Good article on Flash / Open Source / etc....

[Bradley Miller]

Ok -- let me bring this back down a few notches . . . rewind back to the 
early browser / www days:

"I have to have a 'browser' just to view graphics . .  why do I need them 
on my trusty terminal window here?"

If it wasn't for graphics and ease of use, the Internet wouldn't be where 
it is now.  Period.  I can see the next generation of web sites that use 
capabilities beyond javascript/HTML/etc.... and it has to run on something, 
and that something is Flash.   Flash isn't all about moving trinkets and 
eye candy . . . it's a very sophisticated application language that happens 
to run on multiple web browser platforms.  It sounds like a win-win in my 
book.

Although I support and use Open software, someone still has to explain how 
everyone "giving to the cause" is going to feed themselves one of these 
days.  I saw a very funny discussion about one guy that was upset that 
someone using an open source library didn't have his code open source (and 
basically free). (The solution was the program just used the library and 
didn't modify it, so it's not free, nor needs to be "open".)   Open source 
doesn't equal free.  Good software is still worth whatever someone will pay 
for it.  I just bought two license upgrades for ColdFusion and the complete 
Macromedia Studio MX Plus.  I have PHP running for free on multiple Linux 
boxes and NT -- but I can still do just as much and at a lot lower 
development cost on ColdFusion.    There is nothing open source that can 
touch the Studio MX Plus (Dreamweaver/Fireworks/Freehand/Flash) line of 
products.  Yea, I'm still tied to a Windows box . . . but I get a lot done 
on that box and it keeps a lot of paying customers happy.  Those paying 
customers will be moving to more and more RIA (rich internet applications) 
and Flash will be driving those designs . . . $$$$.   Need I say more?