Flash sites on the iPad - here's how

[Flavius]

No kidding.

I just finished playing my favorite (flash-based) face book game on my iPad while walking around the house. Before that I went to hulu.com and watched the trailer of Prince of Persia. On the iPad.

Here's how you do it. Go to the app store and buy 'Air Display'. Once the app has loaded follow the instructions on the screen and install one other piece of software on your computer. Restart and configure your iPad as a second or third display for your computer.

Drag your browser with the facebook flash game session to your iPad display. Enjoy 'touching' the game.

Limitations: high quality flash based video is more like a slide show. The movie trailer ran fine.-

 

[Robert Maxwell]

That sounds tremendously cumbersome. Sounds like all you're basically doing is making your iPad an extension of your PC display, so the Flash you're using is actually from the PC.

Is there not a VNC for the iPad? Seems like that would be substantially easier to deal with.

 

[Flavius]

Do you own an iPad?

Use VNC much? VNC does not do video, it's not supposed to. While you don't seem to understand all the moving pieces here, you do understood the basic principle - you turn the iPad into a display extension, yes.

Note: the app is called 'Air Display'. -I'm not affiliated with those guys.-

 

[Robert Maxwell]

I know VNC wouldn't work for video, but from the sound of it the video barely "works" on Air Display, either--so, no big loss.

Flash games would probably still work fine over VNC, though, as long as they don't require a really high frame rate.

 

[Brent]

The title is misleading, you aren't rendering the flash sites on your ipad, they are being rendered on your PC and then just being displayed on the iPad. Limitation is that this only works when you are around your PC, and you are relying on the PC to do what the iPad should be doing. So now, it isn't flash on your iPad, it is flash on your PC being displayed on your iPad, nothing more.

 

[Nerdius Maximus]

Pardon my ignorance, but what exactly do you do with an ipad? What advantages does it have over a laptop of approximately the same size? Seems like 90% of the internet uses flash. I would think that would seriously cut down on your enjoyment of the internet. I mean, no Youtube? It just seems to me like the ipad is like a giant iphone, so why not just use an iphone? Really, I'm curious about this, I'm not trying to be a smartass or anything.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

Pardon my ignorance, but what exactly do you do with an ipad? What advantages does it have over a laptop of approximately the same size?

The iPad is more compact, and functions excellently as an e-reader and media player. One of my favorite apps is MLB.com At Bat, and you can guess why.

Seems like 90% of the internet uses flash.

Well, then 90% of the internet is crap, IMHO. Flash sucks. It's buggy and bloated and on its way out. HTML5 is where it's at.

I would think that would seriously cut down on your enjoyment of the internet. I mean, no Youtube?

The iPad has its own YouTube app.

It just seems to me like the ipad is like a giant iphone, so why not just use an iphone?

The iPad's screen is MUCH larger. And not everyone needs or wants a cellphone.

 

[Arrqh]

Well, then 90% of the internet is crap, IMHO. Flash sucks. It's buggy and bloated and on its way out. HTML5 is where it's at.

90% of the internet would be crap Flash or no Flash. Bad web applications will exist no matter what tools are available for people to use.

The reality is that people want Flash on the iPad (and the iPhone). The fact that people are trying to develop workarounds is proof of that. And as annoying as Flash is, I don't want Apple to be dictating the direction that the web evolves in.

HTML5 is great and all, but it is not a replacement for Flash. There is no reason why HTML5 and Flash cannot coexist in the web ecosystem.

 

[Flavius]

....I don't want Apple to be dictating the direction that the web evolves in.

HTML5 is great and all, but it is not a replacement for Flash. There is no reason why HTML5 and Flash cannot coexist in the web ecosystem.

And that's what's going to happen. Flash is not going anywhere, but it's importance will be greatly reduced.

 

[Robert Maxwell]

It boggles my mind that people only think of video when they think of Flash. Using Flash for video is a rather recent invention. HTML5 isn't going to replace the vector graphics component of Flash.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

There are a lot of sites that overuse Flash to the point of ridiculousness. Some are so bad that it hurts to look at them (Even if it doesn't crash your browser along the way). If Flash must continue to exist, at least they should dial it WAY the hell back. Too many sites use Flash when they really don't need it.

 

[Stone_Cold_Sisko]

Most of my favorite sites use Flash.

 

[Arrqh]

There are a lot of sites that overuse Flash to the point of ridiculousness. Some are so bad that it hurts to look at them (Even if it doesn't crash your browser along the way). If Flash must continue to exist, at least they should dial it WAY the hell back. Too many sites use Flash when they really don't need it.

Remember when the web was full of pages with yellow backgrounds and huge bright blue scrolling/blinking text, with dozens of badly drawn animated gifs that slowed Netscape to a crawl?

Blaming Flash for pages that are painful to look at is... a bit short sighted.

 

[ST-One]

The iPad is more compact, and functions excellently as an e-reader and media player.

Doubtful, with such a reflective screen.
And you can't probably see a thing when your outside with the iPad, right?

 

[trekkiedane]

Instead of having the paper version delivered (twice) every week (I'm preparing to get the official 'no advertisements'-sticker on my mail box) I subscribe to the e-version of ads from local supermarkets, DIY stores and whatnot -those all come in the form of an e-mail with a link to the actual ad -which without fail is in the form of flash -a tablet device in the loo (where I happen to read the crap while I... well, I find it a fitting place to read that sort of stuff...) A tablet would be great for my needs but NOT the iDevice as it is.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

The iPad is more compact, and functions excellently as an e-reader and media player.

Doubtful, with such a reflective screen.

Looks fine to me.

And you can't probably see a thing when your outside with the iPad, right?

Wrong.

 

[ST-One]

The iPad is more compact, and functions excellently as an e-reader and media player.

Doubtful, with such a reflective screen.

Looks fine to me.

And you can't probably see a thing when your outside with the iPad, right?

Wrong.

Yeah, like I thought...

 

[Arrqh]

For reading books where color isn't required, eInk still is the superior screen technology over LCD. I'm not really sure how anyone could dispute that.

 

[ST-One]

For reading books where color isn't required, eInk still is the superior screen technology over LCD. I'm not really sure how anyone could dispute that.

Neither am I.

 

[Flavius]

I like this perspective:

http://www.trustedreviews.com/edito...Learned-To-Stop-Worrying-And-Love-The-iPad/p1