Editing Adobe Flash (section)

===End of life===
{{See also|Adobe Flash Player#End of life}}
One of Flash's primary uses on the Internet when it was first released was for building fully immersive, interactive websites. These were typically highly creative site designs that provided more flexibility over what the current HTML standards could provide as well as operate over dial-up connections.<ref name="bbc eol">{{cite web | url = https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-55497353 | title = Adobe Flash Player is finally laid to rest | first = Chris | last = Fox | date = December 31, 2020 | access-date = December 31, 2020 | work = [[BBC News]] | archive-date = January 1, 2021 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210101004325/https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-55497353 | url-status = live }}</ref> However, these sites limited accessibility by "breaking the [[Back button (hypertext)|Back Button]]", dumping visitors out of the Flash experience entirely by returning them to whatever page they had been on prior to first arriving at the site. Fully Flash-run sites fell out of favor for more strategic use of Flash plugins for video and other interactive features among standard HTML conventions, corresponding with the availability of HTML features like [[CSS|cascading style-sheets]] in the mid-00's.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.vice.com/en/article/flash-is-responsible-for-the-internets-most-creative-era/ | title = Flash Is Responsible for the Internet's Most Creative Era | first = Ernie | last = Smith | date = October 9, 2019 | access-date = November 24, 2020 | work = [[Vice (magazine)|Vice]] | archive-date = December 4, 2020 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20201204160228/https://www.vice.com/en/article/d3awk7/flash-is-responsible-for-the-internets-most-creative-era | url-status = live }}</ref> At the same time, this also led to Flash being used for new apps, including video games and animations.<ref name="gamasutra death">{{cite web | url = https://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/374253/The_forgotten_Flash_Website_movement_when_websites_were_the_new_emerging_artform.php | title = The forgotten Flash Website movement (when websites were 'the new emerging artform') | first = Nathalie | last = Lawhead | date = November 24, 2020 | access-date = November 24, 2020 | work = [[Gamasutra]] | archive-date = November 24, 2020 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20201124172810/https://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/374253/The_forgotten_Flash_Website_movement_when_websites_were_the_new_emerging_artform.php | url-status = dead }}</ref> Precursors to [[YouTube]] featuring user-generated Flash animations and games such as [[Newgrounds]] became popular destinations, further helping to spread the use of Flash.<ref name="bbc eol"/>

Toward the end of the millennium, the [[Wireless Application Protocol]] (WAP) was released, corresponding with development of [[Dynamic HTML]]. Fifteen years later, WAP had largely been replaced by full-capability implementations and the [[HTML5]] standard included more support for interactive and [[HTML video|video]] elements. Support for Flash in these mobile browsers was not included. In 2010, [[Apple, Inc.|Apple]]'s [[Steve Jobs]] famously wrote ''[[Thoughts on Flash]]'', an open letter to Adobe criticizing the closed nature of the Flash platform and the inherent security problems with the application to explain why Flash was not supported on [[iOS]].<ref>{{cite web |first=Jennifer |last=Valentino-Devries |title=Highlights: The Journal's Exclusive Interview With Adobe CEO |url=https://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2010/04/29/live-blogging-the-journals-interview-with-adobe-ceo/ |website=[[The Wall Street Journal]] |date=April 29, 2010 |access-date=June 19, 2017 |archive-date=April 16, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170416135028/https://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2010/04/29/live-blogging-the-journals-interview-with-adobe-ceo/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |first=Charles |last=Arthur |title=Adobe CEO hits back in row with Steve Jobs over Flash on Apple's iPhone |url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2010/apr/29/adobe-chief-executive-flash-apple-reply |website=[[The Guardian]] |date=April 29, 2010 |access-date=June 19, 2017}}</ref> Adobe created the Adobe AIR environment as a means to appease Apple's concerns, and spent time legally fighting Apple over terms of its App Store to allow AIR to be used on the iOS. While Adobe eventually won, allowing for other third-party development environments to get access to the iOS, Apple's decision to block Flash itself was considered the "death blow" to the Flash application.<ref name="gamasutra death"/> In November 2011, about a year after Jobs' open letter, Adobe announced it would no longer be developing Flash and advised developers to switch to HTML5.<ref name="cnn jobs death blow">{{cite web | url = https://www.cnn.com/2011/11/09/tech/mobile/flash-steve-jobs/index.html | title = Did Steve Jobs kill Adobe Flash? | first = Doug | last = Gross | date = November 9, 2011 | access-date = February 4, 2021 | work = [[CNN]] | archive-date = January 18, 2021 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210118031407/https://www.cnn.com/2011/11/09/tech/mobile/flash-steve-jobs/index.html | url-status = live }}</ref>

