iPad users and the lack of flash

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I keep on reading that the iPad doesn't run flash.

How will that effect me. Is it a big deal? Are there any situations where you wish it would run flash?

Thanks,
Adam
#flash #ipad #lack #users
  • Profile picture of the author Victor
    All the time! However, that's just me...I like flash. I program in it and I use it a lot more than the average person. This is one reason why I didn't get an iPad or iPad 2.

    Have you looked into Android based tablets such as the Motorola XOOM or Samsung's Galaxy Tab?
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    • Profile picture of the author greggreg
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      • Profile picture of the author packerfan
        Originally Posted by greggreg View Post

        I agree, and this is why I think the android platform will previel and make the ipad obsolete.. Apple is trying to push their own version of flash, but imo adobe has already taken the market along time ago..
        What version of flash does Apple own? If you mean HTML 5 apple doesn't own that...

        And last I checked Apple is projected to sell about 50,000,000 Ipads this year. I think they're doing alright.
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  • Profile picture of the author Hosterbox
    Yes, it will. I personally love flash, it can be used for everything from video coding to banner marketing, but sadly Apple is slowly "snuffing" out Flash even thought it might not be apparent more and more websites/company's are switching to HTML5 (Which Apple fully supports). Even thought more and more websites are moving to HTML5 for that very reason, you should still buy a tablet that does support flash. Flash is so widely spread across internet from Flash games, to video players you will only notice the difference once you don't have it.

    My personal opinion
    Regards,
    -Matt
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  • Profile picture of the author Andrea Wilson
    As far as I know the last time I ran a new computer and intended to watch youtube it asks me to install flash. Then so does the games in facebook requires flash as well.

    Andrea
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  • Profile picture of the author O0o0O
    Only if you're trying to create flash games or flash apps will you be affected. If not, then you can just use electronic devices that have flash. In these times we have to either keep up with the current technological trends or set them ourselves.
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  • Profile picture of the author donhx
    Personally, I think the iPad is crippled out of the box since it cannot run Flash. All other Android and Windows devices (tablets, smart phones) will run Flash. Of course it is also on 99% of all computers.

    Steve Jobs has banned Flash from all Apple devices because he says it takes too much battery power and for others reasons. Other devices by other companies have the power to run Flash, but you only get a blue box where Flash should be with Apple.

    Many people think users should have the option to either view Flash or turn it off if you want on Apple devices, but that is not an option. There have been many suggestions that Jobs is using technology to censor the web since Flash is so ubiquitous.

    Flash is good and getting better. There is an emerging technology called HTML5 that Jobs likes and will run on all devices. However, there is a commission setting HTML5 standards, and they say the final standard being set is still a few years away.

    The Apple market seems big at 15 million iPads being sold, but so far they have no competition. Once all the new tablets are released by other companies this year, that number may seem tiny. All will run Flash except the Apple stuff, so you will have to make some decisions about that. Jobs is definitely making more work for us all by his bias against Flash.
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  • Profile picture of the author Jesus Perez
    Ipad owner here. I don't miss flash at all. Everything on YouTube plays fine. Almost all marketers and video sites have ipad detection enabled to serve videos. The games in the app store kill the flash games out there.

    Again...not missed at all. Even EVP 2.0 and S3FlowShield now support ipad video.
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    • Profile picture of the author Landis
      Originally Posted by Jesus Perez View Post

      Almost all marketers and video sites have ipad detection enabled to serve videos. The games in the app store kill the flash games out there.
      Not really. Most marketers use flash videos embedded on their sites. How are the games in the app store going to kill flash games? They are only usable on apple devices, so I can't see them killing flash games anytime soon.

      I also own the ipad and get tired of seeing the "blue boxes" all around the net.
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      • Profile picture of the author Jesus Perez
        Originally Posted by Landis Phan View Post

        Not really. Most marketers use flash videos embedded on their sites. How are the games in the app store going to kill flash games? They are only usable on apple devices, so I can't see them killing flash games anytime soon.

        I also own the ipad and get tired of seeing the "blue boxes" all around the net.
        The marketers I visit have all transitioned to HTML5-friendly video players that play perfectly on IOS devices. EVP 2.0, S3Flowshield, YouTube, MetaCafe, Viddler, etc also jumped on the bandwagon a while ago and play perfectly on my iPad.

