Currently available to download and install, Abode announced the launch of version 11 of Flash and version 3.0 of Air. With these new versions of the software, Adobe has tied hardware acceleration into the programming allowing for more robust applications. With this upgrade, Adobe now supports 3D gaming as well as Dolby Digital and DTS surround sound. Adobe claims that Flash 11 is capable of up to 1,000 times faster rendering over previous versions and developers should be able to use this power to develop games that rival console counterparts. The Stage 3D technology should allow developers to design applications that animate millions of objects as well as run at extremely fast framerates.
While this upgraded technology is available on connected HDTVs as well as PCs and Macs, Adobe plans to release support for mobile support for the Apple iOS, Android and BlackBerry Tablet OS platforms. Adobe representatives showed off a connected HDTV application based on the new software on a Samsung panel. The trivia game in the presentation allowed for communication between an Android phone when inputting the answer to the trivia question, much like any standard controller for a video game console. Beyond high definition support for computer monitors and televisions, Adobe is also promising support for 64-bit platforms if the architecture is available to the user.
Beyond the upgrades to Flash and Air, Adobe also announced Adobe Digital Publishing Suite, a program that creates iPad applications for a fee of $395 per app. Other announcements included Adobe Creative Cloud, 20GB of cloud storage for files created with Adobe Creative Suite, and six touch-screen apps for Android and iOS platforms. These six apps include Photoshop Touch, Proto, Debut, Kuler, Collage and Ideas. While Flash and Air are currently available for computers running Windows, Linux, and OS X, the new versions of the software require OS X 10.6 on an Intel platform to work correctly.
