Earlier today I read Steve Jobs' thoughts on Flash, as posted on Apple's Website. You can read his comments here: http://bit.ly/bUXHZl

Now, this issue has been brewing for a while. As a Web Professional, I have some pretty strong opinions all around about. I've never really felt the need for a blog, but as my thoughts continued to pour out on Facebook, I quickly realized that 410 characters just wasn't going to be enough to encapsulate them. So here I am.

I'm so split on this whole topic.

On the one hand:

I can't disagree with Apple's tech reasons. Adobe has some terrible technologies ( Flash, AS3, ColdFusion, DreamWeaver, Contribute: I'm looking at you, guys ). The Internet would be a far better place without them. I am actually one of the biggest Macromedia haters you're likely to find within a few router hops of a given area. Keep in mind: I'm not talking about Adobe core products previous to that merger. Photoshop, Illustrator, all those design tools. Have fun. GoLive was a wretched wretched waste of bytes, but whatever. Not that many people used it anyway. I did quite a lot of Flash coding though, specifically in AS2. The move to AS3 had me very excited. I was looking forward to improvements in all the things we devs had been clamoring for for so long. Then I picked it up. Namespaces, strict methods, lack of logic in override capabilities, par-for-the-course AWFUL documentation, blatant changes in core Objects to the point that there was no point in trying to salvage old code... I could go on and on, but the point is I nearly threw the book out a window in disgust. Haven't touched it since. I've administered a ColdFusion 7 server. I've heard 8 is supposed to be marvelous? I couldn't care less. I finally had to write a PHP script to monitor ColdFusion and kill/restart the service whenever it choked on its own sputum ( many many times each month ), so that I didn't have to get phone calls at 10:30 at night and go leaping for a WiFi connection any more.

To sum up: everything that Steve is talking about? I get it. Seriously.

On the other hand!

I'm excited about HTML5. I look very much forward to CSS3. I'm on board, man. I spend at least a few hours every week looking at examples, checking up on browser support, messing about with it on the side. I can't wait till it's mature enough to release on a production project. Here's the thing: It's not even a RECOMMENDATION yet. The W3C is still trying to figure out what it's supposed to be. Browser support for its featureset ( which is changing by the week ) is minimal at best. Yes, there are a few cool gimmicky implementations - many of which show promise for robust solutions - but this is just geeks taking the prototype new Web rocket out for a spin at this point. Wear a helmet, because it's a bumpy ride. This is not production mainstream stuff. And, as usual, the last kids to the party? Microsoft. Their browser IE, which depending on who you ask or where you're sitting could be from 30% to 95% of a given userbase ( 30 for the W3C, 90 for just about any corporate Intranet site ) is getting NOWHERE implementing it. So we're what, a year out? Maybe? Depending on when Redmond decides to wake up and smell the doctype? Here's Wikipedia's latest knowledge of the progress among all browser engines in getting HTML5's current known features up and running: http://bit.ly/ak1o7A

The Crux

I guess my problem is that Apple is shoving 10-15% of the global userbase forward forcibly while IE is going to drag 50% ( or so, depending ) of the userbase back for who knows how the hell long. And developers and clients are going to be stuck in the middle. That is as I see it, like it or not, the reality of what we'll have to deal with for the next couple years. I don't get to say, "F Flash" just because Steve Jobs does. I have to support everyone. It's the same reason why I've been dying to legitimately say, "I don't support IE6" since roughly 2003 and I can't. I had to test a rather persnickety navigation bar in IE6 just this week to make sure it was working and matched the design spec.

And what's Steve's solution? I will quote:

"If developers need to rewrite their Flash websites, why not use modern technologies like HTML5, CSS and JavaScript?"

That's great, Steve. Are YOU going to pay for that? Because when I start recoding something, it's going to cost someone money. And part of the value of hiring someone like me in the first place is to keep your TCO low over time. Not re-develop your site every time Apple says "Jump".

I've got one site in particular in mind. The entire business basis for it is to deploy videos to a very specific audience for subscriptions. We developed it using the best tool for the job at the time: Flash Video. At this point, they're pushing 1,000 videos. Those all need to be re-encoded and re-deployed to take advantage of HTML, after we figure out how to build an HTML5 video skin that will work for them including licensing. That's going to take time, which as we all know equals money. I don't know if you've noticed it lately? But we're in the middle of a recession, and I've heard they're having some cash flow issues. Now if they say, "How do we make this work for iPad users?" I have to say, "Open up your wallet".

To Sum Up ...

... As Dr. John Dorian would say. I'm split. I think it's not a great situation for anyone. A friend on Facebook's comment was as follows:

"Nobody said technology transitions were graceful. They're ugly and expensive and disruptive. But they're also inevitable. [sic]"

I would agree with that. Expensive for who is really the question. If it's expensive for Adobe? That's one thing. If it's expensive for my clients? That's another. I like making money, but I don't like giving people the impression that their feet are to the fire because Steve Jobs wants a sterile perfect little environment for his devices to live in. It's the Internet. It's a mess. It always has been, it always will be, and damn it that's why I love getting right in the middle of it and sorting it out.

I still say: I'm split. On the one hand it's probably good for the Internet in the long run, and I can't blame Apple on the basis of their tech reasoning. In the meantime it's going to be very expensive and a giant mess. And it's going to be people like me - not Steve Jobs - who are going to be in the cross hairs when someone gets upset about that expense.

Keep your tags closed, Kids. It's a jungle out there.