Adobe Buys Macromedia

[Explorer]

Happened just 19 minutes ago. I recall a rumour a few years ago that Micro$oft was preparing to buy Macromedia. Obviously, that never happened.

So, now, prepare now to start cursing ADOBE when you encounter those Flash-heavy websites.



http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=sto...418/ap_on_bi_ge/adobe_macromedia&sid=84439559

 

[Mercutio]

Well, my hate has been officially transferred.

 

[Will Rickards]

At first I thought it was a joke.

 

[Handruin]

Same here, I also thought it was a joke when I read it this morning.

Mmmmm Flash embeded in PDF files. I can't wait.

 

[Onomatopoeic]

Animations in PDF files became a reality with the release of the Adobe Atmosphere plug-in (among other capabilities, such as audio).

Of much more interest, tracking of PDF reading activity, via the WWWeb, is just around the corner -- as in every time a particular PDF file is *read* (not just downloaded) a little datagram is sent to the pre-programmed data collection host that the PDF document's creator specified in the PDF document. :evil:

MS has allegedly had a PDF competitor (reader and file format) in the works for awhile. It's likely some mutant form of Word that will run on every major OS. Who knows, it might even end up being an open sorcerer projekt!

 

[Mercutio]

Actually I saw a site a few weeks ago that used flash to display zoomable copies of actual documents right on a web page. Very possibly the first thing I have ever seen done with Flash that I would not immediately call evil.

 

[sechs]

Of much more interest, tracking of PDF reading activity, via the WWWeb, is just around the corner -- as in every time a particular PDF file is *read* (not just downloaded) a little datagram is sent to the pre-programmed data collection host that the PDF document's creator specified in the PDF document.

Just around the corner? This has been possible since PDF 1.4 (Acrobat 5).

 

[Onomatopoeic]

Just around the corner? This has been possible since PDF 1.4 (Acrobat 5).

Well, slap me upside the head with a stinky wet trout. I am all that stands for Anachronism.

By he way, Adobe has an update to the recently-released Acrobat Version 7.0 Reader and full Acrobat product, not-so-surpriningly called the Adobe Acrobat Version 7.0.1 Update:


http://www.adobe.com/support/downloads/thankyou.jsp?ftpID=2712&fileID=2552

 

[iGary]

MS has allegedly had a PDF competitor (reader and file format) in the works for awhile...

...and, it's called "Metro."


http://www.computerworld.com/softwa...801,101344,00.html?source=NLT_OS_A&nid=101344

 

[CityK]

Metro --- sounds very cosmopolitan

 

[sechs]

From that article, I gather that "Metro" is Microsoft speak for "XML" which is something that's already freely available and in use.

 

[Mercutio]

So is ascii text. Function before form, dammit!