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Macromedia Flash: Adding Some Magic
f you surf the Web with an up-to-date browser (and you should keep up with the new browsers; they are free after all) with plug-ins, then you're probably noticed more than a few sites sporting some very flashy animation and interactive forms. Unlike web animation (animated GIFs) predecessors, a program from Macromedia has redefined animation options. Here's a few reasons why:

• Unlike GIF animation, which uses bitmapped GIFs, Flash uses vector images. Vector images are much smaller in file size than bitmapped images because they are mathematical and all of the information needed to reproduce the images is based on PostScript technology. An animated GIF is usually much larger and will take a lot longer to download than a vector-based Flash animation. As you may know, a smaller image is the better image when it comes to the Web.

• As soon as a Flash file starts to download, the animation starts to play. This is much like the effect of streaming audio. An animated GIF must be fully downloaded before it can start to play. Most people would prefer not to wait.

• Video and audio can be integrated into the animations and forms.

• Flash can be used to create interactive forms that can sport security features, access databases and prices.

Flash does have a bit of a learning curve, not unlike Director, but the payoffs can be phenomenal on the Web, where file size and interactivity are king.

The downside to Flash animation and forms is that you need an up-to-date plug-in (a small software extension) in your browser to view them. The upside is that the plug-in is free and is readily available on the Macromedia site. (A survey showed that 88% of people browsing the Web have the plug-in already installed in their browsers.) The plug-in comes preinstalled with the leading Web browsers.

For the people who don't have the Flash plug-in, you can always post a GIF or JPEG and a bit of Java coding so that the browser will display a replacement image if the Flash plug-in is not present.

Flash is published by Macromedia, is available for both Windows and Macintosh operating systems. The Macromedia website offers tips, samples & tricks and can be found at www.macromedia.com.

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