        As for the games comment...I meant that the app store games are, in my opinion, far better quality than the existing Flash games on the market.

        I'm sure there are people out there that can't see past the missing Flash. I was actually worried about this before buying the iPad. I'm no longer one of them. If the site can't serve IOS devices, they simply lose me as a customer.
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        • Profile picture of the author Landis
          Originally Posted by Jesus Perez View Post

          The marketers I visit have all transitioned to HTML5-friendly video players that play perfectly on IOS devices. EVP 2.0, S3Flowshield, YouTube, MetaCafe, Viddler, etc also jumped on the bandwagon a while ago and play perfectly on my iPad.

          As for the games comment...I meant that the app store games are, in my opinion, far better quality than the existing Flash games on the market.

          I'm sure there are people out there that can't see past the missing Flash. I was actually worried about this before buying the iPad. I'm no longer one of them. If the site can't serve IOS devices, they simply lose me as a customer.
          That's great that it works for you and fits your needs. For other people, like myself, we would rather have the full internet experience rather then a gimped one, where apple controls what we can, or can't do. As for losing you as a customer if the site doesn't support ios? Lol, seriously?
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        • Profile picture of the author Tonytsports
          Originally Posted by Jesus Perez View Post

          The marketers I visit have all transitioned to HTML5-friendly video players that play perfectly on IOS devices. EVP 2.0, S3Flowshield, YouTube, MetaCafe, Viddler, etc also jumped on the bandwagon a while ago and play perfectly on my iPad.

          As for the games comment...I meant that the app store games are, in my opinion, far better quality than the existing Flash games on the market.

          I'm sure there are people out there that can't see past the missing Flash. I was actually worried about this before buying the iPad. I'm no longer one of them. If the site can't serve IOS devices, they simply lose me as a customer.

          Customer walks into Best Buy.

          Picks up the Ipad 2.

          Goes to ESPN.com

          Clicks videos on the home page.

          Nothing happens.

          Tons of Customers lost.
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          • Profile picture of the author packerfan
            Originally Posted by Tonytsports View Post

            Customer walks into Best Buy.

            Picks up the Ipad 2.

            Goes to ESPN.com

            Clicks videos on the home page.

            Nothing happens.

            Tons of Customers lost.
            Or... Customer walks into Best Buy tries to buy an Ipad 2 and can't because it's sold out due to high demand...

            No flash is a non-issue for 99% of people. Stop believing everything you read.
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    • Profile picture of the author donhx
      Originally Posted by Jesus Perez View Post

      Ipad owner here. I don't miss flash at all. Everything on YouTube plays fine. Almost all marketers and video sites have ipad detection enabled to serve videos. The games in the app store kill the flash games out there.

      Again...not missed at all. Even EVP 2.0 and S3FlowShield now support ipad video.
      I'm happy that you don't miss Flash on your iPad. However, even if you did miss it you couldn't do anything about it since Steve Job personally decided, he said, to eliminate it on all Apple devices. Many of us like Flash and that's why it is on 99% (literally) of all computers.

      Most of us would like the choice to use Flash and not have Jobs make it for us. Jobs sold 15 million iPads... he probably could have sold 30 million if the iPad could run Flash. The rest of us are waiting for tablets that aren't Flash crippled.

      There is no such thing as "iPad Video." There is only HTML5 used by iPad and others... as I mentioned, a standard that is a mish-mash right now that is not going to be formalized and released for a couple years. Since there are no HTML5 standards yet, it will be causing browser problems for years to come, and that will affect IMers.
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      • Profile picture of the author Josh Anderson
        Originally Posted by donhx View Post

        There is no such thing as "iPad Video." There is only HTML5 used by iPad and others... as I mentioned, a standard that is a mish-mash right now that is not going to be formalized and released for a couple years
        Ian Hickson, editor of the HTML5 specification, expects the specification to reach the Candidate Recommendation stage during 2012.[18] The criterion for the specification becoming a W3C Recommendation is “two 100% complete and fully interoperable implementations”.[18] In an interview with TechRepublic, Hickson guessed that this would occur in the year 2022 or later.[19] However, many parts of the specification are stable and may be implemented in products:
        The key being "many parts of the specification are stable and may be implemented in products." Html5 Video is not there yet but the market and companies like Apple and google are pushing it.
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      • Profile picture of the author Jesus Perez
        Originally Posted by Landis Phan View Post

        As for losing you as a customer if the site doesn't support ios? Lol, seriously?
        Yes. I read a lot of salesletters on the iPad. Made quite a few purchases through it as well. If I can't watch a video salesletter, I rarely remember to return.

