any possible
+		 * whitespace.
+		 */
+		private function skipWhite():void
+		{	
+			// As long as there are spaces in the input 
+			// stream, advance the current location pointer
+			// past them
+			while ( isWhiteSpace( ch ) )
+			{
+				nextChar();
+			}
+			
+		}
+		
+		/**
+		 * Determines if a character is whitespace or not.
+		 *
+		 * @return True if the character passed in is a whitespace
+		 *	character
+		 */
+		private function isWhiteSpace( ch:String ):Boolean
+		{
+			// Check for the whitespace defined in the spec
+			if ( ch == ' ' || ch == '\t' || ch == '\n' || ch == '\r' )
+			{
+				return true;
+			}
+			// If we're not in strict mode, we also accept non-breaking space
+			else if ( !strict && ch.charCodeAt( 0 ) == 160 )
+			{
+				return true;
+			}
+			
+			return false;
+		}
+		
+		/**
+		 * Determines if a character is a digit [0-9].
+		 *
+		 * @return True if the character passed in is a digit
+		 */
+		private function isDigit( ch:String ):Boolean
+		{
+			return ( ch >= '0' && ch <= '9' );
+		}
+		
+		/**
+		 * Determines if a character is a hex digit [0-9A-Fa-f].
+		 *
+		 * @return True if the character passed in is a hex digit
+		 */
+		private function isHexDigit( ch:String ):Boolean
+		{
+			return ( isDigit( ch ) || ( ch >= 'A' && ch <= 'F' ) || ( ch >= 'a' && ch <= 'f' ) );
+		}
+	
+		/**
+		 * Raises a parsing error with a specified message, tacking
+		 * on the error location and the original string.
+		 *
+		 * @param message The message indicating why the error occurred
+		 */
+		public function parseError( message:String ):void
+		{
+			throw new JSONParseError( message, loc, jsonString );
+		}
+	}
+	
+}

todo.txt

@@ -1,7 +1,6 @@
 - decide on a license
 - push to github
-- JSON output?
+- human-readable JSON output
-- fixed-sized factories
 
 - finalize "library" notion
 - text objects
@@ -19,3 +18,5 @@ DONE:
 - fix scrollwheel sensitivity
 - create a readme
 - quit to menu
+- fixed-sized factories
+- JSON output?