Things To Consider When Building Flash-Based Sites
Posted on 17. Aug, 2009 by Ferdinand Emy in Blog
Flash-based sites have been a craze since the past few years, and as Macro media compiles more and more great features into Flash, we may only predict there will be more and more flash sites around the Internet. Nevertheless, 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 employd Flash to create interactive features ranging from very lively feedback forms to attractive Flash-based games. This whole novel 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 sure CSS code displays diversely in Internet Explorer, Firefox and Opera. When you position your site elements in Flash, they'll Regularly appear as they're as long as the user has Flash Player installed.
Better expression through animation
In Flash, one can make employ of its animating features to convey a message in a much more streamlined and effective way. Flash is a lightweight option for animation because its vector based (and hence smaller file sizes) as opposed to actual "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 utilizing 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 won't be able to index your content. Consequently, 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 a good number of visitors might just lose their patience and click the Back button. The lengthier your Flash takes to load, the more you peril losing visitors.
The optimal way to go is to utilize Flash only when you absolutely need the interactivity and motion that comes with it. Otherwise, utilize a combination of Flash and HTML or employ pure text if your site is purely to present simple textual and graphical information.
