# (REQUEST) Flash Animation unable to be viewed on Mobile. .MP4/.WebM support please.



## MukiHyena (Jun 14, 2016)

As an animator, I cannot have my works viewed on many mobile devices as they don't natively support the viewing of flash content, including the .swf format that many hosted animations are using. The .webm format is a more mobile-friendly format many other art sites have begun supporting for hosting animated content.

I'm seeing artists post links to .webm versions of their animations, presumably to allow the content to be viewed on mobile. The addition of .webm file submissions would allow more viewers on more platforms to view animations that would normally be in a format not viewable on mobile.

To clarify, yes, the file sizes are much larger. A 661kb .swf = a 6.87 meg .webm.


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## MukiHyena (Sep 30, 2016)

Bumping this.

Would really like to see .WebM or .MP4 formats supported. The majority of Mobile users can't view .Swf files and animation support for Mobile is limited to .gif files.



Inkbunny allows MP4.







 FurryNetwork allows MP4.






 Tumblr allows MP4.






FA does not.


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## jayhusky (Oct 2, 2016)

iOS as far as I know does not support WebM, but does support MP4, so MP4 would likely be the way to go.

Provided @Dragoneer would be ok with hosting videos on FA, a customised HTML5 player for both desktop and mobile would be easy to do.
However it is currently possible to convert swf to html5 (keeping games the way they should be), but its support is somewhat hit and miss.


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## Kellan Meig'h (Oct 12, 2016)

Um, you can use Dolphin browser on Android and sideload the Shockwave Flash apk. Works just fine without a need for more wonky formats or heaven forbid, HTML5. Whoever developed that POS needs to have to write HTML5 (non)compliant websites for a penance.


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## nerdbat (Oct 13, 2016)

Kellan Meig'h said:


> Um, you can use Dolphin browser on Android and sideload the Shockwave Flash apk. Works just fine without a need for more wonky formats or heaven forbid, HTML5. Whoever developed that POS needs to have to write HTML5 (non)compliant websites for a penance.


In all respect, executing weird exploits from a specific browser (which I'm not a big fan of, just for example) is very wonky in itself.


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## jayhusky (Oct 13, 2016)

Kellan Meig'h said:


> Um, you can use Dolphin browser on Android and sideload the Shockwave Flash apk. Works just fine without a need for more wonky formats or heaven forbid, HTML5. Whoever developed that POS needs to have to write HTML5 (non)compliant websites for a penance.


Why do you oppose FA modernising itself and moving away from the buggy flash format, even its creators are advocating the use of html5

I have to agree with nerdbats statement though.


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## Kellan Meig'h (Oct 13, 2016)

jayhusky said:


> Why do you oppose FA modernising itself and moving away from the buggy flash format, even its creators are advocating the use of html5
> 
> I have to agree with nerdbats statement though.


HTML5 has never been ready for Prime Time. It's still a buggy implementation/corruption of HTML. I would rather see XML and .mp4 used for video or animation.

BTW, @nerdbat , what is the wierd exploit you speak of? That apk I referenced comes straight from Adobe.


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## jayhusky (Oct 14, 2016)

OK, granted HTML5 does have some implementation issues, Even if FA used the HTML 4.01 method to embed MP4 to the page for files that show just animation (not user interactive games), it's still a better implementation than flash. Far less exploitable too.

I think the exploit @nerdbat refers to, is the fact that the browser allows the sideloading of an APK into it, where is isn't default available or accessible.
Having used an android device and sideloaded the flash apk into the dolphin browser, I had to turn on unsigned application installation, which some users may be unsure about doing, as that _can_ allow the possibility of malicious code to be installed, and the user is none the wiser.
At least something that is by default provided by the browser (such as HTML4.01/HTML5 support) is somewhat more secure and the user can trust it


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## Kellan Meig'h (Oct 15, 2016)

That SWF apk sideload has nothing to do with the browser - it's a valid apk from Adobe, downloaded from their site onto your phone/tablet. It's the fact that Chrome and Firefox doesn't support SWF.

Dolphin will support SWF, as long as you have the SWF apk present. You are presented with the standard "Activate Plugin" box when Dolphin encounters SWF in a webpage so it's not just allowing unauthorized activation.

That .webm format is another buggy format, as far as my experience with it has shown. A friend is trying to make his website "Responsive" so he's adding the .webm format for phone/tablet users. Takes a bit to download the file since it doesn't seem to stream (it's supposed to stream) and it's very notchy, like it's taken the native format and did a poor job of re-encoding it. BTW, that site uses HTML5 that seems to fight the "Responsive" layout.


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## jayhusky (Oct 15, 2016)

I grant you that webm is buggy, iOS doesn't seem to support it as far as I can see, it never runs on any of my devices.

Personally I would always choose MP4 over webm.


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## Kellan Meig'h (Oct 15, 2016)

Agreed, MP4 would probably be the best format.


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## RailRide (Oct 16, 2016)

I use the Puffin browser to view Flash content on Android. No need to load additional .APKs. Works well enough that I can view and chat on streams (Tigerdile, Picarto), as well as use my local transit authority's bus-locator website.

The app developer's website states it's available for iOS too.

---PCJ


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