In 2011, Adobe ended support for Flash on Android.<ref name="cnn jobs death blow"/> Adobe stated that Flash platform was transitioning to Adobe AIR and [[OpenFL]], a multi-target open-source implementation of the Flash API.<ref name="intro">{{cite web|title=Introducing OpenFL|url=http://www.joshuagranick.com/blog/2013/05/30/introducing-openfl|website=Joshua Granick Blog|date=May 30, 2013|access-date=March 26, 2018|archive-date=October 2, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141002104344/http://www.joshuagranick.com/blog/2013/05/30/introducing-openfl|url-status=dead}}</ref> In 2015, Adobe rebranded Flash Professional, the main Flash authoring environment, as [[Adobe Animate]] to emphasize its expanded support for HTML5 authoring, and stated that it would "encourage content creators to build with new web standards" rather than use Flash.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.theverge.com/2015/12/1/9827778/stop-using-flash|title=Adobe is telling people to stop using Flash|last=Kastrenakes|first=Jacob|date=2015-12-01|website=The Verge|access-date=2017-07-25|archive-date=August 2, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170802210340/https://www.theverge.com/2015/12/1/9827778/stop-using-flash|url-status=live}}</ref>

In July 2017, Adobe [[deprecate]]d Flash, and announced its [[end-of-life (product)|End-Of-Life (EOL)]] at the end of 2020, and will cease support, distribution, and security updates for Flash Player.<ref name="Adobe Flash EOL"/>

With Flash's EOL announced, many browsers took steps to gradually restrict Flash content (caution users before launching it, eventually blocking all content without an option to play it). By January 2021, all major browsers were blocking all Flash content unconditionally. Only [[IE11]], niche browser forks, and some browsers built for [[China]] plan to continue support. Furthermore, excluding the China variant of Flash, Flash execution software has a built-in kill switch which prevents it from playing Flash after January 12, 2021.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Cimpanu|first=Catalin|title=Adobe to block Flash content from running on January 12, 2021|url=https://www.zdnet.com/article/adobe-to-block-flash-content-from-running-on-january-12-2021/|access-date=2021-02-18|website=ZDNet|language=en|archive-date=January 21, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210121094858/https://www.zdnet.com/article/adobe-to-block-flash-content-from-running-on-january-12-2021/|url-status=live}}</ref> In January 2021, Microsoft released an optional update KB4577586 which removes Flash Player from Windows; in July 2021 this update was pushed out as a security update and applied automatically to all remaining systems.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2021/05/microsoft-will-remove-adobe-flash-from-windows-10-this-summer/ | title = Goodbye again, Flash—Microsoft makes removal from Windows 10 mandatory | first = Jim | last = Salter | date = May 5, 2021 | accessdate = May 5, 2021 | work = [[Ars Technica]] | archive-date = May 4, 2021 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210504232006/https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2021/05/microsoft-will-remove-adobe-flash-from-windows-10-this-summer/ | url-status = live }}</ref>

====Post EOL support====
{{Main|Adobe Flash Player#Post-EOL support}}
Adobe Flash will still be supported in China and worldwide on some specialized enterprise platforms beyond 2020.<ref name=Zhongcheng/>