HTML5 vs Flash

This debate has come up only because Apple refuses to include the Adobe Flash Player in the latest iPhone OS. Before that, Flash was the end all, be all.

Apple is trying to have people browse the internet on an alternative net device, the iPad, rather than on their MacBooks. MacBooks have Flash. So why exclude a Flash Player from the iPad? Makes no sense. There are people that debate that HTML5 is going to take over, when it finally comes into light. Even Steve Jobs states that Flash is a memory hog and crashes.

The reality is that Flash is on the majority of our computers today because it is used in so many sites. Also HTML5 is lacking a list of features the Flash Player takes advantage of:

• Fullscreen support
• 3D (such as Away3D or Papervision3D libraries)
• Cross-Domain compatibility - HTML/JS cannot access scripts across domains (Flash has crossdomain.xml files with these permissions)
• Cross-Platform/Browser compatibility - looking the same in all browsers
• Asynchronous client-server communication
• Manipulate images client-side
• Support for different video formats (until browsers start agreeing on formats)
• Alpha channel video
• Dynamic streaming of video based on network connection
• Webcam and mic API
• Typography control
• Filters and effects
• Dynamically generate audio real-time
• Preview an image before you upload it from your local drive

So, if you are trying to develop a site such as Bandit3 or Machinarium, you will not be able to replicate them in HTML5. Another great post you might want to check out is over on Grant Skinner's blog.

First Steve Jobs says that the Flash Player is meant for desktop machines and not mobile devices, and the FlashLite Player is not powerful enough. What does Adobe come up with?Flash Player 10.1, which optimizes content for mobile devices yet strong enough for a desktop. What does Jobs say? His new repsonse is that Flash is old technology. There seems to be some other reason Apple is neglecting Flash. Not sure what it is, but something just doesn't seem right.

Can Flash be optimized and run on a mobile device effectively? Below is a video demonstrating Flash 10.1 on a Google Nexus One:

Another video by Michael Chaise with a 3D demo on the Nexus One with the Flash 10.1 Player: