Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Adobe, ARM Teaming Up to Optimize Flash on Mobile Devices [Adobe Flash 10]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/N_y4x_EVWFQ/adobe-arm-teaming-up-to-optimize-flash-on-mobile-devices

flash_iphone.jpgAccording to the MIT Technology Review, Adobe is working with mobile processor manufacturer ARM on optimizing Flash Player 10 and AIR for ARM processors. Why does this matter? Because ARM processors are found in 90% of mobile phones (iPhone and G1 included), not to mention set top boxes, PMPs, and gaming devices (like the Nintendo DS). And how will they do it? Adobe and ARM say they have three main areas they're working on to improve the mobile flash experience.

First, they're customizing the compiler specifically for the ARMv6 and ARMv7 processors, which will help speed up and smooth out communications between the processor and the app. Second, they're going to take advantage of the graphics subprocessors found in some ARM chips. Flash on desktops isn't optimized for any sort of graphics processor, but taking advantage of this on a mobile platform will not only help with the workload, but it will improve battery life at the same time. Lastly, they're making video compression and decompression better suited for the processors, so that it requires less horsepower.

It should come as no huge surprise that Adobe says Flash 10 will be running on ARM devices by next year, considering that they already announced plans for the software on the iPhone and G1. It will not only make it easier to view sites with rich web content, but it will also be easier to view and upload flash videos, and run flash-based apps. [MIT Tec! hnology Review]