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Why Is Adobe Flash On Linux Still Broken?
mwilliamson writes "As I sit reading my morning paper online I still cannot view the embedded videos due to auto-detection of my Flash player not working. One in every three or four YouTube videos crashes the browser. I remember sometime back reading that Adobe has a very small development team (possibly only one) working on the Linux port of Flash. It has occurred to me that Flash on Linux is the one major entry barrier controlling acceptance of Linux as a viable desktop operating system. No matter how stably, smoothly, efficiently, and correctly Linux runs on a machine, the public will continue to view it as second-rate if Flash keeps crashing. This is the worst example of being tied down and bound by a crappy 3rd-party product over which no Linux distribution has any control. GNASH is nice, but it just isn't there 100%. I really do have to suspect Adobe's motivation for keeping Flash on Linux in such a deplorable state."
" It has occurred to me that Flash on Linux is the one major entry barrier controlling acceptance of Linux as a viable desktop operating system. "
Ha ha ha ha ha.
HA HA HA HA HA HA!
Are you serious? A lot of people using Macs and Windows intentionally disable the Flash Player because they're not that fond of punching dancing monkeys to save on their insurance bills.
How about these barriers:
* The fact that the phrase "recompile your kernel" still exists
* The numerous settings that still require you to edit a conf file to change
* The lack of any marketing or retail presence (you know, the stuff that let Apple triumph over the superior hardware of the Atari ST and the Commodore Amiga and the slew of other 16 bit contenders?)
Do you really _want_ linux to go mainstream, anyway? Don't you remember what happened to the Internet when AOL caught on?