        Originally Posted by donhx View Post

        I'm happy that you don't miss Flash on your iPad. However, even if you did miss it you couldn't do anything about it since Steve Job personally decided, he said, to eliminate it on all Apple devices. Many of us like Flash and that's why it is on 99% (literally) of all computers.

        Most of us would like the choice to use Flash and not have Jobs make it for us. Jobs sold 15 million iPads... he probably could have sold 30 million if the iPad could run Flash. The rest of us are waiting for tablets that aren't Flash crippled.

        There is no such thing as "iPad Video." There is only HTML5 used by iPad and others... as I mentioned, a standard that is a mish-mash right now that is not going to be formalized and released for a couple years. Since there are no HTML5 standards yet, it will be causing browser problems for years to come, and that will affect IMers.
        Thanks for the clarification. I'm quite aware there is no such thing as "iPad video". Scroll up a few responses and you'll see my reference to HTML5. That's what I get for trying to use "easy to understand" terms. :rolleyes:
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      • Profile picture of the author packerfan
        Originally Posted by donhx View Post

        I'm happy that you don't miss Flash on your iPad. However, even if you did miss it you couldn't do anything about it since Steve Job personally decided, he said, to eliminate it on all Apple devices. Many of us like Flash and that's why it is on 99% (literally) of all computers.

        Most of us would like the choice to use Flash and not have Jobs make it for us. Jobs sold 15 million iPads... he probably could have sold 30 million if the iPad could run Flash. The rest of us are waiting for tablets that aren't Flash crippled.

        There is no such thing as "iPad Video." There is only HTML5 used by iPad and others... as I mentioned, a standard that is a mish-mash right now that is not going to be formalized and released for a couple years. Since there are no HTML5 standards yet, it will be causing browser problems for years to come, and that will affect IMers.
        Do you honestly think that normal people care about flash on their Ipads? 90% of them probably don't know what flash is. Stop being ridiculous. For 99% of people having no flash is no problem at all. It's fine to hate apple, but don't act like this matters. It doesn't. Use an Ipad for 6 months and then report back. I'm betting you won't miss flash at all...
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        • Profile picture of the author Tim_Carter
          Originally Posted by packerfan View Post

          Do you honestly think that normal people care about flash on their Ipads? 90% of them probably don't know what flash is. Stop being ridiculous. For 99% of people having no flash is no problem at all. It's fine to hate apple, but don't act like this matters. It doesn't. Use an Ipad for 6 months and then report back. I'm betting you won't miss flash at all...
          Your kidding right?

          Yes most people don't know what flash is - in that you are correct. They just expect videos on websites to play not get a box.

          Almost everybody does want flash. They just don't know what it is.

          edit - as a side note - if the ipad and iphone weren't such walled gardens I would own both. I went with Android because they are far more flexible and open.
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          • Profile picture of the author paulie888
            Originally Posted by Tim_Carter View Post

            Your kidding right?

            Yes most people don't know what flash is - in that you are correct. They just expect videos on websites to play not get a box.

            Almost everybody does want flash. They just don't know what it is.

            edit - as a side note - if the ipad and iphone weren't such walled gardens I would own both. I went with Android because they are far more flexible and open.
            You're absolutely right, Tim. While many average mainstream customers may not care about or know what Flash is, they're certainly going to find out what is missing the moment they go to a site and see a big empty space where some application/game, video or banner should be.

