AfterDawn: Tech news

Skyfire unavailable in App Store after huge demand takes down servers

Written by Andre Yoskowitz @ 04 Nov 2010 11:34 User comments (9)

Skyfire unavailable in App Store after huge demand takes down servers Skyfire, the new browser application which promises Flash playback on iOS device has been pulled from the iOS App Store, showing as "sold out" as the company looks to increase its server capacity.
Says one developer with the company: "Please bear with us as we bring our capacity in line with the incredible demand -- stay tuned."

There is no timetable for the browser's return to the App Store.

Skyfire gets around Apple's ban on Flash by taking Flash video, rendering and translating it to HTML5 and then redisplaying it, showing users a thumbnail they can click to play the video. This in turn lead to the capacity problems.

"The user experience was performing well for the first few hours, but as the surge continued, the peak load on our servers and bandwidth caused the video experience to degrade," said the developer (via IW).



Skyfire for iOS sells for $3 in the App Store.

Previous Next  

9 user comments

15.11.2010 00:00

[I did not send this to apple, as I don't like them enough to give them the answer to their biggest problem]
ATTN: Steve Jobs

During antennagate, you made a long speech about how you want every user to be satisfied with their Apple products, and about how the company had made a mistake, and about how you would go about fixing said mistake.

It is time to do the same for Flash. Your users want it so much that they were willing to pay for the worst browser on any platform (skyfire) just to get it...and so many of them got it that the Skyfire servers were overloaded!

I can understand looking into the future where HTML5 will replace most Flash content, and it is wonderful that you support it fully...but you are selling devices to be used in 2010, not devices designed for 2020. Lack of "backwards compatibility" for the dominant technology is probably the single biggest complaint your users have about your company.

The fix is simple; no need to buy everyone a new case, no recalls needed, you don't even need to release a new version of iOS...just call up Shantanu Narayen at Adobe, tell him to have his team assemble a beta, and you will have taken away Android's most important sales tool within 2 months.

25.11.2010 00:55
xaeroak15
Inactive

If want proxy, buy a SSH.

35.11.2010 06:33

This is not about providing a proxy...it is about lowering the quality of videos so that they can be used on low quality devices (for example, every apple "iDevice" ever made).

45.11.2010 07:38

No, it is *not* about lowering quality; read more. It's about converting Flash to HTML5. While some Flash functionality (games, in particular) won't work, video and audio will generally work fine, and are NOT downgraded. Skyfire works all right, though I prefer the basic Android browser.

Edit --> Note: Skyfire came out for Android 1st.

This message has been edited since its posting. Latest edit was made on 05 Nov 2010 @ 7:46

55.11.2010 12:18
ps3lvanub
Inactive

Quote:
Skyfire gets around Apple's ban on Flash by taking Flash video, rendering and translating it to HTML5 and then redisplaying it
So it is just a non-Safari intergrated, jailbreak unnessecary version of iMobileCinema then? No, thanks. Cloud Browse, however, enables full flash. Only if Apple didn't love HTML5 like a kiddie-fiddler a 5-year-old and actually let it on the App Store, as it probably will be much faster than Safari.

65.11.2010 18:32

Skyfire is the only way I can see limited (and I do mean limited!) Flash videos on my Windows 6.1 phone (ancient I know) and I can't get into my browser either!! I can't even view my bookmarks as of this posting. These servers really need to come up and fast even if it's the fastest browser on an ancient POS such as mine.

75.11.2010 23:01

Originally posted by Bozobub:
No, it is *not* about lowering quality; read more. It's about converting Flash to HTML5. While some Flash functionality (games, in particular) won't work, video and audio will generally work fine, and are NOT downgraded. Skyfire works all right, though I prefer the basic Android browser.

Edit --> Note: Skyfire came out for Android 1st.
Any conversion of video will lower quality. If you want it to them be slim enough to work with a smart phone, you will loose even more quality.

Skyfire did come out on Android first...and they had to go to Apple after we got Flash in the browser and had no use for them anymore.

87.11.2010 16:56

Originally posted by KillerBug:
Any conversion of video will lower quality. If you want it to them be slim enough to work with a smart phone, you will loose even more quality.

Skyfire did come out on Android first...and they had to go to Apple after we got Flash in the browser and had no use for them anymore.
Incorrect. any conversion of format genrally harms quality. Flash, HTML5, and such are merely "containers", very analagous to an .mkv media container, but of course with far more functionality. The actual media stream doesn't necessarily have to change format at all.

In addition, with Flash 10.1 on my Evo, using either the native browser or Dolphin HD Browser, I can run Flash and HTML5 media just fine, at the original quality, and yes at mere 3G speeds. Now, I may have to pause it at the beginning to let the stream buffer a bit, but that's the data connection, not the actual media implementation.

Third, while I don't prefer it, Skyfire does have features that the native browser simply doesn't; tabbed browsing is a perfect example. In fact Skyfire is rather popular among ANdroid users who don't prefer the native browser.

In other words: It's not about lowering quality; it's about improving bandwidth efficiency and reducing bugs for Flash content for smartphones. Relax.

912.11.2010 10:01

Originally posted by KillerBug:
I did not send this to apple, as I don't like them enough to give them the answer to their biggest problem
Boy you really know how to hurt them.

One less letter from a moron.

Comments have been disabled for this article.

Latest news

VLC hits milestone: over 5 billion downloads VLC hits milestone: over 5 billion downloads (16 Mar 2024 4:31)
VLC Media Player, the versatile video-software powerhouse, has achieved a remarkable feat: it has been downloaded over 5 billion times.
2 user comments
Sideloading apps to Android gets easier, as Google settles its lawsuit Sideloading apps to Android gets easier, as Google settles its lawsuit (19 Dec 2023 11:09)
Google settled its lawsuit in September 2023, and one of the settlement terms was that the way applications are installed on Android from outside the Google Play Store must become simpler. In the future, installing APK files will be easier.
8 user comments
Roomba Combo j7+ review - Clever trick allows robot vacuum finally to tackle home with rugs and carpets Roomba Combo j7+ review - Clever trick allows robot vacuum finally to tackle home with rugs and carpets (06 Jun 2023 9:19)
Roomba Combo j7+ is the very first Roomba model to combine robot vacuum with mopping features. And Roomba Combo j7+ does all that with a very clever trick, which tackles the problem with mopping and carpets. But is it any good? We found out.
Neato, the robot vacuum company, ends its operations Neato, the robot vacuum company, ends its operations (02 May 2023 3:38)
Neato Robotics has ceased its operations. American robot vacuum pioneer founded in 2005 has finally called it quits and company will cease its operations and sales. Only a skeleton crew will remain who will keep the servers running until 2028.
5 user comments
How to Send Messages to Yourself on WhatsApp How to Send Messages to Yourself on WhatsApp (20 Mar 2023 1:25)
The world's most popular messaging platform, Meta-owned WhatsApp has enabled sending messages to yourself. While at first, this might seem like an odd feature, it can be very useful in a lot of situations. ....
18 user comments

News archive