Macromedia, Inc. today announced Macromedia Central, which extends Macromedia Flash beyond the browser and provides a streamlined way for users to interact with information while freeing them from relying on an Internet connection. Macromedia Flash developers will be able to immediately leverage their existing skills to create and sell applications for this new environment, which is expected to launch this summer. For more information on Macromedia Central, go to www.macromedia.com/go/central. News source: /.

Macromedia Central takes advantage of the Internet?s evolution into a worldwide platform that provides distributed data storage, distributed computing, and real-time communication. Central delivers an application metaphor to tackle this new world of information by providing instant delivery of applications, a try/buy infrastructure, support for occasionally connected computing, cooperative applications, and open data formats. Macromedia Central builds on the power of Macromedia Flash Player to build a better user experience by leveraging its ability to store data offline, consume web services, and share information and activity across applications. Central has additional functionality to enable applications to work consistently offline, offer a persistent desktop presence, and provide notifications. The environment enables companies to deliver critical information outside of the browser paradigm with a higher level of experience and functionality.