Flash on 64-bit OSs
Long ago, people belonging to the Linux community filed a petition to Macromedia, Inc. through PetitionOnline requesting them to release 64 bit Linux Flash and Shockwave players.
In a technote affecting Flash Player 9, Adobe addressed the issue a few months back: Adobe is working on Flash Player support for 64-bit platforms as part of our ongoing commitment to the cross-platform compatibility of Flash Player. We have not yet announced timing or release dates.
Tinic Uro, an Adobe engineer working on Flash Player, once mentioned that “it is not a question of ‘recompiling’ the source code, there is lots of generic non platform specific work which needs to be finished first.”
We understand that it is not easy, but whether any work in that direction is really being done remains unclear. Even as the recently released Flash Player 10 Beta 2 comes with new features and other community requested enhancements, 64-bit support remains as elusive.
While this remains Adobe’s stance, here are a few workarounds to run flash movies on 64-bit machines:
1. Adobe: Use a separate 32-bit browser apart from your default 64-bit browser.
2. [OC]ModShop: In Windows, goto $WINDOWS\SysWOW64\Macromed\Flash, right-click on FlashUtilvn (where vn is the version number), and run as… Administrator.
3. GNU: Use Gnash, the open source Flash movie player.
Could you please add any other workarounds that you are aware of?
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Well for me, I see this 64-bit platforms request as a poor whine.
Yeah it is surely cool to say for people to be working on a 64-bit platform, but people also needs to assume their choice. These ones represent what? 1% probably less? maybe 0.5%? in all the people surfing on the net who might be viewing Flash content.
When people choose a platform they should look first of the possibilities and constraints of that platform before whining and yelling it is a scandal that Adobe has “still” not released a version for them.
Just sounds like spoiled kids whinning for a new toy they won’t even use after 1h.
Certainly not a new toy that we won’t use after another hour.
64-bit has its advantages, and the reason it remains such a tiny minority is the gaping absence of 64-bit versions of softwares.