iOS only: 360 Web Browser isn’t the first Safari alternative for Apple devices, but it is unique for what it offers. Flash clip conversion, Firefox Sync compatibility, a circular menu around finger presses, and much better management of browser downloads. More »
Windows users have been enjoying hardware-accelerated video decoding since the Flash 10.1 Final release; now the latest Flash Player release for Macs (10.1.82.76) officially brings GPU decoding to OS X—in theory resulting in better video playback on your Mac. [Adobe via ByteArray.org] More »
Windows: Planes, trains, and automobiles—a long trip in any of them calls for some portable video. Any Video Converter, a tool we linked long ago, is still being updated and working strong, recently adding 1080p YouTube videos to its repertoire. More »
YouTube – Windows – Video – Video Converter – Operating system
Flash, for me, is not something that I miss or want on the iPhone platform. Sure, there are some sites, for movies and maybe the occasional awesome reinvention of a classic game that I wouldn’t mind being able to see on my mobile platform of choice, but overall it’s not something I’m losing sleep over.
If you are losing sleep over it, or if you’re just curious about what Flash on an iDevice would even look and feel like, there’s a couple ways to try it out, one of which is available right now as an app that doesn’t require jailbreaking. The other, which is actually much cooler, is only in preview release right now, but runs in your Safari browser natively without any extra steps required on a user’s part.
Cloud Browse is your first option. It’s an app that connects you to a remote computer running on servers maintained by the Cloud Browse developers, AlwaysOn. The app lets you then control the browsing on the remote computer from your iDevice, and see any type of web content, including Flash. The sites you visit are streamed to your phone, but there is some trade off as you might expect.
Video framerate is quite slow, and if you’re not a paying subscriber, you only have a limited number of spots to connect. Free users can also get bumped by paying customers, as in unceremoniously disconnected mid-session. You can get a paid account for $9.99 a month that would give you 30 FPS video and 1GB of storage for saving offline data. Plus you can only use it in the U.S. and Canada, and it only works over Wi-Fi. Finally, playing Flash games with the iPhone’s on-screen keyboard is absolutely no fun.
The other alternative is Smokescreen, which is a web-end tech that developers and designers could use to make their Flash content visible on the iPhone, iPod touch and iPad. That means that it’s currently far more limited (you can only see it in action in some demos released by the original developer), but that it has much more potential in terms of long-term usability.
Smokescreen operates by a workaround process that isn’t actually a plugin, so it there’s really nothing Apple can do to stop it. Here’s how the process works, as described by its creator Simon Willison:
It runs entirely in the browser, reads in SWF binaries, unzips them (in native JS), extracts images and embedded audio and turns them in to base64 encoded data:uris, then stitches the vector graphics back together as animated SVG.
The experience so far is somewhat hit or miss, with simple animations like those found in Flash banners working very well, but with more advanced things (like a Strongbad email animation) it runs rather slow. Also there was no sound when I tested it on my iPhone 3GS, which I assume is a limitation of the method used.
Smokescreen is definitely off to an impressive start, though, and things will probably improve since it will soon be open sourced. It’s compiled in JavaScript, and works perfectly in non-mobile browsers as well, which means you could be viewing Flash-based content on your computer without ever having to install the actual Flash plugin. I have a feeling that this tech will catch on far faster with advertisers looking to cut corners rather than redesign their ads from the ground up for iPhone OS consumption. You can view all the demos currently available here.
Both these workarounds are a prime example of how if people really want their device to do something, they’ll figure out a way.
The internet is undoubtedly a wonderful place, but let’s face it: some web sites are only too happy to serve up annoying ads, unnecessarily heavy Flash elements, and all-around user-unfriendly experiences. Here’s how to make your browsing experience as annoyance-free as possible. More »
We’ve said for a while that HTML5 will change the way you use the web, but not all browsers are ready for the big change. This interactive chart highlights which features are still missing in your browser of choice. More »
If you’ve got a blog, personal site, or another web platform and find yourself wondering how you can get in on the no-plugin-needed streaming video in HTML5, Webmonkey has a handy guide to understanding and embedding HTML5 videos on your site. More »
HTML5 – HTML – Data Formats – Markup Languages – Flash
Whether you want to save and watch a Flash video offline, convert a Flash music video for your MP3 player, or do something else entirely, learning how to rip and convert Flash videos is a useful skill. Here’s how it works. More »
Windows: It may not stick around that long once the powers that be find out, so if downloading and watching Hulu videos offline could help you out, grab StreamTransport. The tricky little app provides full-quality captures of streaming shows and movies. More »
I often wish the iPhone and iPod touch supported memory extension via external modules. It would make my old iPod touch much more useful, which I suppose is why Apple doesn’t allow it (it’s a good reason to buy a new one). Soon, you’ll be able to use external SD cards with your devices, though probably not in the memory expansion capacity I’ve been dreaming of.
Still, you should be able to do at least as much as you can with the SD camera connector accessory that Apple’s officially releasing for use with the upcoming iPad. There’s no indication of whether or no that device will also work with the iPhone and iPod touch, but a third-party device by capitalization-challenged company zoomMediaPlus definitely will.
The accessory in question, called zoomit, will plug into your iPhone’s dock connector, and features an SD card slot that’s compatible with all currently available SD classes and capacities. Using a free app available from the App Store, you’ll then be able to access the data found on any card you insert.
A careful examination of zoomMediaPlus’ overly wordy press release reveals that you won’t be able to transfer files from your device to the SD card or vice versa, but you can view movies and photos, listen to music and preview documents stored on your external media. You can also share said media with others via email and various social networks, including Facebook. The only condition is that all of said media has to be in a format supported by iPhone OS 3.0 or higher, so those DivX files will definitely still require conversion.
At the very least, it should be incredibly useful for photogs on the go. You’ll be able to view and share you photos with others via the iPhone’s screen, which is undoubtedly better than the back of your camera in almost all cases. You should also be able to then create Facebook albums and post those photos to social network sites without first having to connect to a computer.
zoomMediaPlus envisions a future where content providers will sell specialized SD cards for use with the system:
In the future the zoomIt application will also support, among other things, protected content types enabling streaming of licensed music, videos, and other forms of protected content.
I wouldn’t count on this becoming a groundswell movement or anything, but it is an interesting possibility. Still, I see the value of being able to access documents anywhere without having to connect wirelessly to any kind of network. You take a look at soft proofs at an impromptu client meeting, or check out someone’s demo as long as they have it stored on SD media, which is fast becoming the only really strong player remaining on the flash card scene.
zoomit will retail for $59.95 when it is released in April 2010. You can save $10 now by pre-ordering, and get a free Kingston 4GB SDHC card in the bargain, but personally I prefer to wait until units actually begin shipping before putting down any kind of commitment.
