Flash Animation

Flash is a technology used to create animated web pages. It can be very successful on some sites, and annoying on others. It is important to identify which camp your site falls into before choosing to use Flash.

Sites which can benefit from Flash include:

• Artistic sites such as those for musical bands, movies and performance artists.
• Sites which offer entertainment to their visitors. For example, the official Harry Potter site.
• Sites providing online tutorials for software or web site use.

Sites which will probably not benefit from Flash include:

• Sites which are selling specific products or services.
• Sites which communicate information.

The reason that Flash can be annoying is that it controls the sequence of information the visitor receives and the rate at which they receive it. It goes counter to the interactive nature of the web. It can slow down the visitor's search for the information or product they are looking for.

In addition, the use of Flash can negatively impact the search engine rankings of your site.