Adobe announced today (or Tuesday U.S. time) that Creative Suite 5 will be released soon and that they will show-off features at an event to be streamed online on April 12th. So what are we to expect in terms of technologies? — Lightroom 3, Flash Catalyst, Business Catalyst, Adobe Story — not to mention updates to the major applications like Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Flash, Dreamweaver, After Effects, Audition and Premiere with 64-Bit Cocoa on the Mac and Windows 7 support? Whatever. I don’t really care, as long as they put this into Photoshop…
One of the major players in the type industry, FontShop, has released licenses for real commercial fonts able to be used with CSS font embedding. For those unaware of CSS font embedding, the font is gathered using the @font-face construct rather than a regular selector. To embed the font files requires no use of Flash and no JavaScript. All you have to do is specify the font-family (typeface) name and its source file.
Unfortunately FontShop says its formats don’t yet support Chrome, Safari or Opera and licensing fees aren’t dirt cheap, but it’s a step in the right direction.
With the recent release of the iPad, YouTube’s migration to h.264 for the iPhone and Google’s decision to drop support for older browsers such as Internet Explorer 6 in favour of developing an HTML 5-based Google Apps, it doesn’t look like great news for the Adobe Flash plugin. The question on many people’s lips is — well, people in web and IT communities — ‘Is Flash dead?’. JavaScript libraries such as JQuery allow for rich internet applications and interfaces, HTML 5 video tags make video embedding a cinch and CSS 3 animation can be performed with a single line of code. Each one seems to be a nail in Flash’s coffin. Well, that’s on the surface.
HBO's new website, redesigned entirely using Flash
So, is Flash dead? The simple answer is no… even though Steve Jobs considers Flash obsolete and Apple refuses to support it on the iPhone or iPad. Obviously it’s within Apple’s best interest to keep developers away from allowing people to access applications outside of Apple’s App Store approval process. [Not that that stopped Google. Their Google Voice app, which was rejected by Apple in July last year, has since been redeveloped in HTML 5 so it can be accessed via a web browser, namely Apple's mobile version of Safari.] Even Microsoft claim that their Silverlight plugin beats Flash in terms of video performance and compatibility. And then there is the web standards community — web designers and developers who claim that there is not need for plugins like Flash, which breaks web standards, forces people to run download and install a proprietary plugin and often all for lesser performance than it’s HTML counterpart.
So, why isn’t Flash dead? Well, don’t get me wrong, as a web designer I am very much in favour of web standards, HTML 5 and the many benefits of open source software. I’ve also put up with the fair share of interface and programming language changes that Macromedia, and now Adobe, has made to the Flash application (not to mention their other software). However, I am also in favour of diversity. Let’s face it, there is nothing quite like Flash. Without it, there’d be no YouTube right now, no Vimeo, iView or if you’re in the States, Hulu. And even though we have fabulous browsers like Google Chrome, Firefox and Safari — and according to TechCrunch, Internet Explorer 6 is down to 20 percent of the market — HTML 5 is still a baby (and SVG is a very, very old foetus). There is no easier way to display vector graphics and animation, no better way to embed and share online video in terms of compatibility. In an article on the topic that is well worth reading, Adobe’s John Nack puts it best:
• Flash is flawed, but it has moved the world forward.
• Open standards are great, but they can be achingly slow to arrive.
• Talk of “what’s good for standards is bad for Adobe” is misinformed nonsense.
• Flash will innovate or die. I’m betting on innovation
What else? Despite the iPhone/iPad’s lack of Flash plugin, Adobe has already taken the plunge, giving another use for their upcoming Flash CS5 software — allowing you to output applications made in the Flash environment as iPhone Apps.
But the best proof that Flash isn’t dead is the developers creating great new content online. One of the most recent and best examples is HBO’s redesign, which is now entirely in Flash. Although there are some UI quirks in the design of the interface, it is a great example of how a large amount of content can be managed and easily accessed, not to mention the site’s beautiful design aesthetic. Oh yeah, and can’t wait for Treme (by the makers of The Wire), the animated Ricky Gervais show and a second season of Tim! And no, I am not paid by or have any affliation with Adobe or HBO
Technology has been running amok of late and I mean in the best possible ways. We’ve had cars that run purely on hydrogen, consumer digital cameras shooting video that could compete with the quality of 35mm film and Vegemite that tastes cheesy… and has had a name to match.
A couple of weeks ago, technology website Gizmodo gave us a sneek peek at an impressive Microsoft prototype called the Courier. I was watching the 2005 film of Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy on TV last week, and noticed that Mos Def had already acquired one of these from his planet.
Speaking of spooky similarities, Honda gave us a preview of its U3-X last week. And I’m sure I wasn’t the only one who thought that it looked about as painful pleasant to ride as South Park’s ‘IT‘. Oh, and in case you haven’t heard enough from me lately, go Cats!
I thought it was about time I wrote about something that I know: what’s under the hood in Snow Leopard (10.6). Specifically, I am excited about the increased 64-bit architecture. Certainly, one of the saddest things to see in recent years has been the introduction of 64-bit hardware into the marketplace without the required software support. I can still remember getting my 64-bit Athlon Linux box up and running. I was excited – until I realised that there was virtually no 64-bit software available. Although I was quick to install an appropriate operating system – the software within was limited to 32-bits. Think: running a formula one racing care in first gear. Despite the advanced hardware, my linux box could never put its power down.
Although the various releases of OSX have progressively introduced 64-bit support, it wasn’t until 10.5 that this was extended throughout the software stack. Finally with 10.6 we see the much-awaited rewrite of most system software. The end result of this will be a faster, more responsive operating system for the user. Other, probably unseen benefits will be greater reliability and security.
I suppose my point is that Snow Leopard is now the most advanced operating system in terms of architecture. For now it is the closest we are going to get to the ‘real deal’ (until they rewrite DVD Player, Front Row, Grapher, iTunes and X11 into 64-bit code!).
While people still fight the Mac vs. PC wars over issues such as the “user-interface” and printer drivers – for me it is all about what lies within.
Of course, nobody has said anything about 3rd party software… but that is for another post.
I thought it was about time I wrote about something that I know: what’s under the hood in Snow Leopard (10.6). Specifically, I am excited about the increased 64-bit architecture. Certainly, one of the saddest things to see in recent years has been the introduction of 64-bit hardware into the marketplace without the required software support. I can still remember getting my 64-bit Athlon Linux box up and running. I was excited – until I realised that there was virtually no 64-bit software available. Although I was quick to install an appropriate operating system – the software within was limited to 32-bits. Think: running a formula one racing care in first gear. Despite the advanced hardware, my linux box could never put its power down.
