Flash 8: security problems

There’s a couple of interesting posts on franto’s blog about the problems which the new release of flash brought… (about local and network access)

http://www.franto.com/blog2/flash8-security-problems

and
http://www.franto.com/blog2/flash8-security-problems-still-no-solution
I suggest also read all the users’ comments, very interesting… and the problem seems to remain unsolved.
http://www.franto.com/blog2/flash8-security-problems

New Flash Player security rules

Erica Norton of the Flash Player Team wrote an interesting post in the flashcoders list about the upcoming changes in the Flash 8 security restrictions.
I’m copying here parts of that post:
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In Flash Player 8, the rules are:

  • local with file system content may only communicate with other local content
  • local with networking content may only communicate with remote content
  • trusted content may communicate with both local and remote content

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The first 2 types will be publishable. For those that do not upgrade their Authoring tool, we will be providing a command line utility to convert SWFs to local with networking SWFs (and vice versa).
There will be 2 mechanisms for trusting content.
The first, many of you have seen: the Settings Manager. The second method is in the form of .cfg files placed in a specific location for the Flash Player to read.
This will enable distributors of local content, via an installer for example, to install a .cfg file to the appropriate location, thereby trusting the content. One could also provide an updater to an already distributed bit of content in order to trust those documents this way.
Please note, that one may trust a directory, which trusts all content recursively below that directory.
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There will also be an API available in ActionScript in order to detect which of the 4 sandbox types that the SWF is (remote or local: local with file system, local with networking, trusted) so that in ActionScript you can do one thing or another.

http://chattyfig.figleaf.com/pipermail/flashcoders/2005-July/145237.html

Flash Player 8 Public Beta

Released the Flash Player 8 public beta.
It’s a pre-release version of “the next major release of Flash Player. It is being made available for developers and consumers to test their content to ensure existing content plays back correctly and that there are no compatibility issues.
As usual there’s also the bug reporting form:
http://www.macromedia.com/go/fp_public_beta_feedback

http://www.macromedia.com/../public_beta

flash player 8 demo in tokyo

via Moock.
I just read on moock’s blog that kevin lynch, macromedia’s chief software architect, demonstrated the next generation version of the flash player at the macromedia flash conference in tokyo, japan.
only a few features were shown, but it seems they are great, expecially, as we were already heard few time ago, for the graphics.
There is a video available, taken from te conference, in which these features are shown:

  • a new type-rendering engine
  • performance improvements
  • bitmap effects (blur, dropshadow, colour matrix etc)
  • realtime video alpha channel

video is avail at different locations:
Carl-Alexandre Malartre from ScoLab
>> low bw (5mb 320×240, 15fps)
>> med bw (14.5mb 320×240, 30fps)
>> high bw (42mb, 640×480, 30fps)

Ultrashock
>> low bw (5mb 320×240, 15fps)
>> med bw (5mb 320×240, 30fps)
>> high bw (42mb, 640×480, 30fps)
Link: http://www.moock.org/blog/archives/000146.html

8 Ball

I know there are already many many topics around the net about the new Flash 8 (codename 8ball)..
So i just want to report you a link of Mike Chambers’ blog where he seems make things clear…
I read too many comments around and I think people is talking too much about something which probably in Macromedia is still only an idea…

Flash 8 is coming?
I hope not too fast.. I have to learn already flash mx 2004!

Link: http://www.markme.com/mesh/archives/006055.cfm