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Adrian Kingsley-Hughes
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Adobe Flash coming to iPhone, thanks to Skyfire

By | November 2, 2010, 11:10am PDT

Summary: Adobe Flash is finally coming to the iPhone … thanks to Skyfire.

Adobe Flash is finally coming to the iPhone … thanks to Skyfire.

Skyfire is a web browser for the iPhone platform, but with a difference. It offers the ability for iPhone users to view Flash video content by transcoding it into HTML5 on the fly. Skyfire for iPhone was built in accordance with Apple guidelines, including the use of a WebKit browser core shared with Safari, and h.264 adaptive streaming and has been approved by Apple for inclusion in the App Store.

As well as transcoding Flash video, Skyfire offers several features not offered by the built-in Safari browser:

  • Related Content – The “Explore” icon recommends relevant content (news, video, tweets, etc.) based on the page they’re viewing at the time.
  • Sharing – The “Share” icon lets users share any article or video easily with their friends on Facebook, Twitter or e-mail.
  • User Agent Switching - load pages for either mobile or desktop.

  • Privacy - Keep your browsing private, with no data trail.

Skyfire will be hitting the Apple App Store this Thursday, priced at $2.99.

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Topics

Apple iPhone, Adobe Systems Inc., Adobe Flash, Apple Safari, Apple Inc., Video, Web Browser, Skyfire, Corporate Communications, Smart Phones, Web Browsers, Marketing, Consumer Electronics, Personal Technology, Internet, Adrian Kingsley-Hughes

Adrian Kingsley-Hughes is an internationally published technology author who has devoted over a decade to helping users get the most from technology.

Disclosure

Adrian Kingsley-Hughes

All opinions expressed on Hardware 2.0 are those of Adrian Kingsley-Hughes. Every effort is made to ensure that the information posted is accurate. If you have any comments, queries or corrections, please contact Adrian via the email link here. Any possible conflicts of interest will be posted below. [Updated: February 23, 2010] - Adrian Kingsley-Hughes has no business relationships, affiliations, investments, or other actual/potential conflicts of interest relating to the content posted so far on this blog.

Biography

Adrian Kingsley-Hughes

Adrian Kingsley-Hughes is an internationally published technology author who has devoted over a decade to helping users get the most from technology -- whether that be by learning to program, building a PC from a pile of parts, or helping them get the most from their new MP3 player or digital camera.

Adrian has authored/co-authored technical books on a variety of topics, ranging from programming to building and maintaining PCs. His most recent books include "Build the Ultimate Custom PC", "Beginning Programming" and "The PC Doctor's Fix It Yourself Guide". He has also written training manuals that have been used by a number of Fortune 500 companies.

Adrian also runs a popular blog under the name The PC Doctor, where he covers a range of computer-related topics -- from security to repairing and upgrading.

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RE: Adobe Flash coming to iPhone, thanks to Skyfire
mrlinux 4th Nov 2010
@I12BPhil 1st paragraph last sentence, it does not mention this fact.
Skyfire for iPhone was built in accordance with Apple guidelines, including the use of a WebKit browser core shared with Safari, and h.264 adaptive streaming and has been approved by Apple for inclusion in the App Store.
View in thread
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If you want a true Desktop browser experience, use Skyfire
Dietrich T. Schmitz, ~ Your Linux Advocate 2nd Nov 2010
Have it installed on my Samsung Galaxy S Android.
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RE: Adobe Flash coming to iPhone, thanks to Skyfire
tonymcs@... 2nd Nov 2010
@Dietrich T. Schmitz, Your Linux Advocate

Hmmm. This isn't Adobe Flash - you know the OOP environment, it's apprently just Flash video. So no websites functioning, just the ability to see Flash videos.

Woopty do wink
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RE: Adobe Flash coming to iPhone, thanks to Skyfire
The Star King 3rd Nov 2010
@tonymcs@... That's still something!
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Well we will see if it gets approved from the almighty...
mrlinux 2nd Nov 2010
Steve.
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Flash IS NOT running on the iPhone.
Dietrich T. Schmitz, ~ Your Linux Advocate 2nd Nov 2010
@mrlinux
All of the rendering occurs first on the Skyfire proxy server and is then painted to your browser.

