Newer versions of Flash Player also improve security. When Flash Player identifies content that is newer than itself (defined by the SWF version) it will attempt to run the content as best it can, but will eventually fail if and when the content eventually attempts to use features that don't exist in that version of the player. Older versions of Flash Player, for example, may not contain the features newer content expects it to have to function. The version of Flash Player determines what content (SWF) is supported. Flash Player is also a core component of AIR.
Flash Player usually runs through a browser as a plugin but can also be run as a separate application, either as a stand alone executable (sometimes called "projectors") or embedded within other applications. As such, it is one of the more important versions to pay attention to in the platform.įlash Player is an application and core technology that is used to display and execute SWF files, the primary content format used in the Flash Platform. A user's version of the runtime determines whether or not such content is supported on the user's computer. They're the applications users have on their computers used to run the Flash content that developers create. Runtimes define where the Flash Platform starts for the user. Both represent the core technologies on which the entire Flash Platform is based. That changed in 2008 with the introduction of the Adobe Integrated Runtime, or AIR. Historically, there has only been one Flash runtime, Flash Player. Content bridges the two it being what the developer creates with source and tooling to be viewed by users in the runtime.Įverything in the platform hinges on one specific technology, the runtime. Source and tooling represent the developer side of the platform. This document attempts to outline many of the different types of versioning and how they relate to one another.įour groupings will be used in covering Flash Platform versions: Runtimes, Content, Source, and Tooling.
They're not always easy to follow and their complexity has been changing over time.
There are many different versions to deal with when working with the Flash Platform. Versions in the Flash Platform Introduction