Flash Player Version Detection and Upgrading
Every time I work on a site that uses Adobe Flash, I have to answer the same question: “How are we going to handle version detection?” Version detection of the Flash Player that is. Of course we would like to make use of all the enhancements that the latest versions of the Flash Player provide, and we would like our audience not to miss out on anything. So in order to provide them with the best possible experience, and with the help of some of the old Wunderman crew, I’ve finally put together the following guidelines.
Scenarios
As of version 6.0.65 of the Flash Player, it supports Adobe’s ExpressInstall technology, which makes the upgrade process almost seamless, so with that in mind, the site needs to support three scenarios:
- The user does not have Flash installed
- The user has the wrong version of Flash installed and the version is below 6.0.65
- The user has the wrong version of Flash installed and the version is above 6.0.65
In all three scenarios, if the site uses a mixture of Flash and other content, Flash detection should only take place in one Flash piece, usually a core feature or message. Otherwise there is a risk that each piece of Flash content alerts the user to a possible version mismatch.
For scenario one, the messaging to ask users to install the Flash Player needs to be included in the non-Flash alternative content. This messaging needs to have the right balance between being noticeable and not being intrusive, since it should not distract from the static non-Flash content and the experience of the site. Ideally the message would be HTML text in a layer over the alternative non-Flash content and should provide the necessary links to the Adobe Flash Player download.
For scenario two, ‘ExpressInstall’ cannot be used, so the messaging in the non-Flash alternative content needs to tell users that they have the wrong version of Flash and point them to the Adobe site to manually download the Flash Player and then return to the original site to reload it after installation. Again, this messaging needs to have the right balance between being noticeable and not being intrusive.
For scenario three, ‘ExpressInstall’ will display a customised dialog box to the user, asking them if they wish to upgrade their Flash Player. If the user agrees to update the Player, ‘ExpressInstall’ downloads it, installs it and reloads the current webpage to show the Flash content. If the user declines, all Flash pieces will show static no-Flash content with an unobtrusive message asking them to upgrade manually. The site should also place a cookie on the user’s computer, so that the upgrade message is suppressed on encountering further Flash content. However, on the next visit to the site, the upgrade message box should once again be displayed.
Messaging
For scenario one, where the users do not have Flash Player installed at all the message displayed in the non-Flash alternative content should read something like: “We have not found the Adobe Flash Player required to view content on this site on your computer. Please visit www.adobe.com to download the free Flash Player now.”
For scenario two, where ExpressInstall is not available, the message should read: “We have not found the correct version of the Adobe Flash Player required to view the content on this site on your computer. Please visit www.adobe.com to download and upgrade the free Flash Player now.”
Finally, for scenario three the following message can be displayed in the customisable dialog box: “We have not found the correct version of the Adobe Flash Player required to view the content on this site on your computer. Would you like to upgrade to the latest version of the free Flash Player now?”
If there are any Flash experts out there, who do things differently, please do get in touch and help me correct these guidelines.