Many usability analysts shudder at the mere mention of flash because it has several endemic usability flaws; Flash pages don’t respond to a browser’s forward and back buttons, the contents of Flash files aren’t visible to Search engines, 10% of users don’t have the browser plug-in required to view Flash etc. But if used carefully and tastefully, Flash can both enliven a site and be usable.
Tips
The simplest way to integrate flash without affecting usability adversely is to restrict Flash to animated modules within a traditional site. It is much easier to create animation in Flash than HTML or Javascript, and the animation itself tends to be much more fluid. Sites frequently use Flash animation for educational tools, step-by-step demonstrations, games, photo slide shows, or videos.
Designing an entire site in Flash presents a greater challenge. The following list of suggestions should help you overcome some of the usability drawbacks of Flash.
- Keep file size to a minimum. Flash designers tend to get carried away with the platform’s bells and whistles, creating sites with egregious load times.
- Make controls intuitive. Since users will not be able to navigate using traditional hyperlinked text or the forward and back buttons, choose controls that at least resemble web navigation.
- Consider distributing the flash file among several URLs so that if a user hits the browser’s forward or back buttons, they will arrive at a meaningful page within the site.
- Provide an alternate HTML site for the 10% of users who cannot view Flash files.
- Use tags and meta-data to make the site searchable.
- Keep in mind that it is more difficult to update a Flash movie than HTML.