Have you ever been to a website that asks you to download Macromedia Flash? Have you ever seen a Flash button on a website that had a lot of animation and looked high-tech? If so, you may have been wondering what exactly Flash is. Flash is not a new technology, but it is still used in many different ways on the Internet today.
Flash can refer to the Macromedia Flash player and the program used to create Flash content. Some may wonder what exactly Flash does. Flash is a program used to create games and movies that can be put on the Internet. Interactive websites are also made with Flash. Most web browsers support Macromedia Flash. Flash supports vector, raster graphics, and ActionScript, which is a scripting language. Finally, Flash can stream audio and video at the same time.
Flash was first introduced in 1996. At that time, most browsers did not have Flash capabilities. However, the number of browsers that support Flash has increased dramatically in a very short time. Companies started paying web designers to design sites using Flash. Flash is often used with web pages to make them more interactive and even more professional in some cases. Some web pages have flash animated introductions. Advertisements have also been created using Flash. Flash files typically have a .swf file extension and can appear within a web page or can be played in Flash Player.
Many people prefer to use Flash over other technologies when creating websites. Some people use animated GIFs. GIF images are actually looped, so they don’t take up as much memory. However, many people prefer Flash because the user can control the animations. GIFs are limited to 256 colors, while Flash can have millions. Java applets are another medium for Flash-like animations. However, some find the programming language too difficult. Flash programming is very easy compared to other types of programming, so the most inexperienced people can make interesting animations with Flash.
Macromedia Flash has to be purchased. Once the commonly heard complaint is that the software is very expensive. However, there are programs other than Macromedia that can create banners and flash animations. They are usually less expensive and can be a good alternative for budget conscious webmasters looking for an easy and inexpensive way to create a Flash banner or animation.