If you’re curious as to which method of bringing people content is going to win out of the two, it’s worth having a look at this list. Flash, while on 99% of computers, lacks some advantages that HTML5 boasts. So which should you go for? 1) Performance Flash is an extremely powerful tool if you know how to use it right. It loads quickly, is able to give the user access to games, animations, interactive charts, banner adverts – the possibilities are huge. But HTML5 boasts the same capabilities, so what puts Flash ahead? Primarily, ActionScript 3.0, which accelerates code execution by ten times what it was before. However, HTML5 does perform noticeably better on Mac and Linux computers, as Flash tends to overheat OSX machines due to excessive CPU usage. 2) Market presence You cannot, and likely will not for many years, beat the presence of Flash on the average computer. It has a 99% install base, whereas HTML5 would be lucky to see 10% of that figure. The availability of Flash is a big deal – if you went to the o2 site and they had HTML5 running rather than Flash, chances are that most people would see that as one step too far away from usability, and that’s a big deal. But as HTML5 spreads, both may eventually be as common as each other. 3) Different Browsers This is really where HTML5 falls flat on its face – it doesn’t run the same in all browsers, and Flash does. That’s a huge flaw in a market where someone could be using anything from IE to Firefox to Chrome, and you’ll struggle to justify the extra effort it takes to “localise” HTML5 content compared to building something in Flash that will work flawlessly in all browsers. However, it is worth noting that iOS devices still don’t support Flash, and likely never will, so be careful if you’ve got mobile browsing in mind. These are just a few examples, but it’s clear that bar OSX and Linux performance, Flash will continue to outperform its rival for many years to come. But is it worth looking into HTML5? If you’re developing content tuned towards the iOS crowd, of course, but outside them, stick with Flash.

There has been such a great deal of debate about Flash versus HTML5.  While the pros and cons of each is typically black and white, when it comes to video playback on the web leveraging the two provides a more robust user experience. Whether  you want Flash for a uniform desktop experience but need to support the iPad? No problem. Standards junkie and only want HTML5? That’s cool too. We’ve gathered a list of the top free and premium HTML5/Flash video players that provide an all in one solution to video playback on the web regardless of the device. Enjoy and Happy New Year! 1- SublimeVideo SublimeVideo Player gives your site universal playback of your videos on any browser or device. SublimeVideo maximizes the use of HTML5 in the latest browsers, while providing full support for legacy browsers with automatic Flash fallback. SublimeVideo offers free and premium options. 2 – MediaElement.js A free HTML5 audio or video player with Flash and Silverlight shims that mimics the HTML5 MediaElement API, enabling a consistent UI in all browsers. 3 – Video.js A lighweight/free and open sourced video player with a forced fallback to Flash even when there is an unsupported source. 4 – OSMF Edge Media Player A premium video player based on the robust Open Source Media Framework which grants out of the box support for multiple media types, including video, audio, images, and SWF files. It is an all-in-one solution for your streaming needs and is ready to be deployed to any kind of project. 5 – Video / YouTube / Vimeo Gallery V2 A premium mini gallery for your videos. It allows you display YouTube videos and videos from your server in the same container. It can also be used as a portfolio or a video showcase. 6 – HTML5 Blue Video Gallery A premium HTML5 gallery uses the latest HTML5 techniques. For example, it uses HTML5 LocalStorage to remember the last volume you had before you exit and sets back that volume when you come back. All the player graphics are driven by XML so you can change anything very easy. 7 – HTML5 Video Using an HTML5 Javascript Library, your videos can be played back on the latest mobile devices and even on older browsers that require Flash. 8 – JW Player for Flash & HTML5 An evolved video player with a standardized approach to handling Flash & HTML5 support. 9 – FlareVideo FlareVideo is a free/open sourced HTML5 video player with a Flash fallback and an easy CSS/HTML/JS customization and theming. 10 – Video Player With Circular Scrubbing A premium Flash/HTML5 video player with a HTML5 Fallback video player and built atop of a solid foundation. 11 – Tejas HTML5 Video Player A premium HTML5 video player that is built on jQuery and utilizes the very powerful ThemeRoller system for rendering its user interface. 12 – Projekktor A free HTML5 video player that supports pre and postroll ads, true fullscreen, Flash fallback, and YouTube HTML5.

With mobile AIR application development on the forefront, the approach to application optimization needs to be refined to accomodate the platform.   To get the optimal performance with any mobile device, it is important to maximize the hardware capabilities as well as implementing software development best practices. Check out this article by Jun Chen, where he describes priceless development practices that help improve performance of mobile AIR apps. Topics in this article include applying manual garbage collection, improving performance by updating the AIR SDK, vector versus bitmap graphics, etc. via the Adobe Flash Developer Center

Hey there this is Angel Romero of Flash Speaks ActionScript, I’ve ran this blog for the last three years as a hobby.  While, I still feel that Flash Speaks ActionScript has so much more to offer the Flash community and its users, unfortunately, that free time just isn’t there for me anymore. Over the last year, I haven’t been able to consistently push out quality posts.  In turn, this has led me to put FSA for sale via Flippa’s auction system. Rather than getting down into details in the post, feel free to check out the site’s Flippa auction page.  If you or someone you know might be interested in a property like Flash Speaks ActionScript, please point them to the Flippa page mentioned above.  At the very I’d appreciate if you can simply share the link to your online audience.  The more exposure the better.  Thanks again!

The JavaScript Flash API or JSFL lets you write scripts to perform several actions within the Flash environment. The possibilities of using JSFL are endless allowing you to create custom commands, tools, timeline effects, behaviors, etc. Over the years, many JSFL extensions have surfaced within the Flash community. Below are a collection of 20+ JSFL extensions ranging from audio/lip syncing to tween management to Git/Svn version control. Enjoy! If you have either developed or know of an awesome JSFL extension that I missed from this list, feel leaving a comment below. Thanks and enjoy! Automatically Enter at the Desired Frame with FrameAim This adds a panel that enters the selected graphic at the currently displayed frame. By default, Flash just opens the Graphic to its first frame, regardless of what’s being shown on the main stage. No more! Download Auto Flash Class Panel Class and package names are generated form your library folder structure. With one simple click your library is ready for export. Download Citrus Engine Panels A flash extension to create easily CitrusEngine’s objects. Download Ease Caddy The EaseCaddy panel allows you to store your custom eases and re-apply them. You can save your eases to a file and send them to someone else. Download Easy Palette Easy Palette is a color management system that gives the user a friendlier and more useful way to manage custom palettes by allowing them to name colors to speed identification, save and load custom palettes. Download Extend to Longest Layer Very simple but annoyance-saving command which extends all layers in the timeline to the length of the longest layer. Great if you find yourself pasting audio into a bunch of nested symbols. Download FrameSync This is a handy-dandy animation plug-in similar to Animonger’s AnimSlider, except that it uses frame labels and requires no other setup. Download Git Version Control Panel for Flash Commit FLAs to your Git repo from within Flash. Download Icon Publisher Icon Publisher is a Flash extension panel for publish your icon in different sizes in one click. Download LabelJumper This adds the Next Label, Previous Label, and Goto Label commands which allow you to quickly jump to keyframes with specific labels. Download MotionBlur The MotionBlur Flash extension takes a (new) motion tween, analyzes the movement, and creates a motion blur. Download MotionSketch MotionSketch inserts a command to record a drawing in real-time and create a tween based on that drawing. Download Multi Swap Multi Swap allows you to swap multiple symbols at once, and allows swapping symbols across multiple frames. Download NewerAnimClip This is an extended version of Dave Wolfe’s NewAnimClip which takes care of all the legwork. Just select a section of frames in your timeline, run the command, and that animation will be symbolized in the exact correct place. Basically a fully automated “Pringle”. Download Queasy Tools Panel Queasy Tools is a new set of quick and easy tools for Flash designers and animators. This panel provides the fastest way to create tweened animation with easing in Flash. Download Search and Replace This will search for and replace text in the names of Library items. You can search all Library items or only the selected items. Download SmartMouth SmartMouth is a Flash extension that automatically analyzes vocal audio tracks and adds mouth shapes. Your Flash Timeline remains 100% editable, leaving you in full control of your animation. Download StructureCreator Flash extension panel for creating website project structure Download Subversion Panel for Flash Commit Flash documents and related files to your Subversion repo right from within Flash. Download Swap Instance for Duplicate Symbol This extension adds a command that will take a selected symbol instance, create a new duplicate in the library, and swap the selected symbol for the newly created duplicate. Download Sync To Timeline This adds a command which syncs a selected symbol to the timeline, regardless of if they’re isolated on their own layers. Really useful for re-timing nested animation. Download 3D Rotate EZ 3D Rotate EZ is a Flash Panel using which you can create 360 degree object or 3D product rotation, called also ObjectVR. Download

