When will you release a new version of Gnash?
Gnash is undergoing rapid development. After a release, there is a period of instability while new features are added and tested. Because producing a release diverts energy from development, we only release when a new release will provide a significant benefit over the previous release, or roughly every 6 months. The most current code is available for download.
What codecs does Gnash support?
Gnash supports all codecs which are linked against the codec library. At compilation time, a user may choose either Gstreamer or ffmpeg as a codec library.
What operating systems does Gnash run on?
Gnash should run on most *NIX systems, although most of the development and testing has been with GNU/Linux, IRIX and BSD derivatives. Gnash will compile on PowerPC- and Intel-based Macs--although not easily--. Windows builds are available (compiled against Mingw). We encourage you to submit reports of your building experiences (please refer to the Gnash manual for instructions).
What does Gnash stand for?
Gnash is not an abbreviation or an acronym. It uses the 'Gn' from GNU and the 'ash' from Flash, and describes what our teeth are doing when we can't play flash files on our favourite platforms without installing proprietary software.
How can I help Gnash development?
Please refer to the Gnash manual for suggestions.
Will Gnash use Tamarin?
Gnash already has a working virtual machine, and most of the ActionScript classes have been implemented. Therefore there is no benefit in switching to Tamarin.
How do Gnash developers work with the Adobe/Macromedia EULA?
There is some debate about whether the Adobe/Macromedia Flash EULA can be considered binding, but Gnash developers prefer to avoid the issue by not installing Adobe/Macromedia tools, and thereby not accepting the EULA. We can use tools like Ming to generate Flash testcases, and we rely on the efforts of volunteers to run our testcases on commercial software and report the result.
Why do you use C++ and not C?
Gnash is derived from GameSWF and GameSWF was originally written in C++.
Why do you use the Boost libraries?
Using Boost allows us to avoid reinventing the wheel. Boost provides well-tested, well-designed interfaces which we use frequently. Additionally, Boost is highly portable and parts are being incorporated into the C++ standard. We know that compiling Boost takes a while, but we consider this a small price to pay.
Why is Gnash not under license X?
Because we prefer and think GPL is more suitable than other licenses.
Why doesn't Gnash work with YouTube?
It sure does! Make sure you've got the right Gstreamer codecs installed or ffmpeg.
How can I uninstall Gnash?
If you built Gnash from source, go to your build directory and type 'make uninstall'. If you installed it as a package, remove it using your package manager.
Can I use Gnash to decompile a SWF file?
This is theoretically possible using the Gnash codebase. However, Gnash is not the right tool for this job. Please consider using, for example, listswf from the Ming project.
Will Gnash play FLV files or other media directly?
No. FLV is a container for audio and video material similar to 'avi'. Although Gnash could be modified to play such material directly, it is not intended to be a general purpose media player.
