Re: [Fsfe-uk] Flash problems are bad programmers - Macromedia

[Lee Braiden]

Alex Hudson wrote:

> PS. they may be right about programmers - most Flash isn't generated by
> programmers. I guess they're actually thinking more about the Generator
> market (i.e., Flash as a sophisticated UI for data applications). Dunno;
> didn't think they were really making huge headway with that...
>  
It's this "UI" part about Flash that gets me.  HTML is supposed to 
incorporate multimedia, not be replaced by it.  Vector animation is for 
things like advertisements and diagrams.  Much as I hate to say that 
advertisements are a valid use of HTML, it's true.  There's no problem 
with it at all, when it's just an object on a page, which can be 
backwards compatible with the addition of a simple description tag.

But once a whole interface is done in flash, and it becomes a scripted 
application, no longer a page-based HTML model, then it's no longer a 
website at all.  All you have is something entirely different running 
over the HTTP protocol, which is a massive step backward in most ways.

I remember pointing this out back in 2001, in a web design company I 
worked for as a developer.  One of the designers there told me that 
Macromedia themselves where actually telling Flash people precisely 
that: that they were abusing Flash, and should only use it in limited 
ways.  I'm not sure how official that line was.  I suspect it was most 
insincere, official or not.  But I think if it _was_ said in or before 
2001, then that might be a helpful thing to bear in mind when trying to 
stop Flash use going too far.  Even if Macromedia didn't say it, I'm 
sure most HTML experts would happily back us up on it.  Tim Berners-Lee 
springs to mind ;)