Apple: Flash no longer present on the Mac

Apple will no longer integrate Adobe’s Flash technology by default on Mac computers.

With their latest MacBook Air, Apple proved that they like Flash, as long as we are talking about SSD storage solutions. At the same time, Apple’s point of view isn’t quite the same for Adobe Flash.

Steve Jobs has been rather critical of Adobe’s Flash technology in the past, with the CEO having stated that the technology contains too many bugs and is the main cause of problems on Mac computers. On the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch, a Flash player is nowhere to be seen.

Apple has recently appeared indulgent by allowing developers to compile their Flash applications so that they will become native executables under iOS. It appears that Apple’s opposition to Adobe Flash is still current, now overflowing to Mac OS X.

The new MacBook Air is delivered without an Adobe Flash player, and this will be the case for future Mac releases. Things are not as strict as the iPhone and iPad as Apple has only blocked the pre-installation of Flash. The technology will therefore not be found by default on Mac OS X, although if a user wants to install it then they will be able to do so.


For the users good?
To justify this choice, an Apple spokesman declared that Flash "remains compatible with the Mac" and that to "have a better view of the most recent and stable version users should download this directly from Adobe" (as reported by Reuters).

These explanations are hardly convincing, with the impression being that Apple is once again looking to simply attack Adobe Flash, along with their recent decision slowly purge Java from Mac OS X. With iOS and Mac OS X, Apple is trying to keep as much control as possible over their systems, pushing users towards dedicated applications (the App Store and future Mac App Store) where these technologies are not really welcome.

This is a way of standing apart from the competition while avoiding download portals which could lead to Windows or Android. It has to be said though that Flash and Java are not considered as in perfect health by open web advocates either, in their push for future web developments. Can we therefore say that Apple is an element in an open Web engine?

Despite their words saying otherwise, the current impression of Apple is that they are a company that wants almost draconian control over all of their products. Products which nevertheless put up solid sales figures.