Flash-based sites have been a craze
since the past few years, and as Macromedia compiles more and more
great features into Flash, we can only predict there will be more
and more flash sites around the Internet. However, Flash based sites
have been disputed to be bloated and unnecessary. Where exactly do
we draw the line? Here's a simple breakdown.
The good:
Interactivity
Flash's Action script opens up a vast
field of possibilities. Programmers and designers have used Flash to
create interactive features ranging from very lively feedback forms
to attractive Flash-based games. This whole new level of
interactivity will always leave visitors coming back for more.
A standardized site
With Flash, you do not have to worry about cross-browser
compatibility. No more woes over how a certain css code displays
differently in Internet Explorer, Firefox and Opera. When you
position your site elements in Flash, they will always appear as
they are as long as the user has Flash Player installed.
Better expression through animation
In Flash, one can make use of its animating features to convey a
message in a much more efficient and effective way. Flash is a
lightweight option for animation because it is vector based (and
hence smaller file sizes) as opposed to real "movie files" that are
raster based and hence much larger in size.
The bad and the ugly:
The Flash player
People have to download the Flash player in advance before they can
view Flash movies, so by using Flash your visitor range will
decrease considerably because not everyone will be willing to
download the Flash player just to view your site. You'll also have
to put in additional work in redirecting the user to the Flash
download page if he or she doesn't have the player installed.
Site optimization
If your content was presented in Flash, most search engines wouldn't
be able to index your content. Hence, you will not be able to rank
well in search engines and there will be less traffic heading to
your site.
Loading time
Users have to wait longer than usual to load Flash content compared
to regular text and images, and some visitors might just lose their
patience and click the Back button. The longer your Flash takes to
load, the more you risk losing visitors.
The best way to go is to use Flash only when you absolutely need the
interactivity and motion that comes with it. Otherwise, use a
mixture of Flash and HTML or use pure text if your site is purely to
present simple textual and graphical information.
