> Why do I need to implement an XMLSocket server, to open a Socket > to a service on my server that isn't an XMLSocket service? Why > can't it get the information it needs from an HTTP resource?
It would seem that the Flash designers/implementors thought that perhaps the ubiquity of the Flash plug-in for deployed web browsers is such that unfettered server access could promote a market for bot/drone developers and privacy eroding spyware/malware. I can't really see it myself. I guess they thought that Flash would not be as widely deployed if there was any sort of media noise related to security problems it might cause for the user. > It seems as though the intent is to prevent the Flash player from > communicating, using Sockets, to any standard HTTP server setup > (port 80 open, nothing else). Why? Any standard HTTP server.... or mail, or DNS, or other server on its standard (low) port. The only option seems to be to write your own generic TCP proxy, then host it on your own bandwidth... sigh. That certainly does cut down the usefulness of Flash as an application platform. In the past, I've deployed a Flex app on XULRunner and used the XPCOM socket apis. Very fragile, hard to debug, and seemingly pointless. I see it as a show-stopper (in consideration of Flash) for small projects that require decent access to external resources (sans hosting bandwidth)... I just have to use another language for those projects. -David.