            It annoys me to no end to see this, and I'm sure that others find it irritating too. Contrary to what Steve and co. might have you believe, there are still plenty of mainstream websites out there that contain at least some Flash content that the user will not be pleased to find out is missing!
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        • Profile picture of the author Tsnyder
          Originally Posted by packerfan View Post

          Do you honestly think that normal people care about flash on their Ipads? 90% of them probably don't know what flash is. Stop being ridiculous. For 99% of people having no flash is no problem at all. It's fine to hate apple, but don't act like this matters. It doesn't. Use an Ipad for 6 months and then report back. I'm betting you won't miss flash at all...
          Spoken like a true Apple Kool-Aid drinker... LOL

          Here's a real world example... there are more than 100,000
          independent distributors associated with my company. My company
          has an online interface that actually creates and distributes our
          product. The entire process is Flash. Probably 30-35,000 of those
          people can be considered to be active builders.

          I'd say you're correct in that a very small percentage of them know
          what Flash is... but 100% of them know our interface doesn't work
          on iGadgets. If it did every one of them would be a buyer.

          There can be no sane argument against the fact that Apple has
          some of the best marketing on the planet but... seriously... issues like
          this are nothing more than Steve Jobs' ego wanting to force the market
          to do what he thinks is best.

          For that reason alone I will never own an Apple product.

          Tsnyder
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  • Profile picture of the author Tim_Carter
    That is why I bought an Android Tablet. Lots more features for half the money. Works great.

    I got this one:
    ARCHOS

    Didn't want 3G because my Android phone turns into a wifi hotspot. No point in having to pay for service for more devices.
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    • Profile picture of the author Josh Anderson
      First my rant and then my iPad and Android device reviews...

      <rant>
      Steve Jobs has not been completely honest about the reasons behind not allowing flash. It actually has nothing to do with battery life. There are other unstated market positioning reasons behind it. And for now they are not providing any additional consumer or publisher benefits by not supporting it. They are simply positioning themselves and aligning themselves and trying to bully the market. This is a strategy that has worked well for them and one that they continually employ not just in regards to flash but also in many markets where they have bullied other industries such as the Music and Magazine and Newspaper industries into playing by Apple's rules. Its interesting, frustrating, and... its just business.
      </rant>

      I own an iPad. My company has actually purchased 2 so far. I also have developed a product that serves video in both flash and html5.

      With the extensive research and development that we have done and the understanding that we have about the limitations of html5 and about the huge demand for flash based content and flash based publishing I will make this statement:

      Not having flash causes a huge impact on the usability of the ipad.

      From my own personal opinion I would say this:

      Surfing the web without flash is like surfing the web with a labotomy.

      I also own/use the Droid Incredible... I would not trade it for an iphone if someone paid me. Why? Because it has flash. Its also a slightly better phone than the iPhone.

      Now having said that... the iPad is a great device.

      Android tablets can vary widely in quality and user experience like the Galaxy which is a complete piece of junk or the Motorolla Xoom which just came out on the verizon network and which actually has a lot to offer and does compete on the same level as the iPad.

      The Xoom is heavier though than the iPad 1...

      And well the iPad 2 is a lighter device and introduces some things that the zoom brought to the table that the iPad 1 did not have such as video camera and front and rear facing cameras.

      As Tim points out below you can use your phones these days as hotspots so it may not be necessary to get the 3g plan with your tablets if you are ok with the speeds that you get on a wifi hotspot from a phone.

      So if you ask me "which device I would rather use" what would my answer be?

      The new iPad 2 is incredibly light, the iPad offers a better users experience and I believe a more stable browsing experience... but again no flash...

      The Xoom with my limited tests of it did not perform well when trying to load flash content... this was not because of the browser but was because the one that I was testing on continually had network connectivity problems for some reason when I tried to load a flash video. The web loaded fine but it killed the connection every time I tried to test on a flash video. This was probably a very limited experience and I plan on testing again.

      The Xoom browsing experience and operating system and everything about it was much more impressive than the Galaxy tab. The Xoom runs on Android 3 and is about the size of a an iPad with a great looking display...

      But its heavy. If you are going to be carrying this thing around and using it all day that may get old.

      Also if you are planning on getting 3 g compatibility you are going to need to compare the different plans ATT vs Verizon. I am not sure if Verizon has the iPad 2 or when they will get it but there are differences in price and overage costs and how they bill overages etc.

