Does Google Chrome Play Shockwave & Flash?
Your ability to enjoy a lot of the Internet's multimedia offerings depends on your computer's ability to handle two of the Internet's most common multimedia formats: Flash and Shockwave. Though very similar, these two Adobe products have slightly different application and require different plug-ins for your browser to run correctly. Google's Chrome browser supports both plug-ins, though some users have reported errors.
Other People Are Reading
-
About Plug-ins
-
In the earliest days of the World Wide Web, one programming language dominated: HTML. Web browsers read this code, displayed text and images -- and that was that. But the multifaceted and dynamic Web you know today relies on a series of add-ons and plug-ins for your browser to read the different types of codes embedded in a webpage. Browsers like Chrome don't always come with the most up-to-date version of the plug-ins, so you have to download the correct versions.
Shockwave vs. Flash
-
Though Adobe makes both Shockwave and Flash, the programs aren't the same and require different plug-ins to run. According to Gary Rosenzweig, author of "Macromedia Flash MX ActionScript for Fun and Games," Shockwave is the more powerful but less common of the two. Shockwave was released first (in 1995) and powers multimedia content and 3D games used on Web pages. Flash came later and was, confusingly, first called Shockwave Flash. It's commonly used for streaming video on sites like YouTube or for games and animations. Flash comes preloaded on most of today's computers, but that doesn't guarantee that Chrome will play all Flash plug-ins.
-
Update Plug-ins
-
You have to update your plug-ins when prompted by your browser. Fortunately, Chrome detects when a piece of code requires a newer version of Flash or Shockwave than the one your computer has installed and the area of the webpage that uses the protocol won't load. Instead, you'll see a gray box saying "Update to plugin required." Click the box to go to the download page for the plug-in. You can download both plug-ins from developer's website.
Chrome Issues
-
Google was aware of consistent crashes with Flash and Shockwave players in Chrome 10. According to Google, downloading Chrome 11, the newest version of Chrome as of the date of publication, fixes this known error. Chrome uses its own version of the Flash plug-in unless you installed a newer version on your system outside of Chrome. You can choose which version to use by choose "About" and "Plugins" in Chrome. The file "gcswf32.dll" is the Google version of the plug-in, which the company recommends enabling for Chrome use only.
-
