MacOS – Flash plugin crashes frequently

adobe-flashmacosplugins

In various websites, at random times and with no apparent pattern, the Flash plugin will crash. This has occurred in every browser, and I typically have at least one crash a day. According to Mozilla's plugin check I have the latest version of Flash (10.1.102.64)

This is a new MacBook Pro (17", 2010 unibody version) running fully updated Mac OS X 10.6.5.

Does the plugin just crash for everyone, or is this unique to me? How often does Flash crash for you? Is there anything I can check, or is there a way I can reinstall Flash or some other diagnosis I can run? I haven't been experiencing other issues with my computer or my browser.

Best Answer

There's a reason why Apple appears to onlookers to be so anti-Flash, and it's because Flash sucks on Macs (it may also suck on other OSs, but I don't use them enough to be knowledgeable).

What to do about it depends on what browser you use (your question doesn't say, as Mozilla's Plugin Check isn't FF-only):

  • Safari - the answer is ClickToFlash. Honestly, C2F is something that should just come pre-installed on every Mac.
  • Firefox/Camino - As Ken mentioned in a comment, you want the FlashBlock extension.
  • Chrome - use the FlashBlock for Chrome extension.

As has already been said: you can get along fine on almost all sites without Flash. Here's some additional recommended reading, both of which are from John Gruber at Daring Fireball:

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