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Apple iPhone OS 4.0 -- Still no Flash support???

The Boy Genius website reported some new features of Apple iPhone OS 4.0 which will debut on January 27 -- features reportedly include:

  • There will be multi-touch gestures OS-wide.
  • “A few new ways” to run applications in the background — multitasking.
  • Many graphical and UI changes to make navigating through the OS easier and more efficient

The above mentioned features leave me underwhelmed. Nothing sounds very revolutionary in this short list.

The one missing feature that has long frustrated iPhone uses is lack of support for Adobe's Flash applet.

Rumors have attributed this to a variety of reasons -- including Apple's desire to have complete control over applications via their money making Apple store and their SDK (Software Development Kit). amd well as speculation that the iPhone processor may not be up to the task of running Flash applets.

Whatever the real reason, the lack of Flash support can render certain websites unusable on the iPhone -- inluding popular video sites like Hulu.com.

Website designers need to be aware of this limitation when designing websites for iPhone users.

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