How and where to use Flash in a web site

By: James Elliott Posted on: 2008-10-06 Downloads: 35 ** Print Article ** ** Copy Article ** Please Rate this Article 5 out of 54 out of 53 out of 52 out of 51 out of 5  Not yet Rated

Article Summary: Flash presentations can be very good for your web site if they are done and incorporated in a right way. But too much flash usage can make it hard to download a web site as the files are quite heavy in size. This article discusses ways to use Flash judiciously.

Flash has an amazing capacity for attracting your viewers and establishing your identity in the highly competitive online platform. Flash is perfect for designing banners and for putting an animated logo on your web page.

It is a great way of giving stress about what your web site is all about and what it offers in a very impressive way. The flash navigation bar is a widely used tool in Web 2.0 which makes a website look modern giving something new to your visitors.

But before looking for an affordable web design company in the UK, the USA or India for incorporating flash components into your site always remember that excessive use of flash can be quite harmful for your web sites’ popularity in the long run. Hence it is essential to know how much to use, when to use it and how to use flash successfully.

Flash can be beneficial for your website if used in a smart way.

Logos and headers:

Website logo in an animated or interactive way helps in grabbing the attention of the users. A spinning or moving logo makes a webpage looks more animated and responsive.

Buttons & navigation:

You can even ask the hired web design agency to make the navigation bar of your website in flash with buttons changing colors or making a sound when clicked. But try to use it in a smart way with spoiling the look of the web page. You can even go for a more advanced menu system in flash where when a button is clicked a sub-selection menu gets appear.


Content:

A site with static web pages can be built in flash. However, for dynamic web pages, it is not a good idea to design the whole site in flash. But if the entire site needs to be build in flash, then there must be an option for the users to view the site in HTML format.

However, if not incorporated properly flash can have plenty of disadvantages too that needs to be considered. Some of such disadvantages are:

File size:

As flash components are quite big in size, thus increasing the download time of your web site. Hence always think twice before including fancy graphics or sound to make your web site more appealing and attractive.

Compatibility:

Always remember that the web browsers used by visitors might not support flash player in their systems. The number might be small but in Web 2.0 environment you need to reach the last mile, so provide a link to allow users to download flash player.

Annoyance:

Too much usage of flash can be irritating for users viewing it as it might distract attention from the USP of your site, defeating the whole purpose of marketing.

It takes a lot of skills to implement flash components into a web site. And for a professional look it is always advisable to approach some creative web design agency based in technological advanced places such as the UK, the USA or India.

Article Source: http://www.upublish.info

About the Author:
James Elliott
James Elliott is a website designer who works with a reputed affordable Web and graphic design in London. Besides working as a senior designer in a Graphic design in London ,he dabbles into writing too. His articles on affordable web design have been published in various newspapers, magazines and web portals.