Archive for the 'Flash' Category

While reading The Cost of Cool I was reminded once again why I hate Flash for web design of informational sites.

Flash is great for entertainment if done right, but most people rarely go to a web site to be entertained. If you want to use Flash for menus, fine. But keep them simple and offer an alternative navagation system. But please don’t use Flash for content you want someone to read.

So far this morning I’ve ran into two sites that might have decent content but the Flash was too distracting for me to tell. (Re: Vector.ize and Superlooper. And take a look at The Double’s website that the article is about.

While some may see my designs as too “plain”, that’s fine by me. I intend for my audience to focus on the content, not the graphics and gizmos. My approach is to treat the content in the same manner you would text in a book or well designed magazine. I try my best to make the content easy to find and easy to read so people can find what they’re looking for and then be on their way. We’re all busy and should strive to make things easier and more timely for one another. And just because you can do something doesn’t mean you should. Yes, there are some things Flash does very well, but there’s a time and place to use every tool. If you’re wanting to get information out to your audience, Flash probably insn’t the best choice.

I could go on but I’ll leave that for another time. Down from my soapbox…