      In the end it comes down to just what you are going to be using the iPad for. I purchased a 3g one as a bonus for one of my employees. He does not care so much about flash. He uses it every day all day to listen to radio, podcasts, monitor servers, test sites, entertain himself and his kids, and he even made a voip call to his wife on it while we were at a drive through getting lunch. He loves it. He will be upgrading to the iPad 2 simply because the iPad 2 3g is lighter than his Ipad 3g.

      If its for the kids to play with, for family entertainment use, if you want to watch netflix, if you want to get access to the Apple app store, and if you are just going to consume video... then the iPad 2 will be the best choice. Its really a nice device.

      The html5 video experience does suck sometimes. There are lots of formats that do not work on html5. Its not as good as a flashplayer video experience... but for the most part it works.

      There will be video content that is not available on the iPad though.. for example rtmp and true streaming content is out. Its not supported in html5.

      If you are a flash developer, love flash sites, must have your flash... iPad wont do. Go with something like the xoom.

      For me I use the iPad every day, a little... i browse facebook, the warrior forum, and use apps...

      The one I have I purchased for testing purposes because we developed our player Transparent Video Player - h.264 Flash Video Player - html5 Video Player - Alpha Channel Video Player to deploy html5 fallback for compatibility.

      If I left the iPad at home my kids would constantly be on it watching netflix, playing angry birds, and playing other apps.

      For me the iPad was a testing necessity... its really a toy. Its something handy to have when you need quick access to view a page (not flash) or check some notifications etc. But for me it will never be the device of choice over a notebook or desktop PC.

      Its a great coffee table item. Its not a necessity... in fact I can do more on my Android phone than I can do on the iPad 1.


      Originally Posted by Tim_Carter View Post

      That is why I bought an Android Tablet. Lots more features for half the money. Works great.

      I got this one:
      ARCHOS

      Didn't want 3G because my Android phone turns into a wifi hotspot. No point in having to pay for service for more devices.
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  • Profile picture of the author oneplusone
    Originally Posted by Adam Sussman View Post

    I keep on reading that the iPad doesn't run flash.

    How will that effect me. Is it a big deal? Are there any situations where you wish it would run flash?

    Thanks,
    Adam
    It's occasionally an issue, but overall I wouldn't say it has affected my experience of surfing the internet etc

    As others have said, Youtube videos play fine and I can do almost everything I normally do on the internet.

    It isn't suitable for doing any serious work though IMO, I do serious work on my PC.
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    • Profile picture of the author Josh Anderson
      Originally Posted by oneplusone View Post

      As others have said, Youtube videos play fine and I can do almost everything I normally do on the internet.
      Unfortunately for publishers the same is not true. Html5 video has limited functions and behaviors available and some things you can do with flash... like actual rtmp streaming and direct response functions are not supported in html5.

      You cannot even auto play an html5 video on your webpage.
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      • Profile picture of the author oneplusone
        Originally Posted by Josh Anderson View Post

        Unfortunately for publishers the same is not true. Html5 video has limited functions and behaviors available and some things you can do with flash... like actual rtmp streaming and direct response functions are not supported in html5.

        You cannot even auto play an html5 video on your webpage.
        I know where you're coming from — I don't believe Apple will ever change their stance though with regards to flash.

        I wouldn't mind it if they did allow flash eventually, but as a user it hasn't really been noticeable at all.
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  • Profile picture of the author VOnline
    Flash is good.
    Here's a link that was posted on WF some where..
    Thoughts on Flash

    There's new apps that provide flash on their browser. I know Skyfire for one.
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    • Profile picture of the author oneplusone
      Originally Posted by VOnline View Post

      Flash is good.
      Here's a link that was posted on WF some where..
      Thoughts on Flash

      There's new apps that provide flash on their browser. I know Skyfire for one.
      I haven't tried these apps personally, after almost a year of owning an iPad I've not felt it's been a big deal in terms of my user experience.

      I agree with Josh, it isn't a necessity and it doesn't take the place of a PC or a laptop.
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      • Profile picture of the author koolphoto
        I don't want to be controlled by a company. This is what I think Apple is doing by not giving flash on an ipad and basically telling me I don't need it. I have an ipod touch and I do miss Adobe Flash.

