Foxtel Flash Fail

Foxtel Flash Fail

Another website which doesn’t want your business if you don’t have flash installed – Foxtel.  As far as I can tell, if you click on (eg) their get foxtel link you don’t get foxtel, you get a generic page with a blank box asking you to install flash (above a large list of menu items, all? of which appear to head back (by redirection) to exactly the same page).  Similarly with other links.

Tch, Losers  (I googled them then clicked their ad word by way of retribution.)

If anybody knows, what would the cheapest package which includes nickoldeon cost per month? (I want to compare it against the cost of buying the dvd box sets which they rerun continually)

update: According to Telstra the basic package includes nick and cartoon network at $42/month (ie about 2 x season boxed set of cartoons dvds per month).

“If you don’t have Flash(tm) we don’t want your business”

“If you don’t have Flash(tm) we don’t want your business”

Seems to about sum it up: http://www.ixlappliances.com.au/

Why anyone would turn away potential customers based on whether or not they have flash player installed is beyond me.

Native Instruments are even worse – flash player isn’t enough, you need the most recent version (ffs -ie using my eeePC with Flash didn’t help).  Note to NI: If you want me to spend $1000-$2000 on some of your software html wouldn’t be too much to ask in return.  Ironically, the only thing which doesn’t require flash is their online shop. [I sent them an email, they invited me to upgrade if I couldn’t see their site properly – sigh]

Astoundingly Stupid Harris Technology Catalogue

Astoundingly Stupid Harris Technology Catalogue

I wanted to have a look at prices for flash drives at the moment, so I had a look at the Harris Technology website.  In big letters it announces that the “May 2009 Catalogue Out Now – Click here to view and download”.  Great I think, I’ll click and have a look.  So I click.  And it tells me that since I don’t have flash player I can’t read the catalogue.  Imagine refusing to give a person a price in a store because they weren’t wearing a (choose your item of clothing) scarf.  Exactly what do they have to gain from keeping me ignorant?

It is all the more annoying because, having a look at the html source, the flash player is just a front end to a pdf which they’re happy for people to download.  The relevant line is

document.write(‘<p><a href=”javascript:OpenWindow(\’HTOC\’,\” + ‘/pdf/promotion/catalogue/20090504_may_catalogue/20090504_may_catalogue.pdf’ + ‘\’, 1000, 600, \’no\’);”>View online now (PDF)</a> <img src=”/images/icons/ico_external_link.gif” alt=”This link will open a pop-up window” align=”absmiddle” /></p>’);

A more extensive extract:

<script language="JavaScript" type="text/javascript">

			<!--

			var hasRightVersion = DetectFlashVer(requiredMajorVersion, requiredMinorVersion, requiredRevision);

			if(hasRightVersion) {  // if we've detected an acceptable version

					var sURL = '/flash/catalogue/20090504/default.asp?nCartQty=0&nCartTotal=0.00';		

					var nPage = GetQueryVariable('Page');
					if (nPage != undefined) {
						sURL = sURL + '&nPage=' + nPage;
					} else {
						sURL = sURL + '&nPage=1';
					}

					//var oWindow = window.open(sURL, 'HTOC', 'width=1000,height=600,resizable=no,scrollbars=no');

					// window name is referenced from Flash Catalogue
					//window.name = "Parent";

					//if (oWindow == null || typeof(oWindow) == "undefined") {

					//	document.write('<p style="font-size: 11px; color: #FF0000; margin: 10px 0px; clear: both;"><img src="/images/icons/ico_important.gif" alt="Important" align="absmiddle" style="padding-right: 2px;">Your browser is currently configured to block pop-up windows. Click the link below to launch our online catalogue.</p>');
					//}

					document.write('<p><a href="javascript:OpenWindow(\'HTOC\',\'' + sURL + '\', 1000, 600, \'no\');">View online now (Flash)</a> <img src="/images/icons/ico_external_link.gif" alt="This link will open a pop-up window" align="absmiddle" /></p>');

					document.write('<p><a href="javascript:OpenWindow(\'HTOC\',\'' + '/pdf/promotion/catalogue/20090504_may_catalogue/20090504_may_catalogue.pdf' + '\', 1000, 600, \'no\');">View online now (PDF)</a> <img src="/images/icons/ico_external_link.gif" alt="This link will open a pop-up window" align="absmiddle" /></p>');

				} else {  // flash is too old or we can't detect the plugin
					var alternateContent = '<p style="font-size: 11px; margin: 10px 0px; clear: both;"><img src="/images/icons/ico_important.gif" alt="Important" align="absmiddle" style="padding-right: 2px;"> Our Online Catalogue requires Flash Player 8 to be viewed correctly. <a href="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflash/" target="_blank">Click here</a> to download the latest Flash Player.</p>';

					document.write(alternateContent);  // insert non-flash content
				}

		// -->

	</script>

Twerps

The URL, for anyone who wants to download the catalogue is:

http://www.harristechnology.com.au/pdf/promotion/catalogue/20090504_may_catalogue/20090504_may_catalogue.pdf

Although why I should help them is beyond me.