Spooky Flash Update Popup

[MourningStar]

I post this because I am clueless.

I have configured my Wireless Network Connection (internet) to be 'Disconnected' on startup (so the icon displays with a small yellow star overlay). When I am ready to use the internet I must clik the systray icon, clik my device and then clik 'Connect'.

I power on and power down my machine each day. NOT every day, but randomly the Adobe Flash Update popup appears (image attached).

How the phuk is this possible when there is no internet connection?!?!?!?

-thx

p.s. this has been happening since forever, but did not expect it since my recent disable of internet on startup.

 

[iko22]

Hi MourningStar,

The company must be using a distributed algorithm instead of a real-time algorithm to synchronise the update flag on client machine, with GUI pop-up pending low priority.

 

[Alejandro85]

Checking for updates absolutely needs an internet connection, there is no way around it.

But! The program may remember that there were updates previously and annoy you to install them until you do, there is no need for internet connection again for that.

For example, lets suppose you have version 2 installed, and when you got internet (for just a minute) it checked and saw version 3 was available, but you didn't install it yet. Afterwards, even without internet, the program may remember (in some setting somewhere stored in your machine, hence no internet required) that version 3 exist, so it uses that local cache to show popups. It may not know if a version 4 is there yet, but the "need" for update does exist and programs may use a connection for a short moment to annoy you for life if they really want.

Needless to say that any attemp to actually update will of course fail until you really get a stable connection back

Of course, I don't know what Flash does exactly, so I can't really claim that it does this exactly, but theoretically, that's a way for making it possible.

 

[iko22]

I am inclined to agree with Alejandro85, on all points.

If I may add, Adobe is not unique in this approach. LibreOffice also do something similar. With LibreOffice, I get a small circular icon, just below the close window button, and a callout caption saying: "LibreOffice Update available", although my computer is offline. How can this be? - unless there is some synchronisation independent of connection.

The difference being, LibreOffice does not notify me via the Taskbar - I only receive reminder, should I Open the application. That is when the callout message appears.

If I am offline when the callout appears, and I click on the callout, then a message appears that the updater cannot download automatically. So it knows that there is no Internet connection available.

This is the LibreOffice Updater callout:

Like I say, this callout appears even if the machine is offline.

 

[MourningStar]

Thnx to the 2 of you. Speculation is ok, but does anyone know for real?