Good article on Flash / Open Source / etc....

[Bradley Miller]

At 10:19 AM 3/19/2003 -0600, you wrote:
>Last I checked, Macromedia didn't get around to adding accessibility until 
>version 6 and even now it's even remotely polished. Font scalling is still 
>not available. I cannot enter any sort of high contrast mode and screen 
>readers have a very difficult time figuring out in which order the text in 
>the interface is supposed to be read.
>
>>
>>>Internationalization?
>>
>>Not a problem.

>Support for unicode? Does it allow the visitor to specify their language 
>and deliver seperate language content inside the same interface design?

I'm not 100% sure on the unicode, but delivering different languages is 
just a function of how you program things.  You could call the site content 
from a database dependent on what language they select . . . no different 
than you could do with a HTML/dynamic site.

>>>Designer lock-out?
>>
>>WHAT??  Lock out from what?  Those that can't buy Flash and write a program?
>
>Part of the strength of the internet was you could visit someone's site 
>and go: "COOL! How'd they do that?" -- Then look at the source code. IIRC, 
>Flash allows you to prohibit others from accessing your source. Is that 
>still true? Maybe I'm wrong.

There are plenty of sites to read about cool things -- but if the cool 
things are "flashy and graphics" then why would you care . . . since that 
seems to be one of the major arguments about bells and whistles.

>>>  Lowest common denomenator?
>>
>>Exactly how many programs do you know of that support multiple web 
>>browswers -- across multiple platforms?  One study I read put the Flash 
>>player on 94% of all web browsers . . . pretty good numbers to me.
>
>The beauty of SVG is that, because it's XML, it can be broken down in to 
>two categories: content and design. If I'm blind or browsing at a console 
>or just sick of flashy graphics, I can strip all design elements from 
>content (via XSLT) and _just_ get what I /need/. Flash doesn't allow me to 
>do that. This is the beauty of CSS with XHTML.
>
>Now, I will say this: Vector based graphics are the interfaces of the 
>future. Device independant design makes Flash _very_ appealing. I can 
>design an interface once and no matter what resolution my visitor has, it 
>will scale accordingly. If Flash has only one benefit, this is it. SVG can 
>accomplish this as well, though. It just doesn't have the market 
>penetration yet. Also, a good HTML designer can write device independant 
>pages. I'd rather just stick with the proven solution: HTML. (Until SVG 
>rolls around and then I WILL SO be ALL OVER that!) :)

I would say you'll be looking at a similar "Beta vs. VHS" 
debate.   Technologically Beta was better than VHS, but does anyone really 
care?   How many people HONESTLY give a hoot about making their screen look 
"their" way?   That is the edge case design -- something that doesn't make 
you money.  Nail the 80% and workaround the 20% (or 95% and 5% more 
appropriately).

-- Bradley Miller