Editing Flash
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.
The edit can be undone.
Please check the comparison below to verify that this is what you want to do, and then save the changes below to finish undoing the edit.
Latest revision | Your text | ||
Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
+ | {{WIP}} | ||
{{Infobox console | {{Infobox console | ||
− | |title=Adobe Flash | + | |title = Adobe Flash |
− | |logo= | + | |logo = |
− | | | + | |developer = Adobe |
− | | | + | |type = |
− | |release=1996 | + | |generation = |
− | |discontinued=2020 | + | |release = 1996 |
+ | |discontinued = 2020 | ||
+ | |predecessor = | ||
|emulated = {{✓}} | |emulated = {{✓}} | ||
}} | }} | ||
− | '''Flash''' (previously FutureSplash Animator, before that SmartSketch) is a software platform created by FutureWave Software and | + | '''Flash''' (previously FutureSplash Animator, before that SmartSketch) is a software platform created by FutureWave Software, and currently owned by Adobe (previously Macromedia). Originally a drawing program for PenPoint OS, later ported to Windows and Macintosh when pen computing failed to take off, frame-by-frame animation features were added to it in a new program called FutureSplash Animator. The company was acquired by Macromedia in December 1996, rebranding FutureSplash Animator to Flash, an amalgamation of "Future" and "Splash". In turn, Macromedia was acquired by Adobe on December 3, 2005. Their operations, networks, and customer care organizations were merged shortly after. |
− | Used by an overwhelming majority of websites | + | Used by an overwhelming majority of websites in the early 2000s to the mid-2010s, Flash has been the go-to platform for multimedia and animation, being utilised for streaming video providers such as YouTube, children's websites due to its rich content, and has spawned a subculture of animators as exemplified by the likes of Newgrounds. A number of popular animated series were also animated using Flash, most notably ''My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic'', ''Phineas and Ferb'' and ''Happy Tree Friends'' to name a few. |
− | + | Flash's popularity declined in the late 2010s due to the rise of alternative (and open) web standards such as HTML5 and mobile device manufacturers dropping support for the platform, a prominent example being Apple who publicly stated that iOS will ''never'' support Flash. Google followed suit when it dropped support for the platform in subsequent Android releases, and it didn't help that a series of security issues, coupled with Flash itself being a closed standard, has led Adobe to wind down on Flash and retire it in 2020. | |
==Implementations== | ==Implementations== | ||
− | + | {| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;" | |
− | + | ! scope="col"|Name | |
− | {|class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; | + | ! scope="col"|Platform(s) |
− | !scope="col"|Name | + | ! scope="col"|Latest version |
− | !scope="col"|Platform(s) | + | ! scope="col"|Accuracy |
− | !scope="col"|Latest version | + | ! scope="col"|<abbr title="Free/Libre and Open-Source Software">FLOSS</abbr> |
− | !scope="col"| | + | ! scope="col"|Active |
− | + | ! scope="col"|[[Recommended Emulators|Recommended]] | |
− | !scope="col"|<abbr title="Free/Libre and Open-Source Software">FLOSS</abbr> | ||
− | !scope="col"|Active | ||
− | !scope="col"|[[Recommended Emulators|Recommended]] | ||
|- | |- | ||
− | + | |Adobe Flash Player | |
+ | |align=left|{{Icon|Windows|Linux|macOS|Web}}<ref group=N name=plugin /> | ||
+ | |[https://www.adobe.com/support/flashplayer/debug_downloads.html 32.0.0.465] | ||
+ | |Reference ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✓}} | ||
|- | |- | ||
− | + | |[https://github.com/vidkidz/waflash WAFlash] | |
− | + | |align=left|{{Icon|Web}} | |
− | |[https:// | + | |[https://clubpenguinadvanced.github.io/waflash-demo/ Web] |
− | + | |High ||{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} | |
− | |||
− | |||
− | |align=left|{{Icon | ||
− | |[https:// | ||
− | | | ||
|- | |- | ||
− | |[ | + | |[https://ruffle.rs/ Ruffle] |
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows|Linux|macOS|Web}} | |align=left|{{Icon|Windows|Linux|macOS|Web}} | ||
− | |[https://ruffle | + | |[https://github.com/ruffle-rs/ruffle/releases Nightly builds] |
− | | | + | |Mid ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} |
|- | |- | ||
|[https://lightspark.github.io/ Lightspark] | |[https://lightspark.github.io/ Lightspark] | ||
− | |align=left|{{Icon|Windows|Linux|Web}}<ref group=N name=plugin/> | + | |align=left|{{Icon|Windows|Linux|Web}}<ref group=N name=plugin>Web version is only available as an NPAPI/PPAPI plugin, and is therefore not OS-agnostic.</ref> |
− | |[https://github.com/lightspark/lightspark/releases 0.8. | + | |[https://github.com/lightspark/lightspark/releases 0.8.3] |
− | | | + | |Mid ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{~}} |
|- | |- | ||
− | |[https:// | + | |[https://swf2js.com/en/ swf2js] |
|align=left|{{Icon|Web}} | |align=left|{{Icon|Web}} | ||
− | |[https://github.com/ | + | |[https://github.com/swf2js/swf2js JavaScript file download] |
− | |{{ | + | |{{?}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{~}} |
|- | |- | ||
− | |[https:// | + | |[https://leaningtech.com/cheerpx-for-flash/ CheerpX for Flash] |
|align=left|{{Icon|Web}} | |align=left|{{Icon|Web}} | ||
