I've heard - and seen - the same argument made with respect to Flash on one side and HTML4 + JavaScript on the other side.
I'm the biggest flash hater there is, I only started using it November last year for one specific feature that we no longer could talk our way around (video+audio) and it is really amusing to see history repeat like this.
Adobe isn't going anywhere, and, unfortunately, neither is flash. 'just' video is not going to suddenly make everybody drop flash.
> While I do think that this is bad user experience for those buying the MacBook Air, it should help foster an overall better user experience for the Internet.
Reducing the user experience for any group does not increase the user experience for the whole.
What it might do is foster standardization in the long run. But don't forget that Apple is not doing this from the good of their heart to help open standards, but simply because flash competes with the App store.
It is no coincidence that flash gets dropped from the MBA at the same time that the app store for the Mac gets launched.
How does Flash compete with the App Store more than HTML5? Since Apple has been promoting HTML5 web apps, especially those targeting Mobile Safari, I find it hard to believe that their hatred of Flash comes from a desire to protect the App Store. I take Apple at their word that it's because of Flash's atrocious performance, which as a Mac user I can attest to.
I don't agree with this decision, though. I think the best way to handle Flash is to build ClickToFlash functionality directly into the browser.
I don't think that's at all the case. Flash is mostly used for rich content on web pages. If it competes with anything, it's new browser features like HTML5. One could make the argument that Apple is trying to discourage the use of flash-based competitors to iTunes such as Amazon VOD and Hulu. Though that's a bit of a stretch.
It is no coincidence that flash gets dropped from the MBA at the same time that the app store for the Mac gets launched.
I think the coincidence is more mundane. According to Jobs, Apple made a more realistic battery benchmark for the Air. It now involves browsing 25 popular websites over wifi. Killing flash would almost certainly improve battery life in that benchmark.
I'm the biggest flash hater there is, I only started using it November last year for one specific feature that we no longer could talk our way around (video+audio) and it is really amusing to see history repeat like this.
Adobe isn't going anywhere, and, unfortunately, neither is flash. 'just' video is not going to suddenly make everybody drop flash.
> While I do think that this is bad user experience for those buying the MacBook Air, it should help foster an overall better user experience for the Internet.
Reducing the user experience for any group does not increase the user experience for the whole.
What it might do is foster standardization in the long run. But don't forget that Apple is not doing this from the good of their heart to help open standards, but simply because flash competes with the App store.
It is no coincidence that flash gets dropped from the MBA at the same time that the app store for the Mac gets launched.