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The field of web design is a vast area, including disciplines such as graphic design, information architecture, interface design, advertising, marketing and programming. Recently there has been a hype within these areas, created by a new technology called Macromedia Flash 1, a multimedia authoring tool based on memory-efficient vector graphics rendering that has been released in version 5 a few days ago.

Flash has not only created a new industry of skilled artists and web developers, but seems to have revolutionised the world of e-business and corporate websites. In a time when online marketing strategies have evolved from banner advertising to creating compelling user experiences on corporate sites, Flash has become THE “tool of the trade”.

The following essay will describe the Flash phenomenon in more detail, analyse Flash’s aesthetics and discuss Macromedia’s business strategies for its success. Developments towards a more corporate and controllable internet will be contrasted with an analysis of the internet’s underlying economic structures, followed by a discourse of possible outcomes and expectations for online experiences in the future.

The Role of Flash Today Disney, Volkswagen, Nike, The New York Times, Cisco, and IBM are just a sampling of the thousands of sites that use Flash to create an enhanced user experience on their corporate websites. From being an insider’s tool used by some web designers for experimentation in their online design portfolios, Flash grew to become an influential tool as well as created the state-of-the-art aesthetic style during the past two years, and has successfully entered the corporate business world online. An established community of so-called “Flash artists” pushes the boundaries of the software and received early support and reputation through Macromedia’s developer web site 2 , which showcases experiments and profiles case studies.

This way a whole new industry branch was set up within new media workplaces. Experienced Flash-artists are amongst the most looked-after talents in the new media industry, both by recruitment- and design agencies. Looking back at the history of the internet from the viewpoint of a designer, working for the web has always been a struggle. Limitations in file sizes, typographic choice and specifications, interface standards, etc. have left little space for innovation and expression for designers. With the advent of Flash and its widespread as a Plug-in, designers are finally able to literally “do everything” - put animations and full-screen transitions on a website without the cost of heavy image sizes. Anti-aliased typography, as it has been used in CD-rom design before, is finally available for the web.

Simple animation techniques like rotations, blending transitions and zooms were the first imminent features of Flash websites and have since been used to an excessive amount. Smooth edges, zoomable type, fixed-size presentations opening in new browser windows, and accompanying ambient sounds being further Flash features that spring to mind.
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