Shockwave Update (XPP)

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I have Flash 6 installed on this unit to view .swf files. Now, recently, I visited a site that contained .swf files but it reported that I needed to update, so I allowed it to do so to 8 or 8.5. Once I did that, I could no longer view Flash files like the Windows RG piece and other .swf files I store locally and on server. Why might this be??

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Do you have any script blocking program running? You may need to change settings to allow new version to run.

DaveA I am so far behind, I think I am First
Genealogy....confusing the dead and annoying the living

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No, sir, I don’t have any activeX or scripting disabled.

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Current Versions:

Flash Player = 6,0,40,0 Macromedia Flash Player Download Center

Shockwave Player = 8.5.1 Macromedia Shockwave Player Download Center

Maybe the file associations got crossed over somehow?

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Hmmm…..now I am confused. My Flash 6.0 player is installed properly now and it is listed as ‘Shockwave’, and shockwave files are flash files and played by the flash player, so what is the difference between the two? Or is one an update just w/ a new name?

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To answer these questions, I believe you will need to visit the Macromedia site or find a Flash/Shockwave guru… I have no idea.

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I do not believe they are the same thing. In fact, Macromedia has recently change the name to just “Flash” — presumably to help avoid the confusion. There is no longer a “Shockwave Flash”. It is Macromedia Flash and Macromedia Shockwave.

In fact, here is some information from Macromedia:

What’s the difference between Shockwave and Flash?

Both Flash and Shockwave are multimedia players. They can give you extended and predictable abilities across a range of browser brands, versions, and platforms. (Sometimes you might hear someone refer to “Shockwave Flash”, but these are actually two different multimedia players.)

Flash has a small player which gives it a wider distribution. Flash is included in every Netscape download. Flash also has a very fast startup time. The way the Flash format interleaves media and instructions also helps it start quickly.

Shockwave has a deeper player. It offers multiuser chat, XML parsing, HTML manipulation, an extensive and fast scripting language, distant file retrieval, programmatic control of vector shapes, and bitmap manipulation. It can do many amazing things which browsers cannot do. Its files also stream, but it does not start instantly like Flash does.

Both are ubiquitous. They are distributed in all popular operating systems, browser CDs, and installed on new computers. Flash files can play on more platforms, in large part because its file format is published.

The Shockwave file format is .DCR, and it is created by the Director authoring application. The Flash file format is .SWF, and is created by Flash, FreeHand, Generator, and other tools.

Use Flash for interfaces to sites, for quick impact. Use Shockwave for more complex multimedia work, or for web applications that are beyond the browsers’ abilities.

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Each time I download Shockwave to view Shockwave 8 files, it disables the Flash from playing Flash files (5 or 6). They are separate and different, then why do they not both run as such?

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Don’t know! It is not supposed to…

You may just need to reassociate .swf files with Flash. Have you tried doing that in the Folder Options | File Types box?

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They weren’t changed. They are still properly associated.

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That is weird. So, if you double-click a .swf file, Flash does not open even though .swf files are associated with Flash? How about doing “Open with…”? If you tell your computer to Open a .swf with Flash, does Shockwave still override?

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Yes, that is weird and very frustrating. I tried “Open with…” as well as attempting to open from within the program itself and results are same. For now I have removed the Shockwave 8 & just reinstalled Flash 5.

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