the plug list is very enlightening!

mike hoy

>Flash is a binary, proprietary, closed (mostly), non-free format with
>the only player that generally works being non-free software.  About
>half the Linux world cannot (easily) install Flash (including me). 
>There are no guarantees that Flash players will be easily available in
>the future.  Flash is not accessible to persons with disabilities (the
>open alternative, SVG, is).  Flash is susceptible to several very nasty
>exploits, and there's no effective way to filter those out without
>removing all Flash (SVG is readable by scanners, so exploits could be
>filtered without eliminating all content, and the code is viewable, so
>it's hard to hide what's being done).  If you want "pretty" and
>interactive sites, you'll have to deal with Flash for now, but let the
>site owners know that you would much prefer SVG content, and cheer on
>the Mozilla developers working to bring SVG to Firefox 1.1.
>
>I agree that Quicktime, Real, and WMV formats are problems.  But the
>better solution is to demand open formats (like OGG containers and
>Vorbis sound with Theora video), not ask for a different proprietary format.
>
>The flash file extension is .SWF for "ShockWave Flash", Flash was
>originally a faster, lighter, simpler ShockWave format that ended up
>replacing it's "parent" (as Don states below).
>
>There are several other options for multimedia on Linux besides MPlayer,
>they just don't handle proprietary formats.  Again, the better solution
>is to let the website operators know that they are alienating just over
>30% of the global population by using these formats, and they should
>look into open formats as a means to grow their base market.  Pointing
>out that the open formats work better on the new Firefox browser they
>keep hearing about won't hurt either.
>
>Just my little rant about multimedia on the net.
>
>==Joseph++
>
>Don Calfa wrote:
>  
>

---------------------------------------------------
PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.plug.phoenix.az.us
To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change  you mail settings:
http://lists.PLUG.phoenix.az.us/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss