Updated May 20th, 2021 at 15:14 IST

Adobe Flash Player alternative: Are HTML 5 and WebGL good alternatives to flash?

Since December 31, 2020, Flash has been unavailable for download. So, here are some of the Adobe Flash Player alternatives that you must check out.

Reported by: Saurabh Sabat
IMAGE: Adobe | Image:self
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Adobe has decided to no longer support Flash since January 2021. So, what to use in place of Adobe Flash player now? Continue reading the article to find out about some of the alternative software that you can use instead of Adobe Flash player and know about the risks of using the flash player.

Adobe Flash Player Alternative

Flash has been unavailable for download, and Adobe advises that you uninstall Flash completely. There will be no more Flash updates, and you won't be able to download older versions from Adobe. In 2017, Adobe had made an announcement that stated the following:

In collaboration with several of our technology partners – including Apple, Facebook, Google, Microsoft and Mozilla, Adobe is planning to end-of-life Flash. Specifically, we will stop updating and distributing the Flash Player at the end of 2020 and encourage content creators to migrate any existing Flash content to these new open formats.

HTML5 - The most common and most popular alternative to Adobe Flash Player is HTML5. Hypertext Markup Language is the abbreviation for Hypertext Markup Language. It is a type of coding language that enables text, images, applications, tags, and other elements to be viewed on the internet.

Ruffle - Ruffle, an open-source project in progress, allows users to view Flash content in their web browser without installing a plug-in. It's a Flash Player simulator that can run animated content natively. Web developers can use the project's help to convert their current Flash animations to JavaScript.

WebGL - It has been identified as a potential successor to Adobe Flash for 2D interactive graphics, and Microsoft has listed it alongside HTML5. It can also deliver high-quality 3D graphics, augmented reality, and other images directly to web browsers, desktops, smartphones, and tablets.

Why was there a need to Remove Flash?

At the height of its success, Flash powered a significant portion of the internet, putting a lot of pressure on Adobe. Flash was managed and modified by a single party since it was a web plugin. As Flash became more popular, it became a more attractive target for hackers. Flash has quickly branded a security risk, joining other browser plugins such as ActiveX and Java. Adobe couldn't patch Flash no matter how hard it tried, so in 2017, the company agreed to stop developing it and phase it out completely by the end of 2020.

Flash was commonly recognised as a security risk by 2012. As a result, Google decided to bundle Flash with Chrome in order to build a sandbox. This effectively isolated flash material from the rest of the device by putting it in its own safe room. Flash became obsolete when internet speeds and browser standards improved to the point that it was no longer necessary.

IMAGE: Adobe

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Published May 20th, 2021 at 15:14 IST