Adobe to introduce Flash Player for 64-bit and mobile systems

By Hamish Taylor
Tuesday, 18 November 2008 08:01

Market

At the Adobe Max conference in San Francisco, California, Adobe announced the availability of a pre-release 64-bit version of their Flash Player 10 and a full version for mobile devices.

Currently, users of 64-bit operating systems are stuck with using 32-bit browsers and the 32-bit Flash Player plugin. As 64-bit systems slowly gain traction in both the consumer and commercial space, the pre-release of Flash Player 10 for 64-bit signals Adobes move towards greater compatibility.

Interestingly, it will only be initially available for Linux systems. In the FAQ on the labs.adobe.com, Adobe state that "Release of this alpha version of 64-bit Flash Player on Linux is the first step in delivering upon Adobe’s commitment to make Flash Player native 64-bit across platforms. We chose Linux as our initial platform in response to numerous requests in our public Flash Player bug and issue management system".

They stated that the final 64-bit version would be released for Linux, Mac and Windows systems simultaneously.

Adobe is also working to develop a version of the Flash Player to operate on mobile devices. Chief Technology Officer, Kevin Lynch demonstrated Flash working on Symbian, Windows Mobile and Google's Android mobile phone platforms. Whilst Adobe have previously had Flash Players for mobile devices, they were cut down versions. In contrast, this is the full Flash Player. Lynch stated that Adobe are still working with Apple to get Flash available on the iPhone.