> and here they announce that they're also no longer trying to support the "rich motion graphics" use case.
That kind of sucks, as there's a slew of amazing things people like Joshua Davis had done with Flash. I've used it on several occasions to script my way out of a complex motion graphics requirement.
<aside> They should really expose the After Effects API to ActionScript though. Most of the hi-end compositing and motion graphics people I know now recommend or want to switch to Nuke because of Adobe's disregard for After Effects' scripting capabilities.
I would say that's their response to what the market is telling them what they want and don't want, of which the market has been quite vocal about the past couple of years. Flash has been slowly evolving into something other than a web browser plugin for years, we're just now reaching that cutoff point. The fun will be if the platform can survive as something other than a web browser plugin.
It _did_ evolve into something other than a web browser plugin; Adobe AIR was launched (with Flex) as a complete solution for writing cross-platform desktop applications.
By cutting Adobe AIR for Linux out as a surprise move, they did not exactly build developer confidence in their ability to provide long-term development platforms worth investing in.
Further, by claiming "commitment" in every press release while simultaneously discontinuing more and more of the platform itself, it's getting harder and harder to believe anything they say anymore.
1. Dropped Adobe AIR support on desktop Linux ("focusing on Android & embedded", was it?)
2. Dropped Adobe Flash Player support on Android (not focusing on Android anymore?)
3. Dropped Adobe Flash Player support on Linux (except in Google Chrome)
and here they announce that they're also no longer trying to support the "rich motion graphics" use case.