        So when it came for me to go bigger, I went Android instead of ipad.
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  • Profile picture of the author Max Stryker
    hey man, there's a web browser that actually has a pretty nice flash support, I can see videos from any website on my iPad. it's called Skyfire, you should give it a try.

    Skyfire for iPad | Skyfire
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    • Profile picture of the author Josh Anderson
      Originally Posted by Max Stryker View Post

      hey man, there's a web browser that actually has a pretty nice flash support, I can see videos from any website on my iPad. it's called Skyfire, you should give it a try.

      Skyfire for iPad | Skyfire
      While it does work with a lot of flash videos it does not work with all or "any" flash videos as you put it. This is because they transcode videos on their servers which can also be a slow process. Also other types of flash content are not supported. Cool browser... But not a good alternative to flash. Better to watch video in safari in html5 since most are supporting html5 video fallback now.
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      • Profile picture of the author paulie888
        Originally Posted by Josh Anderson View Post

        While it does work with a lot of flash videos it does not work with all or "any" flash videos as you put it. This is because they transcode videos on their servers which can also be a slow process. Also other types of flash content are not supported. Cool browser... But not a good alternative to flash. Better to watch video in safari in html5 since most are supporting html5 video fallback now.
        You're absolutely right, Josh. I tried it out on a friend's device recently, and the experience was pretty underwhelming. First of all, it doesn't transcode ALL flash videos, and I encountered many that just wouldn't play through Skyfire. In addition to that, it's not a seamless experience at all, since it has to analyze the page for around 10 seconds or more, and it has to fire up a separate video window in order for you to view it, so you cannot watch embedded Flash videos right on the webpage like you normally would with a device that supports Flash.

        Also, the transcoding only works for video, so banners/graphics and games are not supported by Skyfire.
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      • Profile picture of the author Victor
        Originally Posted by Josh Anderson View Post

        While it does work with a lot of flash videos it does not work with all or "any" flash videos as you put it. This is because they transcode videos on their servers which can also be a slow process. Also other types of flash content are not supported. Cool browser... But not a good alternative to flash. Better to watch video in safari in html5 since most are supporting html5 video fallback now.
        I second this statement!

        Skyfire will only transcode Flash Video (FLV). It does nothing for the SWF file which is what flash games are...interactive sites are...and, essentially, WHAT FLASH IS! Here's the official word from Skyfire as of a month ago regarding this subject:

        HOW CAN I SEE SWF FILES ON IPAD

        Let's gain some perspective:

        Adobe came out with a really slick Flash-to-iPhone App converter in their latest rendition of Flash CS5. So what did Apple do to completely destroy this effort? They changed their App store terms a few days before the Flash CS5 launch disallowing third-party app submissions for Apps created using this very tool. This effort obviously hurt Adobe. it cost them a lot of time and money to make this resource available to their developers. I think they handled it very well considering the circumstances. They kept things very professional in terms of their press releases even though some of their Platform Evangelists let Apple have it! Since Flash CS5 was already shipped, they also decided to keep the conversion tool available in Flash CS5. However, they canned any future efforts regarding iPhone tools and quickly switched gears...focusing on building Android Tools.

        What happened next?

        Adobe later announced a Flash-to-HTML5 converter (Codename: "Wallaby"). It's obvious that they do care about wanting to keep their developer following and also reach every audience (let's not forget that they are a business so doing whatever they can also helps them make them money). On the otherhand, Apple wants CONTROL on so many other levels as well as so many other things. Josh and others have talked about this at great lengths so I will spare you. Now, trust me when I say that I am not "Anti-Apple" because I'm one leg in and one leg out of bed with them having both an iPhone and a Macbook. However, I also have PCs and an Android Tablet (what can I say, I like to keep up with everything but I also make things in Flash/Flash Builder so that's why I sit on both sides of this argument).

        I guess I am done ranting now, but for those interested. Here's a sneak peek of the Flash-to-HTML5 converter Adobe is working on:

        Adobe Introduces “Wallaby” Flash to HTML5 Converter | MacApper

        ~Peace
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        • Profile picture of the author paulie888
          Originally Posted by Victor View Post

          I second this statement!

