Flash 11.3 crashes

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  • Revision id: 33304
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  • Creator: GrandmaLovesAFox
  • Comment: Typo in Conside an Alternative OS
  • Reviewed: Yes
  • Reviewed:
  • Reviewed by: Verdi
  • Is approved? No
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Flash 11.3 crashes more frequently than previous versions of Flash. Updating to the latest version of Flash should fix this issue for most people.

Note: This article only applies to Windows and Mac.
Note: This article is specifically for crashes with Flash 11.3. If you are experiencing issues with Flash 11.3 such as video appearing black, white or grey and never playing, please see Flash 11.3 doesn't load video in Firefox.

Solution 1: Update Flash

  1. Go to Adobe's Flash Player download page and download the Flash installer.
    Caution: Adobe's download page may include a checkbox for optional software (such as Google Chrome or McAfee Security Scan) that is selected by default. If you do not clear the checkbox before downloading, that software will be installed on your computer when you open the Flash installer.
  2. When the download has finished, close Firefox. Click the Firefox menu Fx89menuButton and select Exit.Click the Firefox menu at the top of the screen and select Quit Firefox.Click the Firefox menu Fx89menuButton and select Quit.
  3. Open the Flash installer file you downloaded and follow the instructions.
Note: If you are having problems with the Flash installer from Adobe's download page, you can use this Flash Player installer link to directly download the full installer.
  1. Go to Adobe's Flash Player download page and download the Flash installer.
  2. Click the Firefox menu Fx89menuButton and select Exit.Click the Firefox menu at the top of the screen and select Quit Firefox.Click the Firefox menu Fx89menuButton and select Quit.
  3. Open the file you downloaded (i.e. install_flash_player_osx_intel.dmg).
  4. In the Finder, open the Install Adobe Flash Player.app to run the installer, then follow the installer's instructions.
  1. Go to Adobe's Flash Player download page.
  2. When prompted, save the file (i.e. install_flash_player_"version"_linux."processor".tar.gz).
  3. Click the Firefox menu Fx89menuButton and select Exit.Click the Firefox menu at the top of the screen and select Quit Firefox.Click the Firefox menu Fx89menuButton and select Quit.
  4. Open a Terminal window (in Gnome, click on the Applications menu, select Accessories, and then select Terminal.)
  5. In the Terminal window, change to the directory where you saved the file you downloaded (e.g. cd /home/user/Downloads).
  6. Extract libflashplayer.so from the file you downloaded with the command tar -zxvf install_flash_player_"version"_linux."processor".tar.gz.
  7. As the super user, copy the extracted file, libflashplayer.so, to your Firefox installation directory's plugins sub-directory. For example, if Firefox is installed in /usr/lib/mozilla, use the command sudo cp libflashplayer.so /usr/lib/mozilla/plugins and then enter your super user password when prompted.

    0a85171f1802a3b0d9f46ffb997ddc02-1260326970-447-1.png

Solution 2: Downgrade to Flash 10.3

If updating Flash to the latest version didn't solve the problem, you can try downgrading to Flash 10.3.

Warning: Flash 10.3 doesn't auto-update so you won't be notified of new versions. Keeping Flash up to date is critical to keeping your computer safe.
Note: You may want to write down these steps or print them out as you will have to close Firefox during this process.

Step 1: Uninstall Flash

To uninstall Flash on Windows, you will need to use the uninstaller provided by Adobe.

  1. Download the uninstaller program from Adobe - uninstall_flash_player.exe (676 KB)
  2. Click the Firefox menu Fx89menuButton and select Exit.Click the Firefox menu at the top of the screen and select Quit Firefox.Click the Firefox menu Fx89menuButton and select Quit.
  3. Run the uninstall Flash program that you download and follow the prompts.
  4. When you are finished, start Firefox again and continue with the next section.

See the Adobe help article Uninstalling Flash Player on Windows for more details.

Step 2: Install Flash 10.3

The following instructions will show you how to download and install Flash 10.3.

  1. Download Flash 10.3 from the Adobe site - install_flash_player_10_plugin.exe (3 MB)
  2. Click the Firefox menu Fx89menuButton and select Exit.Click the Firefox menu at the top of the screen and select Quit Firefox.Click the Firefox menu Fx89menuButton and select Quit.
  3. Open your downloads folder and double-click the file named install_flash_player_10_plugin.exe to start the installation.
  4. Follow the instructions in the installer. When the installation is complete you can open Firefox again.

Step 3: Consider an alternative OS if Flash continues to fail

Most Windows users are unaware that software such as Flash (and Windows) expose them to viruses, spyware and system hijacking. Because Firefox is open source, providing peace of mind you aren't being hacked, its a simple, easy first step to having a secure system, but for smart users, it doesn't stop there. Windows users should strongly consider switching to an open source Linux based system and may find that programs like Flash run better, faster and more reliably and many Linux packages allow you to keep your Windows system intact and run a dual-boot system: Windows for some aps and Linux for others. If Flash is failing in one platform, you may find it works fine in the other; typically the Linux OS. Downloading and testing/installing a Linux OS is usually free and some are easy for even novice users, and only takes a few minutes. Make sure the Linux you select has FIREFOX available or go find another one. There are over 200 varieties. Four very small, user friendly and run fast examples are Tiny Core Linux (good for Techs), Puppy Linux (good for most users), Knoppix (also good for most average users) and Pocket Rocket Linux (built around the Firefox browser - so its a good match for Firefox users). At the end of the day if you want a safe, reliable, secure system you have to rely on Firefox and other software that is open source. If you don't run a 100% open source system you are inviting problems and the combination of Flash and Windows almost guarantees it. Here are the basics to choosing an alternative OS:

  1. Google the Linux of your choice to find their official websites. There is a big tree showing all the various distributions and evolutions at eduhosting.org - http://bigdrivehosting.com/ssl/eduhos.../linux.html
  2. Make sure you select a Linux that includes both Firefox and Flash and has a user friendly forum.
  3. Download an official version from the official site and check the MD5SUM codes to ensure your download is clean (not hacked).
  4. Here are the four Linux versions listed above, but there are many, many others.

