Adobe CEO reponds to Steve's Flash rant
Just hours after Apple posted Steve Jobs's explanation of why Flash isn't supported on the iPhone, iPod touch or iPad, Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayen responded. The Wall Street Journal live-blogged their exclusive interview with Narayen at 2:35 PM Eastern. Here are some of the highlights.
Narayen began by reinforcing Adobe's belief in open content, noting that the Creative Suite apps were designed to work on multiple platforms, and notes that Adobe "certainly" will be shipping on the latest version of Android. He goes on to call Steve's essay "a smokescreen," noting that more than 100 apps are currently in the App Store used Adobe's software.
In response to Steve's assertion that "...Flash is the number one reason Macs crash," Narayen said that, if Adobe does crash a Mac, it's probably got something "to do with the Apple operating system."
He goes on to warn developers that Apple's restrictiveness will make their work "cumbersome," saying that they'll need to manage two workflows: One for Apple and one for everything else. In fact, he asks WSJ writer Alan Murray if the Journal would want two separate development processes when creating content. Mr. Murray responded that it would be "...better if you could use one set" of tools.
Finally, Narayen insists that Apple's adherence to a single platform is a detriment. He concludes that Adobe's concept is best for most developers, as it allows them to distribute apps out to many places rather than forcing them to pick one.
And for the record, Narayen uses a Google Nexus One and considers the iPad "a good first-generation device."
