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> Flash is crappy and it's finally, slowly dying, that's all. Is it, though? Google bundles Flash on Android. Android device makers use the existence of Flash

by azakai 15y ago

> Flash is crappy and it's finally, slowly dying, that's all. Is it, though? Google bundles Flash on Android. Android device makers use the existence of Flash as a differentiating factor from iOS devices. And this is not just something disconnected from what users want, if you look at Firefox Mobile's input system, https://input.mozilla.com/en-US/?product=mobile&sentiment=sad&date_end=&date_start=&platform=android&version=6.0&q=Flash https://input.mozilla.com/en-US/?product=mobile&sentimen... then one of the top complaints is that Firefox Mobile doesn't support Flash. I wish this wasn't the case, but it isn't clear at all that Flash is dying. Google bundling it in Android (and Chrome) is helping it quite a bit. If Google had taken a hard stance against it on Android, like Apple did, that would have been great. A lost opportunity.

doomlaser 15y ago
So you're saying it would have been great if Google released a browser that couldn't even play all of its YouTube content?
- azakai 15y ago
  Android has a native YouTube app. The Android browser could have run that in an embedded form, or simply redirected to the native app.
- alwillis 15y ago
  Google aided in de-emphasizing Flash when it began converting video to H.264 to support the iPhone in 2007. Apple and Google were partners then--people forget Eric Schmidt spoke in glowing terms about the iPhone and Apple on stage at the iPhone’s rollout: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=3206653149996743169 http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=3206653149996743169
funkah 15y ago
I disagree, it is dying, though slowly as I say. Regardless of what Google is doing, the two top-selling smartphones and the best-selling tablet by far do not have Flash. These devices now have a huge install base, and that undermines what used to be one of Flash's biggest selling points, which was that everyone had it. At the very least, there needs to be an argument for doing something in Flash where in the past it would have been a no-brainer. Android device OEMs do try to use Flash as a differentiating factor, but I seriously doubt that argument has much traction at all. They're using it because they're desperate for selling points, not because it's such a good one.
philwelch 15y ago
Flash support is the new "IBM Compatible".

by azakai 15y ago

doomlaser 15y ago

So you're saying it would have been great if Google released a browser that couldn't even play all of its YouTube content?

azakai 15y ago
Android has a native YouTube app. The Android browser could have run that in an embedded form, or simply redirected to the native app.
alwillis 15y ago
Google aided in de-emphasizing Flash when it began converting video to H.264 to support the iPhone in 2007. Apple and Google were partners then--people forget Eric Schmidt spoke in glowing terms about the iPhone and Apple on stage at the iPhone’s rollout: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=3206653149996743169 http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=3206653149996743169

funkah 15y ago

I disagree, it is dying, though slowly as I say. Regardless of what Google is doing, the two top-selling smartphones and the best-selling tablet by far do not have Flash. These devices now have a huge install base, and that undermines what used to be one of Flash's biggest selling points, which was that everyone had it. At the very least, there needs to be an argument for doing something in Flash where in the past it would have been a no-brainer. Android device OEMs do try to use Flash as a differentiating factor, but I seriously doubt that argument has much traction at all. They're using it because they're desperate for selling points, not because it's such a good one.

philwelch 15y ago

Flash support is the new "IBM Compatible".