Tiny Core Linux - http://www.tinycorelinux.com/ (less than 20MB) Puppy Linux - http://www.puppylinux.com/ (nearly 200MB depending on the version you select) Knoppix Linux - http://knoppix.net/ (more than 200MB) Pocket Rocket Linux - http://www.tinycorelinux.com/ (size varies from 20MB to 600MB depending on aps you download its very modular and is Grandmas Choice since its based on a Firefox desktop)

Solution 1: Update Flash

  1. Go to Adobe's Flash Player download page and download the Flash installer.
    Caution: Adobe's download page may include a checkbox for optional software (such as Google Chrome or McAfee Security Scan) that is selected by default. If you do not clear the checkbox before downloading, that software will be installed on your computer when you open the Flash installer.
  2. When the download has finished, close Firefox. Click the Firefox menu Fx89menuButton and select Exit.Click the Firefox menu at the top of the screen and select Quit Firefox.Click the Firefox menu Fx89menuButton and select Quit.
  3. Open the Flash installer file you downloaded and follow the instructions.
Note: If you are having problems with the Flash installer from Adobe's download page, you can use this Flash Player installer link to directly download the full installer.
  1. Go to Adobe's Flash Player download page and download the Flash installer.
  2. Click the Firefox menu Fx89menuButton and select Exit.Click the Firefox menu at the top of the screen and select Quit Firefox.Click the Firefox menu Fx89menuButton and select Quit.
  3. Open the file you downloaded (i.e. install_flash_player_osx_intel.dmg).
  4. In the Finder, open the Install Adobe Flash Player.app to run the installer, then follow the installer's instructions.
  1. Go to Adobe's Flash Player download page.
  2. When prompted, save the file (i.e. install_flash_player_"version"_linux."processor".tar.gz).
  3. Click the Firefox menu Fx89menuButton and select Exit.Click the Firefox menu at the top of the screen and select Quit Firefox.Click the Firefox menu Fx89menuButton and select Quit.
  4. Open a Terminal window (in Gnome, click on the Applications menu, select Accessories, and then select Terminal.)
  5. In the Terminal window, change to the directory where you saved the file you downloaded (e.g. cd /home/user/Downloads).
  6. Extract libflashplayer.so from the file you downloaded with the command tar -zxvf install_flash_player_"version"_linux."processor".tar.gz.
  7. As the super user, copy the extracted file, libflashplayer.so, to your Firefox installation directory's plugins sub-directory. For example, if Firefox is installed in /usr/lib/mozilla, use the command sudo cp libflashplayer.so /usr/lib/mozilla/plugins and then enter your super user password when prompted.

    0a85171f1802a3b0d9f46ffb997ddc02-1260326970-447-1.png

Solution 2: Downgrade to Flash 10.3

If updating Flash to the latest version didn't solve the problem, you can try downgrading to Flash 10.3.

Warning: Flash 10.3 doesn't auto-update so you won't be notified of new versions. Keeping Flash up to date is critical to keeping your computer safe.
Note: You may want to write down these steps or print them out as you will have to close Firefox during this process.

Step 1: Uninstall Flash

To uninstall Flash 11.3 on Mac OSX, you will need to use the uninstaller provided by Adobe.

  1. Download the uninstaller program from Adobe:
    Mac OS X 10.6 and above: uninstall_flash_player_osx.dmg (225 KB)
    Mac OS X 10.5: uninstall_flash_player_osx.dmg (435 KB)
  2. Click the Firefox menu Fx89menuButton and select Exit.Click the Firefox menu at the top of the screen and select Quit Firefox.Click the Firefox menu Fx89menuButton and select Quit.
  3. Double-click the .dmg file that you downloaded to open a folder with the uninstall Flash program.
  4. Double-click the uninstall Flash program and follow the prompts.
  5. When you are finished, start Firefox again and continue with the next section.

See the Adobe help article Uninstalling Flash Player on Mac OS for more details.

Step 2: Install Flash 10.3

The following instructions will show you how to download and install Flash 10.3.

  1. Download Flash 10.3 from the Adobe site - install_flash_player_10_osx.dmg (6.1 MB)
  2. Click the Firefox menu Fx89menuButton and select Exit.Click the Firefox menu at the top of the screen and select Quit Firefox.Click the Firefox menu Fx89menuButton and select Quit.
  3. Open your downloads folder and double-click the file named install_flash_player_10_osx.dmg to open a folder with the Flash 10.3 install program.
  4. Double-click the Flash 10.3 installer to start the installation.
  5. Follow the instructions in the installer. When the installation is complete you can open Firefox again.