Adobe Flash (SWF)

Filename extension	.swf
Internet media type	application/x-shockwave-flash
Magic number	CWS or FWS[1]
Developed by	FutureWave Software, later taken over by Macromedia and Adobe Systems
Type of format	Vector graphic animation

SWF ( /ˈswɪf/ SWIF)^[2] is an Adobe Flash file format used for multimedia, vector graphics and ActionScript.^[3] Originating with FutureWave Software, then transferred to Macromedia, and then coming under the control of Adobe, SWF files can contain animations or applets of varying degrees of interactivity and function.

Currently^[update], SWF is the dominant format for displaying "animated" vector graphics on the Web. It may also be used for programs, commonly browser games, using ActionScript.

SWF files can be generated from within several Adobe products: Flash, Flash Builder (an IDE) and After Effects, as well as through MXMLC, a command line application compiler which is part of the freely available Flex SDK. Other than Adobe products, SWFs can be built with open source Motion-Twin ActionScript 2 Compiler (MTASC), the open source Ming library, the free software suite SWFTools, the proprietary SWiSH Max2. There are also various third party programs that can produce files in this format, such as Multimedia Fusion 2, Captivate or SWiSH Max.

Originally, the term SWF was used as an abbreviation for ShockWave Flash. This usage was changed to the backronym Small Web Format to eliminate confusion with a different technology, Shockwave, from which SWF was derived.^{[citation needed]}

History[link]

FutureWave Software, a small company later acquired by Macromedia, originally defined the file format with one primary objective: to create small files for displaying entertaining animations.^[4] The idea was to have a format which could be reused by a player running on any system and which would work with slower network connections.

Adobe acquired Macromedia in 2005.

On May 1, 2008, Adobe dropped its licensing restrictions on the SWF format specifications, as part of the Open Screen Project. However, Rob Savoye, a member of the Gnash development team, has pointed to some parts of the Flash format which remain closed.^[5] On July 1, 2008, Adobe released code which allowed the Google and Yahoo search-engines to crawl and index SWF files.^[6]

Description[link]

Originally limited to presenting vector-based objects and images in a simple sequential manner, the format in its later versions allows audio (since Flash 3), video (since Flash 6) and many different possible forms of interaction with the end user. Once created, SWF files can be played by the Adobe Flash Player, working either as a browser plugin or as a standalone player. SWF files can also be encapsulated with the player, creating a self-running SWF movie called a "projector".

Adobe makes available plugins, such as Adobe Flash Player and Adobe Integrated Runtime, to play SWF files in web browsers on many desktop operating systems, including Microsoft Windows, Apple Mac OS X, and Linux on the x86 architecture. As of 2007^[update] intensive development had taken place on Gnash, a free-software implementation of a SWF player. Another FOSS implementation is Swfdec.

Based on an independent study conducted by Millward Brown, over 99% of Web users now have a SWF plugin installed, with around 90% having the latest version of the Flash Player.^[7]

Sony PlayStation Portable consoles can play limited SWF files in Sony's web browser, beginning with firmware version 2.71. Both the Nintendo Wii^[8] and the Sony PS3^[9] consoles can run SWF files through their Internet browsers.

Many of today's smartphones support SWF (although sometimes not fully compatible) in their web browsers. Apple's iPhone is one of the smartphones that do not support SWF. Apple claims that SWF is a closed, proprietary format.^[10]

Licensing[link]

Adobe makes available a partial specification of SWF.^[11] The document is claimed to be missing "huge amounts" of information needed to completely implement SWF, omitting specifications for RTMP and Sorenson Spark.^[12] However, the RTMP specification^[13] was released publicly in June 2009, and the Sorenson Spark codec is not Adobe's property. Until May 1, 2008, implementing software that plays SWF was disallowed by the specification's license.^[14] On that date, as part of its Open Screen Project, Adobe dropped all such restrictions on the SWF and FLV formats.^[15] However, the SWF specification was released under a very restrictive license:^[1]

This manual may not be copied, photocopied, reproduced, translated, or converted to any electronic or machine-readable form in whole or in part without written approval from Adobe Systems Incorporated.

Implementing software which creates SWF files has always been permitted, on the condition that the resulting files render "error free in the latest publicly available version of Adobe Flash Player."^[16]

GNU has started developing a free software SWF player called Gnash under the GNU General Public License (GPL). Another player is the GNU LGPL Swfdec. However, GNU does not provide financial support for either project.

Scaleform GFx is a commercial alternative SWF player that features full hardware acceleration using the GPU and has high conformance up to Flash 8 and AS2. Scaleform GFx is licensed as a game middleware solution and used by many PC and console 3D games for user interfaces, HUDs, mini games, and video playback.

Related file formats and extensions[link]

See also[link]

Adobe Flash

• ActionScript
• ActionScript code protection
• Adobe Flash Player, the runtime that executes and plays back Flash movies.
• Adobe Flash Lite, a lightweight version of Flash Player for devices that lack the resources to run regular Flash movies.
• Flash Video
• Ming library
• Saffron Type System, the anti-aliased text-rendering engine used in version 8 onwards.
• Local Shared Object
• SWFObject, a JavaScript library used to embed Flash content into webpages.

Other

• OpenLaszlo
• Personal video recorders can record and play swf files
• Vectorian Giotto
• SWF2EXE Software
• FutureSplash Animator
• SWFTools
• SWiSH Max

References[link]

External links[link]

• Adobe Systems Flash SWF reference
• SWF File Format Specification (Version 10)