Adobe Announces Searchable SWF Collaboration With Google And Yahoo!

One reason (OK, there are many, I admit) why this blog has gone bare lately is because I try not to post announcements that every other similar blog in the world has already announced. It's a waste of my time and being one of 2,000 posts on the same exact subject doesn't tend to interest me (anymore). However, today's announcement by Adobe that they are working with Google and Yahoo! to enhance the search capabilities of SWF files (Adobe Flash and Adobe Flex applications in case you don't know what a SWF file is) is a long overdue breakthrough for the rich Internet application (RIA) trend, and is yet another validation of technologies such as Adobe Flex and Microsoft Silverlight for delivering public-facing, web-based applications.

Let's get one thing right out there though: Not all RIAs should be searchable by search engines. Many (most?) RIAs are not and should not be simple ports of HTML-based web sites over to these newer technologies. That would be a waste of time and money. RIAs really excel for true web-based application development -- think applications like Picnik, an online photo editor. There isn't any real value in Google being able to index the photo editing application itself -- that's sort of like indexing Microsoft Word.

However, an Adobe Flex-based RIA that captures the latest new stories and visualizes them -- i.e., displaying the titles in little bubbles and having more popular stories have larger bubbles -- is right in the wheelhouse of the utility of this announcement. The ability for Google and Yahoo! to be able to crawl the SWF itself for the content rather than having to expose the raw RSS feed, XML file, or whatever the source is incredibly valuable. A social network RIA that allows search engines to index public profiles -- think LinkedIn -- is yet another example of where the convergence of the sticky user experience Flex provides and the search engine power of Google and Yahoo! is extremely powerful.

Lastly, and this is a lesser point yet one I still wish to make, I've been to trade shows where AJAX-focused companies tout their products. Interestingly, I invariably hear them say as part of their pitch that one of the big distinctions between AJAX applications and Adobe Flex or Microsoft Silverlight applications is that AJAX apps can be searched by the major search engines. Well, the competitive advantage is leveled today. I certainly am one who is curious to see how Adobe's announcement plays out in reality (name the last technical solution you saw that worked flawlessly on the first try), but hopefully the AJAX vs. Flex/Silverlight debate can start to move back to what really matters: the user experience.