What is Shockwave Flash: Simply explained

Some content in the so-called shockwave format is made available on the Internet. We show you exactly what that is and how you can play Shockwave Flash content in our practical tip.

Shockwave Flash - that is behind it

• Shockwave is the file format .dcr from the software company Adobe.
• The .swf (Adobe Flash) format, with which fash content can be transferred, is more well known.
• Shockwave files can contain and play Flash content. The other way around is not possible.
• Shockwave files can contain highly compressed content such as MP3 files (audio), JPEG files (pictures) and other content.
• Thanks to the high degree of compression, the content on the network can be loaded and played quickly. 3D content can also be contained in Shockwave files.
• The Shockwave files are often used for browser games.

Shockwave Flash - how to open the files

• To open and play the Shockwave files, you need the free Adobe Shockwave Player.
• The "Adobe Shockwave Player" integrates directly into the popular browsers Google Chrome, Firefox and Internet Explorer.
• However, the smaller brother is sufficient for most content: Adobe Flash Player.

Shockwave Flash error

If the browser freezes, it may also be due to Shockwave Flash. The error message reads: "Shockwave Falsh may be busy or unresponsive. You can now stop or continue the plugin to see if the plugin continues to work.

• You can usually click "Continue" and wait a little. The browser continues to run after a while.
• If the error message keeps coming back, you should reset or update the browser.

Adobe's Flash formats are not always without problems. We have summarized three reasons for you, which is why you should possibly ban the Adobe Flash Player from the computer.

In the next practical tip, we will show you what you can do if Shockwave Flash stops working.