Adobe resurrects Flash-to-iPhone app tool

From CNET News.com: In the wake of loosened Apple restrictions, Adobe Systems has restarted work on a tool called Packager for iPhone that lets developers make native iOS apps out of Flash programs.

"We will now resume development work on this feature for future releases," Adobe said in a blog post Thursday. "This is great news for developers and we're hearing from our developer community that Packager apps are already being approved for the App Store."

Apple relaxed its iOS developer rules on Thursday, removing the restriction that had blocked Packager for iPhone applications and permitting advertisements supplied by Google's AdMob once again. It also detailed the full set of App Store admission rules for the first time.

The restored fortunes of Packager of iPhone (which also covers the iPod Touch and iPad) is important for Adobe, much of whose clout with developers resides with Flash. The technology is widely used on desktop computers for games, streaming video, and interactive applications; one of its virtues is letting programmers' software more easily span different computer types. That cross-platform nature was one of the specific reasons Apple specifically barred the technology from iOS devices.

But Flash faces big challenges today: Adobe is trying to bring Flash to the mobile realm, where processing power is scarce, screens are small, and user interfaces are different. And a range of Web technologies--an alphabet soup including HTML, CSS, SVG, JavaScript, and WebGL--are edging in on Flash's turf.

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