Contour watchtv.cox.com - Flash Replacement
Since last night, I'd been able to load https://watchtv.cox.com using Chrome without having to select "Allow" for Flash. However, a short while ago tonight, the site required Flash be allowed again....
Forum Discussion
I deleted cox.com and cox.net cookies today to solve a Call History issue. The first time I accessed https://watchtv.cox.com after that, I had to re-authenticate with my Cox credentials, which I expected, but I also had to allow Flash. I haven't had to allow Flash since then when I've accessed the website though. And, the Flash setting is still "Block (default)" while I watch live TV on the website.
Theory 1: Flash access is now being controlled by a cookie and the Flash site setting is only used to refresh the "Allow" on a periodic basis, possibly every 24 hours. The "Block (default)" Flash setting value displayed would be a Chrome glitch.
Theory 2: Cox developers are testing the Flash replacement (in the production environment) and simply failed to remove the Flash "Allow" requirement from the website load process, even though it's no longer actually used. This is supported by the fact that the Flash site setting ignores "Block" and continues to allow normal access. I'm leaning toward this theory.
The Contour website continues to require Flash to be allowed periodically. It still seems to be about once per day.
For testing, I changed the computer's date and time to the next day. An attempt to access the website never got past "Now connecting to your entertainment experience". But, the watchtv.cox.com cookie showed the future date as the "Last modified" date and time. When I reset the computer's date and time to the curent time and accessed the website, it prompted me to re-allow Flash again. After Flash was allowed, the TV grid loaded successfully. The website requires the local date and time to closely sync with the server.
