Adobe Flash is popular among designers and creators working with animations and media. Source code is secured and interactivity is guaranteed. Through incorporating Flash, the customized website will be lightened up by mobile and interactive components. But believe it or not, there are a number of drawbacks to this amazing software. We would recommend that you do not use Flash for the site’s menu, nor should you use it for the whole website.
It Is Not Search-Engine-Friendly Enough: Only if developers include many steps in extra during configuration of the flash movies will Google and Yahoo search engine be able to read the Flash files. Other than that, there are restrictions in which links can the search engines crawl or index. The engines may not be able to pick up the text contained in the flash, lowering the probability for your potential customers to reach you. However, Google keeps on to suggest using Flash.
Immobility: In this society where we are highly mobilized (around 4.1 cellulars in 2008), it is disappointing when we cannot browse some information using mobile phones and iPhones just because we do not have Flash installed as Flash is not designed for mobile phones, or even iPhones as Apple has not yet got into cooperation with Adobe.
Lack of Consistent Cross-Platform Support: Some people may think adding HTML tags to a document is already very fussy, when they know about insertion of Flash, they certainly will go mad. You need JavaScript support in order to help assist some browsers in loading the web-pages.
Player of Flash Required: In order to view Flash animations, new computers need to be equipped with Flash Player which is downloaded from Adobe’s website. People will not get access to some potentially valuable content on your page if they choose not to install the Player.
Difficulty To Access: People who have vision impairments or who are using text reader without MAJOR modifications cannot access Adobe Flash. Without modifications, Flash sites cannot be read. Flash is not Section 508 Compliant which most government and higher education websites are equipped with.
Cost: As compared to HTML, Flash is extremely costly. In addition to the $700 you paid for the software, there are extra costs when you want to upgrade it to the most recent versions. Not to forget the maintenance fee to keep everything running smoothly. The high cost is taking a toll on web developers who only own a small business.
It is undeniable that Flash is useful in some aspects. However there are different kinds of restrictions of utilizing this technology, when you need to build websites or select a developer for your site.