Hmm, In the mobile space yes. But I don't see this news effecting flash on desktops anytime soon. Soon meaning 3 years or less in this case. And its flash on desktops that is the real thorn in the backside as far as accessibility is concerned.
Ricardo Walker [email protected] Twitter & Skype: rwalker296 www.mobileaccess.org On Nov 11, 2011, at 12:06 PM, Cara Quinn wrote: > I thought all of you might find this really interesting. This is actually > really amazing news for us in the blind community! > > This is the first step to dealing with some of the extraordinarily difficult > issues we've all had at times in accessing important content on the web! > > This is truly a wonderful step! woohoo! > > Smiles, > > Cara :) > --- > Adobe discontinues mobile Flash Player > > Sylvie Barak > > 11/9/2011 3:51 PM EST > > MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.--Adobe Systems Inc. announced Wednesday (Nov. 9) it > will restructure its operations, a move which will result in layoffs for some > 750 employees and the discontinuation of Flash Player for mobile devices. The > upcoming release of Flash Player 11.1 for Android and BlackBerry PlayBook > will be the last update to the software. > > In a shocking 180-degree twist, Adobe said in a blog post it would no longer > be working to adapt Flash Player for mobile to new browsers, OS versions or > different device configurations, and that it would instead focus on building > applications for mobile and investment in HTML5 - long considered a rival > standard. > > “HTML5 is now universally supported on major mobile devices, in some cases > exclusively,” wrote Danny Winokur, vice president and GM of Adobe’s > interactive development team, adding that this now made HTML5 superior in > terms of creating and deploying content in the browser across mobile > platforms. > > “We are excited about this, and will continue our work with key players in > the HTML community, including Google, Apple, Microsoft and RIM, to drive > HTML5 innovation they can use to advance their mobile browsers,” he added. > > Winokur said Adobe would now urge developers to continue packaging native > apps with Adobe AIR instead. > > “The announcement to no longer develop Flash Players for mobile devices is an > admission by Adobe not so much about the superiority of HTML5, but more about > HTML5 momentum and the incredible amount of resources it takes Adobe to > maintain the Flash player for so many different chips sets and mobile OSes > that change generations two to three times per year,” said analyst Jack Gold > of Gold Associates. > > Indeed, in the mobile space where OS versions and chips change so quickly, > Gold says Flash for mobile has been a “resource nightmare” for Adobe. “We > could have seen this coming,” he added. > > The war of words over whether Flash was right for mobile has been raging for > years now, with Steve Jobs and the Apple Inc. camp firmly opposed to Adobe’s > offerings on the basis of their inherent instability and battery drainage. So > adamant was Jobs, in fact, that he famously wrote a 1500 word missive about > what he saw as the platform’s failings, subsequently banning it from iOS > altogether. > > Some see today’s announcement by Adobe as surrender and an acknowledgment of > defeat, whilst others see the move as a simple repackaging and rebranding > exercise, as long as Adobe Air (Adobe Integrated Runtime) lives on. > > AIR-a cross-platform runtime environment for building rich internet > applications using Adobe Flash, Adobe Flex, HTML, and Ajax-can be run as > desktop applications or on mobile devices. The runtime supports installable > applications on Windows, Linux, Mac OS and some mobile operating systems such > as iOS and Android. > > “AIR wraps Flash and runs outside the browser, so it’s not subject to the > browser restrictions,” technology pundit and software expert Simon Bisson > told EE Times adding that a lot of Flash’s problems had been down to the > browser sandbox. Bisson claimed Android Flash, for example, was let down by > its lack of touch capabilities for the browser - two point only. > > AIR, however, is multi touch and allows much more hardware access from > outside the browser, making it easier to manage resources like battery too. A > good example of AIR in action is the BlackBerry PlayBook UI, which is all > AIR. > > Adobe's mobile future up in the AIR > > AIR has already seen a fair measure of success, with apps based on the > platform available not only on iOS, but also at the top of the Android > market. “It’s not as obvious as Flash, as it looks like just another app, and > Adobe has now launched the app-bundled runtime for Android, which is even > less visible,” said Bisson. > > AIR’s low level hardware integration also means better GPU support and > Flash’s 3D libraries are much more advanced than WebGLs, meaning it might be > the logical choice to do 3D in AIR, especially with support from frameworks > like Marmalade and Unity. > > “A lot of what Flash does HTML can’t yet do,” he added, calling Flash more of > a test pilot trying things out that would later end up getting integrated > into HTML, like DRM for video for example, something HTML5 is still unable to > do. Thus, for applications like Netflix, for instance, AIR would still very > much be a go-to market. > > “It's never really been a matter of competing between the two (HTML5 and > Flash), though some people do put it in those terms,” Bisson admitted. > > “Apple may be gloating, but it’s not so much that HTML5 is better, as it is > that Adobe just isn’t capable of providing the amount of resource that an > open-sourced, standards-based approach can offer,” added Gold, saying the > rivalry was more akin to the more popular VHS winning over technically > superior Beta all over again. > > “This will accelerate the deployment of HTML5 content, not just for mobile, > but also for PC/Mac platforms,” Gold posited. > > Bisson, meanwhile, said he believed this might only hold true for in-browser > use. “Outside the browser, it's more complex,” he said, saying most > developers were using HTML5 for web anyway and that Flash for advertising had > never really made it to mobile. Indeed, Adobe recently announced the > acquisition of Natobi, creator of PhoneGap, giving the firm the opportunity > to provide tools to developers to quickly create HTML5 content for phone ads > that’s supported by virtually every mobile browser. > > “I just don't buy it as surrender,” said Bisson adding, “change of strategy? > Yes. And, an unwillingness to dumb down the capabilities of the platform for > mobile browsers, which still lag behind the desktop considerably.” > > Even on the desktop, however, some see a trend of developers moving away from > developing rich content in Flash in favor of Javascript, CSS, and HTML5, > which has native support for video. > > On the other hand, Adobe has released tools that will allow mobile developers > to write a program on a single platform and deploy it across several major > mobile platforms, including Android, iOS, WindowsPhone and the BlackBerry OS. > > “AIR becomes direct competition for native frameworks that way,” explained > Bisson, adding that the simplicity of writing something once in AIR and being > able to deploy it across several operating systems was a major strength. > Others have argued, however, that the method does engender a certain lack of > app performance, though how significant this performance loss is remains to > be properly documented. > > To most, however, the major concern with Adobe’s announcement will be that > all the Flash content on the web will now no longer be guaranteed to run on > future mobile devices and may now cause a split for web developers having to > code sites separately for mobile and PC. > > “We don’t believe Adobe will be able to offer a simple ‘switch’ in its tools > to optimally create/support both with one development environment – others > have tried this approach and it’s not worked out that well,” said Gold. > > Meanwhile, Winokur promised Adobe would “of course continue to provide > critical bug fixes and security updates for existing device configurations. > We will also allow our source code licensees to continue working on and > release their own implementations.” > > > > > > --- > View my Online Portfolio at: > > http://www.onemodelplace.com/CaraQuinn > > Follow me on Twitter! > > https://twitter.com/ModelCara > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "MacVisionaries" group. > To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. > To unsubscribe from this group, send email to > [email protected]. > For more options, visit this group at > http://groups.google.com/group/macvisionaries?hl=en. > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "MacVisionaries" group. 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