          Skyfire will only transcode Flash Video (FLV). It does nothing for the SWF file which is what flash games are...interactive sites are...and, essentially, WHAT FLASH IS! Here's the official word from Skyfire as of a month ago regarding this subject:

          HOW CAN I SEE SWF FILES ON IPAD
          What many people don't seem to get is that both Skyfire and iSwifter (which does something similar) are third party services, which means your iPad or iPhone is not displaying Flash content natively. What's occurring here is the Flash content is being transcoded on the fly at Skyfire and iSwifter's servers into a HTML5 friendly format, and then streamed to your iOS device almost in real-time.

          While it is awesome that this content can be rendered on the spot by powerful servers over the internet, this is inevitably going to introduce some lag and delay to the user experience - it's never going to be as seamless or quick when compared to displaying Flash content natively on the device without having to go through intermediary servers. Furthermore, you're at the mercy of a third party to deliver this content to you, and there's always the possibility you might experience interruptions and glitches in your service from them.
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  • Profile picture of the author Archon
    I bought an Ipad 2 and was disappointed. I could not download many things, nor open them. Had to keep buying apps. I had it for less than a week and sold it on ebay for a profit on Thursday. To me its a glorified kindle with internet. Does not fit me. I am sure it may good for students and others who just browse. I wanted to be able to use it an substitute for laptop at times. It is more work, as it has no usb and you have to sync files on itunes, or use an app to upload all your files to. I will be getting an android. Looking and the Xoom or Samsung
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  • Profile picture of the author Mirque
    I won my iPad Few weeks ago on an internet contest and I'm really happy.
    As Jesus said, all YouTube and other videos work perfectly and the AppStore games are awesome. The iPad has a great autonomy too.
    PS: I'm actually typing from it
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    • Profile picture of the author Dan C. Rinnert
      I don't have an iPad but I regularly browse the Internet with plugins disabled, which includes Flash.

      Doesn't affect me much at all. Perhaps 95-99% of the sites I visit don't use Flash or don't use Flash for anything important.

      So, I don't imagine browsing the Internet on an iPad would be any different.
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  • Profile picture of the author Andy Money
    I own an iPad and it's never been an issue for me. Can't think of a single site I visit that uses flash still.
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    • Profile picture of the author mrdomains
      Flash? Hand me the gun and I´ll shoot it.

      Consider how much long-term damage it did for siteowners when it was the rage and everyone wanted a flash site. Probably 90% (more?) of those sites have been redisigned away from flash because in the end it limited the site potential. Big and small sites. Private and multinational corporate entities. Same story. It may have been easy to make it look good but it was equally easy to clobber the visitor with bandwidth drain and shackle them into timed sequences when all they wanted was the contact info to make a purchase.

      Complex sites required the owner to keep both a content team and a dedicated flash team and dedicated flash development tools. Flash was a conspiracy.

      It sucked. It still sucks. Kill it. :p
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  • Profile picture of the author Quentin
    Apple is just falling behind in leaps and bounds and this is represented in their sales falling off to the android market.

    Apple sold 7.3 million iPads in the last quarter, and the device accounted for 75% of global shipments in Q4 2010, which is quite a fall from the 96% it had in Q3 2010.

    Of course they are not going broke and I would like those sales however their continuing lack of support or providing their customers with viable alternatives will hurt their business for sure.

    Not allowing their customers to choose what they want like flash has to hurt their bottom line and with Android Honeycomb about to be released they could see even a greater fall.

    Android 3.0 Platform Highlights | Android Developers

    Do you think the iphone and Ipad will give way to the android market like Mac did to the PC?

    Quentin
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    • Profile picture of the author rts2271
      Apple products are toys. In 5 years we'll be laughing that consumers let Apple out of their box again.

      Apple products are high quality ego-boosting art pieces for it's head narcissist. Their cell phone has been dominated in short order by Google and their PC line has had nothing really spectacular to differentiate itself from WINBoxes.
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      • Profile picture of the author packerfan
        Originally Posted by rts2271 View Post

        Apple products are toys. In 5 years we'll be laughing that consumers let Apple out of their box again.

