DHTML & Flash Design
Animation sequences and interactive features can greatly enhance the look, feel and functionality of your web site. By using cross browser Dynamic HTML or Flash we can create anything from intelligent interactive menu systems, animation sequences or full browser based client applications.
Flash
Macromedia Flash has become the industry standard for creating high visual impact animation sequences and interactive games. With over 5 years experience in Flash Development we can create anything from a simple banner advertisement to a feature rich web application.
The multimedia capabilities of Flash also make it the ideal format for corporate presentations, web based learning and tutorials.
Whilst the global deployment of Flash reaches 96% of the total web audience, we do not currently recommend creating the core content of your web site in Flash alone, the reasons for this are:-
- Currently the leading Search Engines such as Google do not index textual content of a Flash Movie.
- There are issues with Accessibility of Flash Content.
- If a user does not have the Flash plug-in, you need to provide additional content in standard HTML or they will see nothing.
It is often the case that Flash is used because it is a simple way for a designer to add 'value' to a page because they don't know how to implement other more suitable alternatives. We can create accessible cross browser visual effects using Javascript, CSS and standards compliant HTML code (see below).
Dynamic HTML (DHTML)
Dynamic HTML has been in use on the web for many years, the most common usage is for menu based navigation. Whilst animation has always been possible, the prevalence of cross browser issues and the rise of Flash saw its decline in usage.
The convergence of modern browsers on standards based compliant code, and support for Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) has however lead to a resurgence of DHTML usage. Our view is always that javascript based interactivity should complement and enhance the usability of web pages. The techniques that we employ ensure that our pages are always fully cross browser and any navigation menus are always fully accessible to Search Engine Robots and for Javascript disabled users.
We recently did a full accessible re-design for our client Cosmur Construction (London), where we removed all flash content and replaced it with identical effects created using pure code methods, this has decreased page load times, increased visibility in search engines, and enabled web accessibility to future proof the site against any regulatory changes in UK government policy.
DHTML vs Flash
We design using both DHTML and Flash, this way we can offer the unique capabilities of both technologies and implement the best solution for your needs. In our view Flash is best suited for Banner advertisements, advanced animations, interactive learning and gaming. DHTML is the tool of choice for developing navigation, simple page animations and effects.
