HTML5 vs. Flash / Open Letter To Adobe

..actually going to research something before writing about it. HTML5 does NOT compete with Flash. It has _NO_ video codecs itself. It simply has added video tags that can be used to access an add-on video decoder such as h.264 or even Flash.

Unless everything I've read about HTML5 has been in error.

I know the author talks about such codecs, but why imply there is a versus Flash issue?

I have not read the article, but HTML5 is definitely competition to Flash, and it's more than just a video playback issue. HTML5 supports vector animation and drawing canvas type stuff. The only thing Flash still has going for it is the IDE. If someone makes an HTML5 IDE that's "artist friendly" like Flash, then I believe the competition will be more than just theoretical.

So, if I got to the new Google web site for HTML5 using Firefox 3.6 (which supports HTML5) under Linux you think I can play their videos?

@cabreh, of course not, Firefox doesn't support h264 (due to licensing issues) with it's implementation of the Video tag, it support Ogg Theora. Google's Chrome, on the other hand support Ogg Theora, H264 and soon Flash in it's implementation of the video tag (Flash will no longer require a plug in to work, just the Video Tag with the correct attributes set)

So, HTML5 does not support video on it's own? Isn't that what I originally was saying?

It requires a video player/codec. Which could in reality be anything. Whereas the title and I feel idea of the article was that HTML5 was competing with Flash as used in the versus part of the title.

Quoting: Whereas the title and I feel idea of the article was that HTML5 was competing with Flash as used in the versus part of the title.

The article makes it clear that HTML5 with Theora+Vorbis/H.264+ACC competes with Flash.

Flash doesn't support video's on its own too, IIRC. Flash Video is a container format.

HTMTL5 can be thought of as a kind of 'container format' too.

Therefore, I think it would be justified to say HTML5 competes with Flash Video.

Quoting:So, HTML5 does not support video on it's own? Isn't that what I originally was saying?

Yes it does. It's HTML4 that doesn't support Video on it's own. At the moment the video codec that HTML5 supports is up to the individual browser developer.

As I recall html5 was originally supposed to specify ogg/theora or some such as the format, but certain companies *cough*apple*cough* complained and got that part of the spec removed.