How To Run Flash On An iPad

One of the things you will quickly be disappointed with if you are an Apple iPad owner is the inability to look at web pages that contain Adobe Flash and Java. Here's three ways to get around it.

The iPad: No Flash and Java Native Support.

Nothing ruins a great surfing experience than going to a website with an Apple iPad 2 and seeing a big gaping white hole. It sucks doesn't it? Most websites continue to use Flash today and there is plenty of good content driven by it. Although the future is HTML 5, that shift has been slow in the making. In the meantime, there is still Flash and a world without it is like looking at a blank canvas.

When it comes to Flash, there are really two things to be aware of. The first is that Flash is used as a means to play video. The second, is that Flash captures user interaction through the mouse and keyboard - most typically found in games. There is a problem with this when it comes to the iPad because it uses finger gesturing, rather than traditional mouse and keyboard. Relating (or "mapping") finger gestures to keyboard and mouse movement is an awkward exercise and sometimes doesn't work very well. The input method is different and really requires a different UI interface like a small, overlaid keypad that mimics both keystrokes and mouse movements on the tablet.

Consider, that for some websites, Flash and Java are the sole technology used to deliver the user experience. For example, the very popular Mindcraft is a game coded in Java and OmgPop is purely Flash based. Because the iPad does not natively support either technology, iPad users are inconvenienced.

Thank you Steve Jobs!

Two Solutions. Two Different Experiences.

There are two current solutions that attempt to solve this deficiency.

1. Streaming The Experience Through Your Browser

   The first involves extending open source browsers like Firefox to support Flash video streams. The idea is that whenever a user visits a Flash based website or Flash App, everything is sent first to the App developer's servers, processed, and then sent back round trip to the user's browser. Some also attempt to handle Flash Games, but with limitations. None however, support Java.

2. Pseudo Virtual Machine

   The other solution involves running a virtual machine on Windows or Mac to sniff the user's mouse and keyboard events; video and sound ports. In addition, running an application on the iPad that renders what is seen on the computer and take on user input.

Browser Solutions

Installing a new browser to run on your iPad that can filter and act on HTML markup seems like a good idea. Detecting embedded Flash tags and trapping i/o ports to send off to servers for processing through the help of a custom tailored browser is interesting stuff. iSwifter and Skyfire use this approach.

However, after some testing and playing with, I found both to fall short.

iSwifter

When I first felt what it was like to surf the web without Flash, I groaned and cussed. How could Steve Jobs do this to me! After Googling around I found iSwifter, and it was the first App I purchased. iSwifter is an iPad browser based off Firefox that streams content from the websites you visit and delivers it back to you.

iSwifter works pretty good if you like to view video content. After going to several Flash video sites and YouTube, I didn't find any problems. However, outside of this, I did find some issues that made my experience less than satisfactory.

• Too much "snow". For example, if you go to Google and do a search, then scroll through the listings, iSwifter generates snow as the screen appears. It just looks unpolished and unprofessional.
• iSwifter has its own little world of certified games. There's not many of them and really, not worth paying for by subscription.
• Doesn't handle Java
• Doesn't handle keyboard and mouse movements very well, if at all

Flash games that rely on the keyboard are difficult to play as there is not enough screen real estate to contend with the iPad QWERTY keyboard overlapping the game. Using the cursor keys is a non existent, especially when the keyboard has to remain on the screen, as well as anything to do with a mouse.

Skyfire Web Browser

Skyfire is another browser based solution - but only if you like viewing Flash videos. It however does not support Java and doesn't fare well with Flash games either. The same problem of handling keyboard and mouse gestures to play games is evident here.

It pretty much goes to say that handling anything outside of finger gestures is a problem with the iPad. You could go out and buy a Apple wireless keyboard to solve that issue but you'd still be hampered by the lack of mouse support.

A Virtual Machine: The Splashtop Streamer

What if you could you could install an application your computer so that you could control it remotely? Wouldn't that be a better solution?

Splashtop is remote control software. It allows you to control your computer at home running Windows 7 or Mac. By running the programs on your computer and sending the screen to your iPad, you get a better experience.

Simply install the Splashtop Streamer client software on your Windows 7 computer. Add the application to your firewall and router settings to let it know you want to use your computer ports for streaming. Then, download the iPad App off iTunes. Specify the IP address of your computer and launce the Splasthop App and voila!

You will now be able to connect to your computer and access it from anywhere with your iPad. Yes, anywhere!

So lets say you surf to OmgPop.com and want to play one of their cool Flash games. If you tried to do this with one of the browser solutions above, you won't be able to play. You couldn't mimic the use of the keyboard and mouse because every game has different interpretations. But because you are running the game on your computer and giving instructions via Splashtop, you can enjoy the full benefits.

The beauty of this is that you can run any Windows or Macintosh application including games, web browsers, Microsoft Office, etc. and it appear on your iPad. And if you are at home where the Splashtop Streamer program is running, you can connect through local area network too.

The two pictures below show my home/office setup. I have three LCD monitors and an LCD tv in the back. In front, is my Apple iPad 2 remotely attached through Splashtop. As you can see, it is showing the primary screen. I can also tap on the iPad and move to any of the other three screens. Each screen could be running separate applications like say, Apple iTunes on monitor #1, Microsoft Office on monitor #2, Amazon Kindle Reader on monitor #3, and Google Chrome on monitor #4. The possibilities are endless. I can go out on the road and wherever there is an WiFi connection, attach to my home computer and gain access to all its applications.

Here's a close up of my iPad 2. Looks like a Windows tablet, doesn't it?

And here's our Facebook page running inside of Google Chrome:

Summary

Any attempt at trying to translate keyboard and mouse events in a Flash based game is a difficult task. You would have to know what keys are being used in the game so you could make the same available on the iPad. With tens of thousands of Flash apps out there, it would take too much effort to take on an individual basis.

Rather than tackle each application on an individual basis, it would be far better to let the app run in its own native environment and then stream the screen to the iPad like Splashtop has done. Splashtop costs $4.99, and I am very satisfied with the product. Being able to run Adobe Flash and Java and viewing/interacting with it on my iPad is a big win. Its even more sweeter having the ability to connect remotely when I'm on the road.

About Kerry Kobashi

Kerry is the founder of KerryOnWorld. He lives in Silicon Valley and has worked as an engineer and project manager. He owns Kobashi Computing a consulting company.