No Flash Shipping With MacBooks

[Jeff Campbell]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://www.cultofmac.com/apple-flash-will-no-longer-come-preinstalled-on-future-macs/65920?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+cultofmac/bFow+(Cult+of+Mac)' target='_blank'>http://www.cultofmac.com/apple-flas...w+(Cult+of+Mac)</a><br /><br /></div><p><em>"Last week, we reported that Apple's new MacBook Airs were shipping without Adobe Flash preinstalled... a radical departure from the norm for Apple, which has been bundling Flash with OS X (and OS 9 before it) as the default for seemingly ages. Was it a fluke, or is this Apple's new policy?"</em></p><p><img src="http://images.thoughtsmedia.com/resizer/thumbs/size/600/at/auto/1288031917.usr105634.jpg" /></p><p>And not just MacBook Airs, as Apple is saying it won't ship with any of their products in the future. Sounds like another conspiracy in the making doesn't it? Well it's not, basically the reason is that due to frequent updates by Adobe, you get an outdated version anyway when you get your Mac so you might as well just add it (if you choose to) when you get your machine so you have the latest version. Same with Java. Or do you think this is just a dig at Adobe? What are your thoughts, good move? Bad move?</p>

[rockinthesixstring]

As in my post in your other article... this too is a welcomed change. You state a great point in the fact that the release version will be outdated the day you fire up your mac, but beyond that...

(soap box please)

Adobe Flash is a pig on system resources, not good on mobile devices, and all around bad technology. I personally feel that MS Silverlight is nearly as powerful and doesn't bog down my system. I also think that now with the onset of HTML5, video hosts can move away from flash all together and run their videos embedded. Oh!... and as for those crappy flash banners and Xiao Xiao cartoons... the web is better off without them.

All in all (IMHO), Adobe Flash can't go obsolete fast enough.

[Jason Dunn]

Well it's not, basically the reason is that due to frequent updates by Adobe, you get an outdated version anyway when you get your Mac so you might as well just add it (if you choose to) when you get your machine so you have the latest version.

It's definitely a dig at Adobe. I don't know how Flash updates work on the Mac, but on Windows, when you reboot your PC and log back into Windows, there's a little Window that pops up and asks you if you want to upgrade Flash to the latest version. It's fast, simple, and easy.

Having to first go to a Web site and see a broken Flash icon (or however it shows up), then go to Adobe.com, and install it, is a more cumbersome process than having it there in the first place.

[Jason Dunn]

I also think that now with the onset of HTML5, video hosts can move away from flash all together and run their videos embedded.

I'm all for HTML 5 as well, but do you think the millions and millions of Flash-based videos out there now are just going to magically get transcoded to an HTML 5-compliant video format, and the Web pages they're on updated? Nope. HTML 5 might be great for moving forward, but there's a lot of legacy content out there that will be inaccessible without Flash. Flash won't die overnight, no matter how much some people want it to. :)

[rockinthesixstring]

Flash won't die overnight, no matter how much some people want it to. :)

Yeah, I realize this, however it's not going to stop me from hoping. New videos coming out "should" (imo) all be h.264 and HTML5 compliant. Many videos out there currently are in h.264 and are simply being played back in a flash player (like jwPlayer) or similar. Heck, even some of my work is still in flash (not proud of it).

[Michael Knutson]

I think that it's both. There's a long history (of animosity) between Apple and Adobe, can't repeat much of it because of the source, but it usually has been the head shaman (from both sides) bumping heads ... remember, most Adobe products were originally Mac-based.

That aside, I think that Apple is going the way of MS in this way, not "bundling" things that are obsolete before they're even burned to the master release code. With Windows7 MS has eliminated many of the things that were standard in earlier versions, but of course the various PC makers have loaded up machines with crapware/bloatware, so it isn't as noticeable.

BTW, Adobe's update process work perfectly well with the Mac OS.