Today is a good day for the Flash/Flex IDE market.  The long-awaited release of FDT 5 has come and its most recent feature-set complements the modern-day developer.  These days developers  find themselves having to a toe in many different waters just to stay competitive and up to date. Personally, I feel this release of FDT 5 is a great leap for multi-platform IDEs and what to expect from them. What is FDT 5? FDT 5 is a flexible development toolkit in Eclipse for interactive developers. It’ s made with passion for expert Flash and Flex coding, innovative mobile development and versatile HTML5 / JavaScript / WebGL / PHP programming with haXe. Create your applications in FDT and efficiently target multiple platforms. This release consists of a freemium and premium version.  FDT Free is free of charge and the perfect editor for small projects while FDT Max is the high-end IDE for all your advanced projects. Download New Features Include: haXe support Extract Method Extract Constant Extract Local Variable Convert Local Variable to Field ASDoc View Fat SWC ASDoc Support Sources Attachment for SWCs ActionScript ASDoc Support Breakpoint Support in Flex SDK Launching Mobile Projects Project Templates for haXe AIR SDK Merging … and more nice improvements FDT haXe Features One of the hot most requested feature in this latest release of FDT 5 is support for haXe.  Developed in collaboration with Powerflasher and supported by Influxis, the FDT’s haXe support provides developers a powerful tool for authoring in a multi target fashion. FDT’s haXe features include: Live error checking Autocompletion (variables and functions) Syntax coloring New Class/Interface/Enum wizards HaXe Project Wizard New to FDT? Are you need to FDT?  If so, don’t worry.  You can find very helpful tutorials from setting up a FDT to using FDT’s debugger.  If you are comfortable with Flash Builder like I am, then this transition shouldn’t be too bad since it based on top off Eclipse. FDT 5 is a great IDE  to watch out for as it headed in the right direction as a multi-purpose, multi-platform IDE.  Kudos to the Powerflasher team on producing a great and freemium product.

Exporting Sprite Sheets From Flash The concept/use of sprite sheets in the gaming industry is such a common technique.  It is a technique that cannot be left out of your nifty toolbox.  At the most recent  Flash on the Beach, Adobe demoed an exciting new feature that allows you to export sprite sheets from your library MovieClips. This will be extremely useful for game developers and for anyone doing mobile development. Check out this sneak peek video create by Lee Brimelow on export sprite sheets from a future release of Flash. Stage3D Cover Flow The magic of Stage3D appears to be an ongoing affair throughout the Flash community.  The most recent sighting is a cover flow created using Alternativa3D and Stage3D.  The performance on this guy is awesome! Check it out for yourself. Adobe Flash “Speed” Feature Here’s a quick tutorial on how to use the “Speed” feature in Adobe Flash. If you use the Bone tool (Inverse Kinematics) you may find this hidden gem useful.  Enjoy! Reach the Final Frontier with Circ and Flash Builder Circ, available for Android, BlackBerry Tablet OS and iOS, is so simple in its gameplay but challenging at the same time—players navigate their spaceships collecting stars and points, while escaping from planets and stars trying to pull the ship away from its course. It’s the kind of game that’s perfect for passing the time between train stops or even just for a quiet few minutes at home. Learn more! Check out the official trailer!

