Is it the time for Flash Upload replacement?

agison

Well-known member
Flash was not supported on Linux now.
Flash causes many issues with Browsers.
Flash eats too much battery.
Flash was not supported (or limited supported) on Mobile Devices.

I see there are so many Multi file upload libraries which use Ajax/HTML5 now.
Is it a good time for Flash replacement now?
 
I was very surprised to see that XenForo used a flash component for file uploading. Sure it works well, and much better than a non flash component, but we are venturing into an era where the Flash - for want of a better term - market share is depleting rapidly as a result of people not supporting it in favour of HTML5.

I would love to see a HTML5 version, perhaps with the existing Flash uploader as a fall back for older browsers, creep in to XenForo.
 
I agree. The backend of Wordpress has an option for Flash and non-Flash uploader. I've found even Wordpress' Flash uploader can run into problems.
 
An additional question:
What is the advantage of flash forth in xF?

XF is approaching the 2 year-old mark, use of a flash upload tool was fairly appropriate when XF was being developed and released.

Just like everything software related, XF will have to evolve as newer technologies are more commonly adapted.
 
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Yeah looks fantastic.

I will rephrase what I said though... "I would like to have a go at implementing something like that into XenForo as an add-on"... but I doubt I have the skills to do so.

Someone else should give it a go! :D
 
You still wouldn't be able to upload from an iOS device due to its non-user-accessible file system.
So, back to an app for that then. ;)
 
Now, I like this. And it's jquery so actually should be more compatible than HTML5.

http://blueimp.github.com/jQuery-File-Upload/

I would like to have a go at implementing something like that into XenForo as an add-on.
I would like to nominate this as the replacement.

It would do the following if conducted correctly
  • Remove the flash requirement
  • Less to load
  • Simpler integration
  • Easier to maintain for development
  • More user friendly

Believe it or not, some of the underline things required for this are already there
 
Steve Jobs knew flash will vanish one day
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A visionary...
 
Don't mess with my beloved Xenforo uploader.
It's amazing.
Best in the biz.

If it gets replaced (I am sure it will, Flash is dying) ... I hope it works exactly the same way !
 
Now, I like this. And it's jquery so actually should be more compatible than HTML5.

http://blueimp.github.com/jQuery-File-Upload/

I would like to have a go at implementing something like that into XenForo as an add-on.
I use that for some stuff and to be honest, it's been a little buggy. Doesn't work well at ALL with Internet Explorer unless it's 10 or higher (9 doesn't work that well). That I could live with... because well... if you use IE, it's your own choice to have a ****ty web experience. The bigger issue is that it sporadically hangs when uploading for some users (even if they retry). I suspect it has something to do with some sort of HTTP timeout...
 
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I use that for some stuff and to be honest, it's been a little buggy. Doesn't work well at ALL with Internet Explorer unless it's 10 or higher (9 doesn't work that well). That I could live with... because well... if you use IE, it's your own choice to have a ****ty web experience. The bigger issue is that it sporadically hangs when uploading for some users (even if they retry). I suspect it has something to do with some sort of HTTP timeout...
Fair comments. I haven't yet had the time to begin looking at replacing the flash uploader myself, but IMO it's one of those things that probably shouldn't be done via an add-on.

I know SWFUpload has been the defacto standard for a long time... but there's the problem... long... And as we all know flash isn't as widely supported as it once was and it caused one of the biggest vulnerabilities in XenForo it's surely time...

Out of interest, have you used any similar to this one that ARE good?
 
Not sure... Maybe the newer versions are better. The upload hanging is tough to troubleshoot since it's sporadic and only happens to some users regardless of the browser they use. Maybe they fixed it in newer versions (not sure).
 
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