In practice it is as good as your Desktop browser experience.
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RE: Adobe Flash coming to iPhone, thanks to Skyfire
mrlinux 2nd Nov 2010
@Dietrich T. Schmitz, Your Linux Advocate Where did you get the idea it is rendered by a proxy server ????
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Semantics. Video is rendered by a Skyfire server.
Dietrich T. Schmitz, ~ Your Linux Advocate 2nd Nov 2010
@mrlinux

Read up:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skyfire_%28web_browser%29
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RE: Adobe Flash coming to iPhone, thanks to Skyfire
I12BPhil 2nd Nov 2010
@mrlinux First paragraph, last sentence, ding dong.
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RE: Adobe Flash coming to iPhone, thanks to Skyfire
mrlinux 4th Nov 2010
@I12BPhil 1st paragraph last sentence, it does not mention this fact.
Skyfire for iPhone was built in accordance with Apple guidelines, including the use of a WebKit browser core shared with Safari, and h.264 adaptive streaming and has been approved by Apple for inclusion in the App Store.
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RE: Adobe Flash coming to iPhone, thanks to Skyfire
rshol 2nd Nov 2010
So it goes through a proxy server where they get to record all of my web activities? Why would that be appealing?
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RE: Adobe Flash coming to iPhone, thanks to Skyfire
Skyfire for iPhone 2nd Nov 2010
@shollomon

Skyfire collects no information relating to the real identities of users (we don't collect ever names, addresses, emails, or phone numbers). We have never sold information about our users. Our business model very publicly is to develop data and video optimization technology to license to wireless carriers and handset makers to improve network efficiency. Consumer trust is essential to our business, and we go well beyond privacy norms in maintaining our systems as fully anonymous, without any login or identity data collection or storage.

Further, Skyfire 2.0 is not a proxy browser. Rendering is done locally by webKit on the device. The cloud "booster engine" only steps in when there is a video that would not smoothly play without our cloud, or when the user engages with the toolbar.
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RE: Adobe Flash coming to iPhone, thanks to Skyfire
The Star King 3rd Nov 2010
@Skyfire for iPhone Hi there, thanks for joining in the discussion. So what actually happens when Skyfire encounters a flash video on the page? I guess it will only work for flash videos encoded with H.264? (with Flash as the container)
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Compared to Android
wackoae 2nd Nov 2010
@shollomon Who records everything you do on the device .... including GPS location???
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Tracking
archangel9999 3rd Nov 2010
@shollomon You mean like Google? Not only does Google track all web activities from their search pages but they also transform all hyperlinks embedded in emails going to your Gmail account - they modify the links to go through their redirection page so they can even record what links you follow from within your email - and of course they read your email so they can dynamically display relavent (or at least what they think is relavent) advertising
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RE: Adobe Flash coming to iPhone, thanks to Skyfire
cybr2th@... 2nd Nov 2010
This articles title is misleading. It should be "Adobe Flash traslated into HTML5 via Skyfire coming to IPhone".

That's nice and all but can they translate 100% of the flash websites out there? If it can, thats awesome...but I doubt it.
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RE: Adobe Flash coming to iPhone, thanks to Skyfire
kenosha77a 2nd Nov 2010
@cybr2th@... Hulu is reportedly blocking this feature from rendering its Flash videos. It would seem that Hulu wishes to promote its own Hulu Plus service.