3D Wheel XML Template is a new way to showcase your media, built with Papervision 3D, the powerful tweening engine BetweenAS3 and CASA Lib’s very useful AS3 library.  Extend the template with other components as you wish with the provided SWF module. Enhance your media with this stunning three-dimensional template! Features Deep Linking & Navigation History with SWFAddress. Customizable, dynamic two level menu. Complete realtime 3D Media Viewer powered by Papervision 3D Smart navigation featuring Quaternions for Pixel Precision. Native support for both Flickr and YouTube. Supports JPG , GIF, PNG , SWF, FLV files and H.264 encoded videos. Built-in garbage collection and smart loading system managed by CASA Lib. Over 146 XML Settings to customize nearly everything. Slideshow function with auto play and resume. Supports left/right arrow keys for global navigation. HTML formatted captions positional everywhere on the stage. Custom Homepage support & Single assets behaviour. Smooth, optimized render system to free resources when needed. No Flash authoring needed, customize everything with XML & FlashVars. Complete Fluid layout with Fullscreen mode and smoothing filters for big assets. Tiny music player with playlist support and autoloop function. Social icons with custom tool tips and external links. Load background images at runtime and resize them automatically with correct aspect ratio. Content module which handles HTML tags and supports external CSS Stylesheets. PHP Contact Module with confirmation email and field validation. Download | Preview

Proscenium Review 1 Released on Labs “Proscenium” (codename)  is an ActionScript 3 code library built on top of the Flash Platform Stage3D APIs that allows for rapid development of interactive 3D content.   It is being released to encourage easy experimentation with 3D content in Flash, and to garner feedback on the API design. Download Proscenium Enabling the Flash Debug Player on Chrome Have you ever tried to debug your Flash content from within Chrome only to find out that Chrome thinks you don’t have the correct version of the Flash player.  I am sure most developers have come across this at some point.  Mims H Wright was nice enough(or forced to) provide a nice problem/solution to this issue.  Be sure to say thanks! Particle Editor for Starling Framework Check out this in-browser particle editor for the Starling 2D Framework for Flash Player 11. Export your particle effect as a Starling particle extension and embed them into your Starling projects as usual. Preloading TLF runtime shared libraries in Flash CS5.5 Adobe Flash Professional CS5 introduced a new type of text field to Flash called TLF text. TLF text has several advantages over Classic text, such as advanced formatting options, better font compression and rendering, and support for complexly formatted languages. In order to support TLF text, Adobe Flash Player was updated to change how it loads the related runtime shared libraries (RSLs) and the content you define in the SWF file. In this article, you’ll learn about the changes to Flash Player and the best options for publishing files containing TLF text. Simple Stage3D Benchmark Flash 11?s new Stage3D API gives us hardware-accelerated 3D graphics, which is a major jump forward for Flash-based games and simulations. Along with this comes some added responsibility: we must now care about our users’ graphics cards. Today’s article features a simple benchmarking application that you can run to get a basic idea of how Stage3D is performing on a certain computer.

TxtBlock is a robust component that allows to create texts, images, videos and interactive elements using XML or ActionScript 3.0. Is like a “Text Field”, but allows to embed multiple fonts and interactive graphic elements as you wish. The layout of contents in multimedia applications developed in Flash that include text has always been cumbersome and limited, now TxtBlock will help to give life to those contents trough of a good list of features, which allow combine text, images and videos in a way extremely easy and simple. Layout your paragraphs smarter TxtBlock can be integrated into any project developed with ActionScript 3.0, whether templates or components were required to display texts or other type of content. It’s very flexible, resizable and the best of all is totally customizable. One of the features worth highlighting is that TxtBlock works based on styles configured via XML , providing a large amount of customization possibilities to the users without necessarily having to compile the application. Display Videos, SWFs, and Images Features Full customization. based OOP . Customizable ScrollBar. MouseWheel support. Video visualization using VPlayer. Image visualization using SideCutSlider. SWFs visualization. Custom components visualization. Users can add their own components as extra elements. Data Management via component properties or XML . Style Sheet Management via XML . Text Fonts fully customizable and independent from the component. Resizable Only 33kb. Download | Preview