Mailing Lists: Apple Mailing Lists
Image of Mac OS face in stamp
 
[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]

Re: using macromedia flash in dashboard

Christian wrote:
Generally speaking, embedding Flash content into widgets isn't recommended. Technically, there are issues with focus (which you've discovered firsthand). Philosophically, it goes contrary to the spirit of widget technology. Most anything can be done with the technologies used in widgets, i.e. JavaScript, CSS, and HTML. They are quite mature, especially with the addition of the Canvas element. The benefit of using these technologies is that you get a widget that performs better and uses less resources (memory, CPU, etc) than if you had used Flash content.
Don't misunderstand me—Flash is a fine technology. It just doesn't fit well into widgets.

Thanks, Christian, I'm interested in this area too -- I want to tell the most useful story to others who ask about this area over the coming months, so I'd like to learn more about Netscape Plugins in Dashboard, thanks in advance.

1) Can plugin content actually receive input focus while in a widget, or is the situation Micah described an inescapable one? Can a SWF ever respond to a click?

2) For the "isn't recommended" concern, is the main issue that the SWF will continue to run in the background after Dashboard loses focus? If so, then how could we implement the suggestion Mike Davidson offers here?
"There's a built-in property to Dashboard which lets you basically shut off all widget interaction (data pulls, animation, etc) when Dashboard is hidden, and if you have a Flash movie which consistently pulls data, it isn't easy to make the movie follow these rules. You could probably do it with LiveConnect though. The command is available through Javascript, so all you'd have to do is send a JS command to the plug-in to tell it to stop running and you'd be fine."
http://www.markme.com/jd/archives/007674.cfm
(Can a widget send a JavaScript message to a plugin, or vice-versa, via protocols like LiveConnect, NPAPI or such?
http://www.mozilla.org/press/mozilla-2004-06-30.html )

(For "no reason to want to do that", I think if you take a look at Micah's site, imagerymedia.com, then it may illustrate one reason why such techniques might be desirable.)

tx,
jd




--
John Dowdell . Macromedia Developer Support . San Francisco CA USA
Weblog: http://www.macromedia.com/go/blog_jd
Aggregator: http://www.macromedia.com/go/weblogs
Technotes: http://www.macromedia.com/support/
Spam killed my private email -- public record is best, thanks.
_______________________________________________
Do not post admin requests to the list. They will be ignored.
Dashboard-dev mailing list      (email@hidden)
Help/Unsubscribe/Update your Subscription:
http://lists.apple.com/mailman/options/dashboard-dev/email@hidden

This email sent to email@hidden
References: 
 >using macromedia flash in dashboard (From: lists <email@hidden>)
 >Re: using macromedia flash in dashboard (From: Christian <email@hidden>)



Visit the Apple Store online or at retail locations.
1-800-MY-APPLE

Contact Apple | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2007 Apple Inc. All rights reserved.