Flash 10 for most smartphones due in October
updated 04:10 pm EDT, Tue June 23, 2009
Flash 10 Mobile in October
Adobe during its most recent fiscal results call narrowed the window for its plans to port desktop-grade Flash to mobile devices. Company chief Shantanu Naraye says it now expects a beta version of Flash 10 to arrive at the MAX conference in October and that it should initially be available for Android, Symbian, webOS and Windows Mobile. Web browsers on these devices will support both animations and video without having to leave for a separate app, such as the Flash Lite player on many Symbian or Windows Mobile phones.
As before, the release will omit the iPhone due to Apple's rules for software development. Mobile Safari doesn't support third-party plugins, and the iPhone SDK prevents developing apps meant specifically as code interpreters, ruling out a Flash Lite-style app. Adobe has at times said it's discussing Flash with Apple but hasn't provided any kind of timetable. Apple co-founder Steve Jobs has insisted that Flash as it exists wouldn't work on the iPhone as Flash Lite often omits key features, including video, while desktop Flash often demands too many system resources.
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iPhone, industry, gadgets, software, Symbian, Windows Mobile, Android, Adobe, Flash, mobile phones, Apple, webOS
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Joined: Jan 2001
Closed
This closed ecosystem attitude is what will drive more and more people to android over time - Apple should learn from its mistakes with the MacOS and aim to make iPhone OS ubiquitous and license-able, not locked to one single device and closed to tools such as this.