HAVE YOU EVER left a web site while a file was still "loading", or left a site that forced you to sit through a flashy show on their home page?
Enough said.
Netiquette
Flash is more often overused than underused. There is no risk in under-using Flash. Overuse is likely to distract visitors from your message: "Who We Are - What We Do - Our Value Proposition".
Many web developers position Flash as a necessity for their client's web sites. Certainly, a "Shock and Awe" effect has its place in some marketing initiatives. Flash, and the animation it provides, has legitimate uses in education (eLearning). Flash is costly and, truth be said, not required for effective Internet marketing. Even though we have fun producing Flash, Cipriani Systems recommends judicious use of it. We often advise our clients to put resources into pertinent and valuable content rather than Flash.
MULTIMEDIA
Multimedia is a term referring to a multiple of mediums... for media. Examples of mediums include text, static images, animations, movies, audio and interaction (as in buttons that do things or forms that collect data). Flash, and other multimedia tools like QuickTime, incorporate the various facets of multimedia. Though multimedia goes well beyond Flash, we focus on Flash here as it is the most effective and widely used multimedia tool in use today.
FLASHThere are great cases to be made for Flash presentations, especially where viewing is elective, not forced. As in most things, Flash has its pros and cons...
Pros:
Flash presentations can be really cool. They're like mini-movies and can engulf a viewer with stunning visuals, movie clips, animation, effects and of course, sound. Flash presentations can be interactive and can be a compelling way to capture information from visitors.
Flash presentations are often associated with progressive companies.
Cons:
Flash production is expensive. A simple 30 second introduction can cost hundreds (or thousands) of dollars to produce.
Flash presentations take time to load - even across a high-speed Internet connection. We suggest keeping the clips short with file sizes under 200k wherever possible.
Flash requires a free browser plug-in to be installed. While it is estimated that over 95% of browsers have the plug-in installed, there are at times new versions that require updating before a Flash presentation can be viewed (we minimize this from happening on your web site by using well established versions in authoring your presentation). Note that QuickTime needs a plug-in as well, yet doesn't share nearly the same penetration as Flash.
Flash presentations aren't easily updated like other web page content - translation: high cost to change.
Search engines don't capture Flash content very well, if at all. Therefore, Flash presentations do not contribute to search engine indexing.