Flash, not just a cleaning product

I've finished my Flash training. No, it is not domestic drudgery I refer to (and the popular UK cleaning product) but the powerful web technology that delivers animation and along with it a high level of visual impact. For web designers, however, how effective is a Flash website? Many of us have been turned off in the past by bandwidth-hungry Flash intros, to the extent that now that we have broadband, we still opt to skip the intro. Flash technology presents several problems that conflict with how we use the web. Apart from the long download time, there are accessibility and usability issues to worry about, not to mention search engine problems.

Personally I think the best websites seamlessly make use of Flash, in Flash animations or banners embedded in the (X)HTML document that are lightweight (and therefore do not consume excessive bandwidth), load quickly, and exist only to enhance the appearance of the site. To web designers I say save your Flash-only sites for portfolios, games and for sites intended to mimic the medium advertised. Tim Burton's Corpse Bride promotional site is a perfect example of the latter type: it gives us as close to a movie experience as possible in a web browser. Check it out by following these links:

• Corpse Bride XHTML intro


• Corpse Bride Flash site