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Browserdetection

One of the biggest disadvantages of Flash is that the user needs to install a plugin to be able to see it. This section show you a way to make the installation of the plugin as smooth as possible.
Fortunately both MSIE 4 and Netscape 4 can install the plugin automatic. On older browsers installing the plug-in requires a few steps for the user to follow.


SHORT DESCRIPTION OF THE TECHNIQUE:

The script shown below requires three web-pages to be present at your site.
1) The webpage witht he flash-movie.
2) The webpage users are taken to before automatic download of plugin if needed.
3) The webpage users are taken to before manual download of the plugin if needed.

In the figure below you will see how the script works:

Check: Does user have plug-in? arrwright.gif (306 bytes)

Yes

arrwright.gif (306 bytes) Send user to flashpage

arrwdown.gif (318 bytes)

arrwup.gif (313 bytes)

            

NO

                        

            

THEN

            

arrwdown.gif (318 bytes)

arrwup.gif (313 bytes)

Check: Is it a version 4 browser arrwright.gif (306 bytes)

Yes

arrwright.gif (306 bytes) Auto-installpage

arrwdown.gif (318 bytes)

NO

arrwdown.gif (318 bytes)

Check: Update browser now? arrwright.gif (306 bytes) Yes arrwright.gif (306 bytes) Browser download-page

arrwdown.gif (318 bytes)

arrwdown.gif (318 bytes)

NO

                         

arrwdown.gif (318 bytes)

arrwdown.gif (318 bytes)

Macromedias Plugin-page arrwright.gif (306 bytes) arrwright.gif (306 bytes) Reload this page

As you can see the script will first detect if the visitor allready has the plug-in. If this is the case the visitor is sent to the flash-page.
Note the script does not only check if there is a flash-plugin installed. It also checkes if the version is the one required to visit the flash-movie correctly.

If the visitor does not have the plugin, the script will check which browser is used.
If it is a version-4 browser, the user will be sent to a page, describing that the plugin will be installed automatic. After clicking OK the plugin will then be installed.
When the plugin is installed the user is automatic taken to the flash-page.

If it is an older version the user will be sent to a page, that offers the user to either update the browser or jump to the plug-in-download-page at macromedias site.
Whether the visitor chooses the one or the other the detection-page needs to be reloaded after installing the plugin or the updated browser.


THE FLASH-DETECTION-SCRIPT:
Below you see the code for the page that detects if the plugin is present or not.
NOTE: You need to enter these three URL's:

1) The URL of the actual flashpage.
    In the script this page is referred to as
flashpage.

2) The URL of the page to jump to when using version 4 browser and plugin is not installed.
    In the script this page is referred to as
autodetectpage.

3) The URL of the page to jump to when using older browser and the plugin is not installed.
    In the script this page is referred to as
manualdetectpage.

In the script shown below the lines where you should enter these URL's are highlighted.

<html>
<head>
<title>Shockwave Flash Detection</title>
<SCRIPT LANGUAGE="JavaScript">
<!-- hide code

// define pages
flashpage="
flashpage.htm";
autodetectpage="
autodetect.htm";
manualdetectpage="
manualdetect.htm";

// detect browser
bName = navigator.appName;
bVer = parseInt(navigator.appVersion);

// assign base variables
flash = "no"
flashver = "1.0"
action = "ns_exec"

// detect plugin for NS flash 3 version
if (bName=="Netscape") {
if (navigator.plugins["Shockwave Flash 2.0"]) {flashver = "2.0"}
else if(navigator.plugins["Shockwave Flash"]) {flashver = "3.0"}
if (flashver == "3.0") {flash = "yes";}
// activate if other release comes out
// flashver = navigator.plugins["Shockwave Flash"].description.substring(16,19);
} else if (bName =="Microsoft Internet Explorer") { action = "ie_exec" }
//-->
</SCRIPT>
</head>

<body bgcolor="White" text="Black">
<center>
<SCRIPT LANGUAGE="VBScript">
<!--
on error resume next
If action = "ie_exec" then
FlashInstalled =(IsObject(CreateObject("ShockwaveFlash.ShockwaveFlash.3")))
End If
If FlashInstalled = "True" then
flash = "yes"
End If
//-->
</SCRIPT>
<SCRIPT LANGUAGE="JavaScript">
<!-- Actions
if (flash == "yes") {window.location=flashpage}
else if (flash == "no")
{
if (navigator.appVersion.indexOf("4.0")!=-1) {window.location=autodetectpage}
// Flash can be installed automatic

else {window.location=manualdetectpage}
// Flash needs manual installation
}

//-->
</SCRIPT>
<NOSCRIPT>Whatever</NOSCRIPT>
</center>
</body>
</html>

THE AUTODETECTION-PAGE:
Click here to see an example of a page the visitor should be sent to before automatic installing the plugin.
This is the page visitors using version 4 browsers would be sent to.

Note: After confirming installation of the plugin, the user is simply taken to the flashpage itself.
The autodetection-page is simply a normal HTML-document informing the visitor that the plugin will be installed.
When you embed flashmovies in your HTML-documents you specify the URL of the pluginspage. This information is what the browser uses to automatic install the plugin on version 4 browsers. Therefore you do not need to have a specific page dedicated to automatic installation of the plugin. Read more details about this in the Embed in HTML-section.

You might choose to simply skip this informative page.
Since the plugin is actually installed automatic the user does not HAVE to be informed about it. However two obvious reasons would advice that you did not skip this page:

1) The user will be prompted by the browser before the plugin is installed. If the user was not informed in advance about the installation he might be insecure of what is going on, and thus choose not to confirm the plugin-installation.

2) It is common netiquette to inform the visitor to your page before installing plugins.


THE MANUALDETECTION-PAGE:
Click here to see an example of a page the visitor should be sent to before automatic installing the plugin. This is the page visitors using browsers older than version 4 would be sent to.
The page advices the user to get an update of the browser. If the user does not want to update the browser, the page offers to manually install the plugin, by following the link to Macromedias manual-plugin-installation-page.


SAMPLE-PAGE:

Click here to see a page that uses the entire script and informative pages described above.


 

 

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