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My Google-fu has turned out to be too low in this case, what is "projector" in the following context?

It seems to be a particular kind of software or file judging from http://www.adobe.com/support/flashplayer/downloads.html:

"Your rights to use any Flash player, projector, standalone player, plug-in, runtime or ActiveX control provided to you ..."

But what is it exactly?

Or is there a product called Flash Projector (or Adobe Projector)?

Peter Mortensen
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A "projector" in Flash is a .swf file fused together with a player as a single executable file.

Ignacio Vazquez-Abrams
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  • @Ignacio Vazquez-Abrams: Thanks. Do you have a reference? – Peter Mortensen Jul 28 '10 at 11:15
  • Other than my ancient Director and Flash knowledge? Nope. – Ignacio Vazquez-Abrams Jul 28 '10 at 11:18
  • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adobe_Flash says: "incorporated into a self-executing Projector movie (with the .exe extension in Microsoft Windows).". Why it is a proper noun ("Projector")? Is there a program called Projector that creates projector files? – Peter Mortensen Jul 28 '10 at 11:19
  • No, the option for generating a projector is built into the authoring tools. – Ignacio Vazquez-Abrams Jul 28 '10 at 11:21
  • Yes, I think you are right. It is two distinct things: *projector files* (only created by authoring tools) and then *Flash Projector* (can *not* create projector files) which can play Flash content. From http://animation.about.com/od/faqs/f/faq_projector.htm: "The Flash projector, however, is a standalone executable that allows you to run Flash content from your desktop without any plugins or additional players." – Peter Mortensen Jul 28 '10 at 11:34
  • On a second look at http://animation.about.com/od/faqs/f/faq_projector.htm it could also be interpreted as *Flash Projector* is in fact able to create projector files: "The Flash projector, however, is a standalone executable that allows you to run Flash content from your desktop without any plugins or additional players. ... When you export as a projector file, Flash saves your SWF as an executable program with a .exe (Windows) or .hqx (Macintosh) extension.". The question is whether "Flash saves your ..." should be "Flash Projector saves your ...". – Peter Mortensen Jul 28 '10 at 11:46
  • I [downloaded Flash Projector](http://www.adobe.com/support/flashplayer/downloads.html) just now to test. It does both. You can open swf files with it. And once you've opened a swf file, you can choose "Create Projector" to make it into an exe file. – Bavi_H Jul 30 '10 at 02:43