Also, I heard that Flash games are really not supported.
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RE: Adobe Flash coming to iPhone, thanks to Skyfire
rshol 2nd Nov 2010
I failed to mention that in addition to Skyfire selling information about your web surfing to advertisers, you can forget about running any kind of adblocker on this browser.
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And how is that different from using an Android device?
wackoae 2nd Nov 2010
@shollomon Not that I agree with what happens, but how is that different from using Android (with all the spyware built into the kernel) or using Facebook or playing Farmville?
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Hey, good to have that privacy feature with all the Flash videos.
Userama 2nd Nov 2010
Wink, wink. Nudge, nudge.
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RE: Adobe Flash coming to iPhone, thanks to Skyfire
James Bomb 2nd Nov 2010
Won't this app be rejected by Apple because it duplicates functionalty that is already available on iOS?
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RE: Adobe Flash coming to iPhone, thanks to Skyfire
kenosha77a 2nd Nov 2010
@James Bomb
No .. it is basically an plug-in for the Safari Browser and has passed the App store qualification tests.
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RE: Adobe Flash coming to iPhone, thanks to Skyfire
The Star King 3rd Nov 2010
@James Bomb Actually there are several alternative browsers on the App store, including Opera.
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Yet another crappy Apple "workaround"
trickytom3 2nd Nov 2010
This is Steve Jobs way of caving on the Flash issue, without actually having to lose face.

We don't support Flash at all, however, however, we will allow a third party to grab Flash code, interpret it, and ship it back to you. Yet another crappy Apple workaround.

If Microsoft did this, fanboys would be going crazy!
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RE: Adobe Flash coming to iPhone, thanks to Skyfire
kenosha77a 2nd Nov 2010
@trickytom3

You give little credit to the creators of this piece of technology (Skyfire) and all the "blame" for its existence to Steve Jobs. Interesting.
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Did Steve Jobs [a.k.a. God] approve of this?
Gis Bun 2nd Nov 2010
He wants no Flash or [now] java on his Macs. On the other hand, at $2.99 he doesn't mind. He/Apple gets $0.90 per purchased copy. They'll probably let people purchase it before somehow disabling it with an update. happy
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RE: Adobe Flash coming to iPhone, thanks to Skyfire
kenosha77a 2nd Nov 2010
@Gis Bun

Actually, I have it on good authority that those pesky little dwarves first seen in the movie, Time Bandits, secretly went behind the back of the Supreme Being (Jobs) and approved this app for general App Store purchases. Won't those little guys ever learn?!
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RE: Adobe Flash coming to iPhone, thanks to Skyfire
rhonin 2nd Nov 2010
This is not a solution - it is as some have called it:
a poor band-aid solution at best.

iOS idiocy as usual.....
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RE: Adobe Flash coming to iPhone, thanks to Skyfire
kenosha77a 2nd Nov 2010
@zenwalker Oh come on, lighten up, Zen. Your sounding like a Democrat on Election Night.

"This is not a solution .. its a .. band-aid solution" ?!

There is an old saying, "A difference which makes no difference IS no difference."

A solution is a solution, poor or not, and for this example, Dietrich says the Skyfire "poor" solution works just fine on the Android system .. and, which I suspect, will also work "just fine" on the iOS platform as well.

In a few short days and after paying a nominal app fee, my iPad will be able to display Flash based content. The only exceptions to that have been noted above and elsewhere in the blogsphere.

As for myself, I won't miss Flash based games at all. One reason is that I have "Angry Birds HD" installed on my iPad. Who needs any other game? Grin.

That's the beauty of the iOS app ecosystem. Given time, a "poor" Steve Jobs tablet concept can become something quite "magical".

Speaking of election results, did you notice all the iPads in use on election night? Our local NBC news affiliate station was demonstrating their new election night app. As for myself, I was using the interactive ABC election night app for my election update information.

Hope you voted.
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To be a solution, you must 1st have a problem
wackoae 2nd Nov 2010
@zenwalker The lack of Flash on the iPhone is not a problem .... in fact, it is a solution.

Flash is only needed by idiots.
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RE: Adobe Flash coming to iPhone, thanks to Skyfire
The Star King 3rd Nov 2010
@wackoae For whatever reason, lots of websites are still encoding video in Flash. Until they see the light and start using modern technology, this is a very useful application. Think of it a bit like DosBox.
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RE: Adobe Flash coming to iPhone, thanks to Skyfire
Jimster480 3rd Nov 2010
It's still only flash video. So its all 1 way. There is no real interaction supported. Atleast that is how it was with skyfire in the past on other platforms.

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