PROBLEM:

Unloading content (ie external swfs) in AS3 is difficult, if not impossible.

SOLUTION:

My pal Martin Sieg at marblemedia threw me to an article by Grant Skinner - Failure to Unload: Flash Player 9’s Dirty Secret - where the author discusses a player bug that prevents content unloading. The problem impacts gallery-style projects, and sites that use embedded advertising.

Apparently there is no real solution, but Skinner is campaigning for a sandbox mode in Flash Player 10 where you can rope off your embedded content, and prevent it from getting its hooks into your main movie.

A noble effort, Grant. In other news, aid group World Vision announced today that rising food prices have created a shortfall that will prevent them from feeding millions of people.