How to send users of Flash<=4 and users of Flash>=5 separate ways?

[Stephan P.]

Hi guys,

I'd like to get a bit more into AS and was wondering whether there's an easy-to implement way of sending all users of Flash<=4 to alternative frames that will have no AS, or only V4-compatible AS.

I'm thinking of a standardised "sniffer" intro that sends users of Flash<=4 to one frame, and users of Flash>=5 to another, from which they may be sent on to different directions.

Any ideas (preferably KM-tested ones :) )?

Thanks in advance,

Stephan

[bridelh]

Macromedia have what is called the "Flash deployment kit" which you can script to detect the version of the installed player and then redirect to an appropriate page:

http://www.macromedia.com/software/flash/download/deployment_kit/

oops... I miss-read your post...

Within a KM movie, you cannot detect the player version. The next version (3.6) will be able to do this.

(wrong again... actually, the user would have to be using the v6 player for that to happen... I'm tired today...)

So at this time, you would have to detect the player version on the html page with the deployment kit above...

Hilary

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[Stephan P.]

Hi Hilary,

thanks for your quick reply!




So at this time, you would have to detect the player version on the html page with the deployment kit above...


Actually, I don't want to redirect visitors to another URL. I'm looking for a version check that is embedded in the .fun/.swf file. It wouldn't redirect the visitor to another URL, but to a particular frame in the same .swf.

Stephan

[bridelh]

Trouble is, if you have version 4 and version 5 functionality in the same swf, the swf has to be exported at the highest version, so if the user came to your site with a version 4 player, they would be directed to download the current version anyway, because of the script in the html.

I don't thing you could skip the version 5 frames and just play the version 4 frames...but I could be wrong....

Hilary

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[necromanthus]

Hi Stephan,
No one is using V4 anymore.
Also,V5 becomes deprecated too.
So,I don't see any reason to do a thing like that.
:mrpimp:

[Stephan P.]

Hi Necromanthus,



No one is using V4 anymore.


No one??? :) Do you have statistics to back this up? :)

What I want to avoid is that if a user only has V4, and a V5 SWF is embedded in a web page of mine, that his browser crashes (i.e. I want to avoid the worst-case scenario). I don't know how big this risk actually is, but I've seen such cases myself.

Stephan

[Bob Hartzell]

It won't crash. The player ignores tags it doesn't understand. So a flash 4 player will ignore flash 5 elements of the swf and so on.

[necromanthus]

Originally posted by Stephan P.
No one??? :) Do you have statistics to back this up? :)

What I want to avoid is that if a user only has V4, and a V5 SWF is embedded in a web page of mine, that his browser crashes (i.e. I want to avoid the worst-case scenario). I don't know how big this risk actually is, but I've seen such cases myself.

Stephan [/B]

I use a lot of statistics.Just belive me.
(btw. For few "Prehistorical Creatures" is no need to do major changes in your site)
As BOB said before,NO crashes in case of V4 plug-in !

[johnie]

The last stat I saw was something like 5% are still using Flash 4. The unsuported stuff is just ignored like Bob said. I have a tut in standalones so you can test in Flash 4, 5, or 6.

http://www.flashkit.com/tutorials/Projector/Flash_Pl-Johnie-818/index.php

[OwenAus]

A thought.

You could create a movie where the first part was simple flash.

However, in first frames do some things (off-stage) that only later versions can manage, and use AS to check if it happened.

If "it" happened, the actionscript does a GotoAndPlay of the frames designed only for the later versions.

If it did not happen, the movie just continues on, doing the more primitive stuff.

A bit like we had to do to see which javascript a client supported, back in the old days when NS and MS were slogging it out.

[Stephan P.]

The last stat I saw was something like 5% are still using Flash 4. The unsuported stuff is just ignored like Bob said. I have a tut in standalones so you can test in Flash 4, 5, or 6.

http://www.flashkit.com/tutorials/Projector/Flash_Pl-Johnie-818/index.php

Thanks johnie, that was a useful hint!

Stephan

[Stephan P.]

Originally posted by OwenAus
A thought.

However, in first frames do some things (off-stage) that only later versions can manage, and use AS to check if it happened.


That's what I was thinking about. I'll check my AS books on the weekend to see what's possible...

Stephan