        Apple products are high quality ego-boosting art pieces for it's head narcissist. Their cell phone has been dominated in short order by Google and their PC line has had nothing really spectacular to differentiate itself from WINBoxes.
        yeah, they'll never make any money with their business model. No none will ever pay premium prices for cool looking devices that do great things. They should just give up.
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  • Profile picture of the author davechan
    I've been using an iPad for close to a year now. The lack of flash hasn't bothered me. When I do come across a flash site I use a product called Cloudbrowse. You can find it in the App store - runs flash no problem. We also recommend this to our sports and entertainment celebrities who want flash on their sites.
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  • Profile picture of the author webapex
    Flash does suck a lot of processor power, probably could impact battery life, though Job's fueled with Adobe seems to be the underlying factor. (Adobe had an iPad on their home page image adobe.com)

    There was a service that provided translation of flash content to iPad compatible form, I believe they shut it down after server overload problems.

    Interestingly the Flash development package can export iOS applications, now that Apple opened the store to apps created with 3rd party tools, this is handy for someone familiar with as3 but aren't up to speed with the Apple SDK, it's like creating an Adobe Air app, but it compiles native iOS code.
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  • Profile picture of the author mitoshthewarrior
    Originally Posted by Adam Sussman View Post

    I keep on reading that the iPad doesn't run flash.

    How will that effect me. Is it a big deal? Are there any situations where you wish it would run flash?

    Thanks,
    Adam
    Flash is a huge downside of Apple products. It is just convenient to have it as many sites have yet to fully adopt HTML 5. It is not a deal breaker, just very annoying.

    I heard that Apple has been forced to open their system within 2 years, I'll believe it when I see it, but that may be the end of this walled garden.

    That being said, Flash is a horrid system, very slow and flaky, but it is the way of the world and there is no avoiding.
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  • Profile picture of the author Vanfenix
    Flash is sooo 1985.
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    • Profile picture of the author Victor
      Originally Posted by Vanfenix View Post

      Flash is sooo 1985.
      LOL - good one.

      Technically, it wasn't even around in 1985 (you sure you aren't talking about Atari?), but you could say it's sooo 1996 since that's when it first appeared on the scene.
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      • Profile picture of the author mitoshthewarrior
        Originally Posted by Victor View Post

        LOL - good one.

        Technically, it wasn't even around in 1985 (you sure you aren't talking about Atari?), but you could say it's sooo 1996 since that's when it first appeared on the scene.
        So is gasoline, but it isn't going anywhere soon.
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  • Profile picture of the author SeoWhat
    Yeah Apple is clueless, they may surpass ExxonMobil in stock-market value this year, making Apple the most valuable company on earth.
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  • Profile picture of the author seasoned
    Frankly, I HATE flash! OH, it is a nice product and what it ADDS it does well, but too many use iot for SIMPLE stuff! I wonder how much business they lose! BTW Flash does NOT support 64Bit Windows! I HATE going deep into a site and then seeing a message saying you have to upgrade flash, and then flash says "WE DON'T SUPPORT 64Bit"! And then I am like OH YEAH, I slipped up and ran 64 bit IE! LUCKILY, I have 32 bit software that DOES support flash, or rather that flash supports!

    Steve
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    • Profile picture of the author Josh Anderson
      Originally Posted by seasoned View Post

      BTW Flash does NOT support 64Bit Windows!
      You mean browsers not windows. Flashplayer works fine with 64 bit windows OS. But some 64 bit browsers it does not in the current full release version

      However, they do offer beta versions that do work with 64 bit browsers:

      Download Flash Player "Square" Beta Preview Release - Adobe Labs
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      • Profile picture of the author seasoned
        Originally Posted by Josh Anderson View Post

        You mean browsers not windows. Flashplayer works fine with 64 bit windows OS. But some 64 bit browsers it does not in the current full release version

        However, they do offer beta versions that do work with 64 bit browsers:

        Download Flash Player "Square" Beta Preview Release - Adobe Labs
        Maybe you're right. If so, that is FUNNY considering that there is MIME. Eventually, I'll try out that square beta. This system is only 32 bit.

        Steve
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