Google's dropping H.264 from Chrome a step backward for openness

Re:Google's dropping H.264 from Chrome a step backward for o... by Apreche on Thursday January 13, 2011 @07:01AM (#2099550)

Every browser should just support every codec in the universe. I don't care if it's illegal or patent infringing. Do it anyway. VLC, Mplayer, and ffmpeg are all open source, all work, and are all still around. This goes for image formats and audio codecs as well.

Let's just make forks of Chromium and Firefox that include built-in support for as many codecs and file formats as possible. Someone wants to use a psd in an img tag? Sure! Someone wants to use a flac in an audio tag? Go for it! Want to use a bink video in a video tag? Be my guest.

Even if it's illegal, who cares. You can do it the same way that Windows Media Player and Ubuntu handle it. Every time the user comes across a video they can't play, a popup asks them to click a few times, and then voila! They have the codec.

Web developer are always going to have a crappy time of it. We will never ever be able to simply make one site one way and have it work nicely on all devices with web browsers. Give up on that dream. But the dream of making things good for the users, is achievable. Aim for that first.

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Re:Google's dropping H.264 from Chrome a step backward for o... by bobds on Thursday January 13, 2011 @07:16AM (#2099567)

I understand where you are coming from with this but let's consider the security implications of embedding just anything in the browser.

A prime example is embedding custom fonts with CSS. The code that handles them wasn't built with arbitrary fonts downloaded from untrusted sources in mind (I think the guy that wrote the code said that's insecure and a bad idea).

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