Flash playback jerky

Does anyone else notice slightly jerky playback with Flash Player (the latest version)? It's getting really annoying trying to watch Hulu, for example.

I've tried enabling and disabling hardware acceleration in the Flash Player settings, to no avail...

Is it me, or shouldn't Flash play quite smoothly on this machine?

15" Macbook Pro (Late 2008), Mac OS X (10.5.6), 2.4 GHz, 4 GB RAM

Posted on May 8, 2009 1:14 PM

Reply
45 replies

May 9, 2009 2:30 PM in response to Vibrator

Latest versions of Safari and Firefox. Seriously doubt it's the browsers, since Silverlight (Netflix streaming) runs fine. This seems to be a Flash issue -- happens both with Hulu and Youtube.

After doing a lot more research, it seems like this is an issue with Flash basically sucking with OS X. Found another discussion in the Leopard section about this issue.

I just don't understand how some people DON'T have any stuttering with their unibody MBP. They should all basically be the same when it comes to something like this. This is why I am curious as to whether those who have completely smooth Flash playback have some setting tweaked or something like that?...

May 9, 2009 3:53 PM in response to walker7366

I didn't mean the browser itself, I meant the Flash player plug-in. Sometimes the installation goes wacky or changes after an automatic update. You may want to try visiting the the Adobe website and reinstalling the Flash player. I use OS X all the time on an iMac and Mac Pro without issue. Flash content works great.

Another option is to try this browser, which is essentially a Firefox specifically for the Mac:

http://caminobrowser.org/

May 9, 2009 4:41 PM in response to Vibrator

Well, I actually did uninstall Flash 10, reinstalled Flash 9, noticed that it didn't help, then uninstalled Flash 9, and installed Flash 10 fresh. No change.

I'd try Camino for this, but it doesn't make sense that it would work in Camino and not Firefox. Also, the issue is how the heck you can have no problem, and so many others do. What's the difference in hardware/software that is significant here? It's an annoying mystery, all right....

May 9, 2009 6:03 PM in response to Vibrator

Hmm...there is no Add-ons > Plug ins. ??? Just Add-ons. When I type "about:plugins" in the address bar, it shows me all the plugins installed, and it shows the latest version of Flash Player is installed.

Yes, I see flash on the "about" adobe page; it works, but it also stutters, ever so slightly, when it's drawing out the words.

Yes, this happens on all Flash content, Hulu, Youtube, etc.

I appreciate you replying and trying to help me solve this. I seriously can't believe that you don't have any stuttering in Leopard! So strange...

May 9, 2009 7:40 PM in response to walker7366

Did Flash ever run properly on your Macbook Pro or has it always been stuttering?

Also, how exactly did you uninstall the Flash player before the re-install? Did you use the Adobe uninstaller application?

You should test Flash movie playback with Camino just for the heck of it. If it plays normally in Camino, we can narrow this down to a browser issue. If it's still stuttering in a fresh install of Camino, then there's something more sinister going on.

May 10, 2009 9:34 AM in response to Vibrator

Well, I could be wrong about this, but I feel that a few months ago there wasn't as much stuttering...but then again, I really can't remember. But, I think it's always been there to one degree or another.

I uninstalled with the Adobe uninstaller.

Okay, I downloaded Camino. The best way is to test Hulu, but no vids are loading on Hulu right now, so I'll have to get back to you on the Camino test.

Do you have one of the new unibody MBPs? And Flash works for you perfectly? No stuttering at all, right out of the box, no tweaks?

This thread has been closed by the system or the community team. You may vote for any posts you find helpful, or search the Community for additional answers.

Flash playback jerky

Welcome to Apple Support Community
A forum where Apple customers help each other with their products. Get started with your Apple Account.