− | | | + | |[https://docs.leaningtech.com/cheerpx-for-flash/Changelog Version 31] |
− | | | + | |? ||{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} |
|- | |- | ||
− | |[https:// | + | |[https://awayfl.org/ AwayFL] |
|align=left|{{Icon|Web}} | |align=left|{{Icon|Web}} | ||
− | |[https://github.com/ | + | |[https://github.com/awayfl/awayfl-player Git] |
− | + | |{{?}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} | |
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |{{ | ||
|- | |- | ||
|[https://gnu.org/software/gnash GNU Gnash] | |[https://gnu.org/software/gnash GNU Gnash] | ||
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows|Linux}} | |align=left|{{Icon|Windows|Linux}} | ||
|[https://www.gnu.org/software/gnash/download.html 0.8.10] | |[https://www.gnu.org/software/gnash/download.html 0.8.10] | ||
− | | | + | |Low ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} |
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
|- | |- | ||
|[https://open-flash.github.io/ Open Flash / Doμ Player] | |[https://open-flash.github.io/ Open Flash / Doμ Player] | ||
|align=left|{{Icon|Web}} | |align=left|{{Icon|Web}} | ||
− | |[https://github.com/open-flash/domu-player | + | |[https://github.com/open-flash/domu-player Git] |
− | |{{ | + | |{{?}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} |
|- | |- | ||
|Shumway | |Shumway | ||
|align=left|{{Icon|Web}} | |align=left|{{Icon|Web}} | ||
− | |[https://github.com/mozilla/shumway | + | |[https://github.com/mozilla/shumway Git] |
− | | | + | |Low ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} |
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
|} | |} | ||
− | |||
<references group=N /> | <references group=N /> | ||
===Comparisons=== | ===Comparisons=== | ||
− | + | ;Adobe Flash Player | |
− | + | :The official closed-source implementation by Adobe, who discontinued it in 2020. The web version relies on [[wikipedia:NPAPI|NPAPI/PPAPI]], an obsolete in-browser plugin system that for many years only stuck around specifically because of this Flash plugin; when the plugin was officially dropped by Adobe, so too was the plugin system dropped by all the major browser vendors. The desktop player version is still available for download from the Adobe website's debug downloads section. | |
− | |||
− | |||
− | + | ;Ruffle | |
− | + | :A pure Rust implementation mainly targeting HTML5, but also available as a desktop player. The devs are planning to focus on ActionScript 1 and 2 support first, with AS3 support coming later. Development of Ruffle is sponsored by multiple veteran Flash game archives, most notably Newgrounds. It's progressed to the point where it can run many early Flash games, including the original Flash version of [https://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/59593/format/flash?emulate=flash Alien Hominid], as well as playing the vast majority of [https://old.homestarrunner.com Homestar Runner] toons. | |
− | ; | + | ;Lightspark & Gnash |
− | : | + | :Two C++ implementations that somewhat complement each other, and are both designed specifically to provide a FLOSS alternative to Adobe's official players. Lightspark says it has 78% of the APIs covered, while Gnash has focused on older versions of Flash that Lightspark is less likely to support properly, hence why Lightspark can use Gnash as an automatic fallback if both are installed simultaneously. Lightspark's external dependencies would make it cumbersome to port it to HTML5, so it's only available in browsers as an NPAPI/PPAPI plugin, similar to the official one from Adobe. |
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | ; | + | ;swf2js |
− | : | + | :An open-core HTML5 implementation that uses a dynamic recompiler. The open-source "Free Version" supports limited features, such as AS1, AS2 and ZLIB compression, whereas the payware "Production Version" supports further features, such as AS3 and LZMA compression. |
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
;CheerpX for Flash | ;CheerpX for Flash | ||
− | :A | + | :A payware HTML5 emulation package which seems to work by running a binary Flash plugin inside an x86 emulator. CheerpX is marketed exclusively towards website operators and is clearly not intended for personal use. As of December 2021, this is the only emulator being endorsed in any way by Adobe or its partners (specifically, by Harman International [https://airsdk.harman.com/ on their Flash & AIR developers site]). |
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
;Shumway | ;Shumway | ||
− | : | + | :An HTML5 implementation. Developed rather actively for a few years, under Mozilla sponsorship, but ultimately abandoned in 2016. |
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
==See also== | ==See also== | ||
− | * [ | + | * [[Flashpoint]] - preservation effort for games designed in commercial web frameworks (not just Flash). |
== Resources == | == Resources == | ||
* [https://nosamu.medium.com/flash-player-emulators-how-to-play-swfs-in-2021-and-beyond-d56c3899b7e6 Article by nosamu (of Flashpoint): Flash Player Emulators: How to Play SWF Files in 2021 and Beyond] | * [https://nosamu.medium.com/flash-player-emulators-how-to-play-swfs-in-2021-and-beyond-d56c3899b7e6 Article by nosamu (of Flashpoint): Flash Player Emulators: How to Play SWF Files in 2021 and Beyond] | ||
− | |||
[[Category:Not really emulators]] | [[Category:Not really emulators]] |