Martha Raup

CAST 52a – Flash

January 13, 2007 – Week One Homework

Review of 3 Flash Sites

http://www2.warnerbros.com/happyfeet/, Accessed 1/12/07

What a joyous, fun, engaging website! This has ALL the advantages of a Flash website, and few of the disadvantages. It is interactive, visually stimulating, and it engages ALL the senses – well, I guess there’s no smell attached, but other than that, it’s terrific. The minute I saw it I laughed and loved it, and sent links to friends.

Ah, if only all the Flash sites were like this. Later on, I went to the links for all the sites on the Resources page, and found most of them kind of boring. I guess I just wasn’t interested, or they took too long, or the sound was jarring, or the lack of controls was disturbing. Anyway – they tried to use tools that are ideally designed for a video web trailer. That said, I did find a few…

http://www.nerinna.com/, Accessed 1/12/07

This site, found in the Forums for another Foothill class (COIN 65) shows what a student can achieve using a Flash format. Again, the WOW! factor is appropriate. The site is classy, smooth, beautiful, and alluring. It functions smoothly, the images are fast, and there is enough variety to keep the customers satisfied. As a showcase of abilities and an illustration of images and projects, this site is outstanding. It opens my eyes to the idea that maybe Flash has something of interest for me, and that I, a mere student, might be able to achieve some of the benefits of Flash without umpteen years of study, and a studio of assistants! So, again, a very successful use of Flash…

http://www.addictinggames.com/50states.html, Accessed 1/12/07

I found this one on the class resources links (at least I think that’s where I got it): a geographical game site that shows you the outline of a state and asks you to place it where you think it goes. The good part is this: after you make a mistake, it shows you where the state should actually go. SO – it’s a great learning tool! Again, this is an excellent use of Flash – for fun, and functionality.

I tried this site again on 1/15/07, and found it just as interesting. This time I completely finished the game, in 397 seconds, with a score of 82.35 (42 perfect out of 51 attempts – Alaska was “off the screen” and I had to scroll down and drop it twice before I made it).

This is a VERY simplistic use of Flash, but also a very effective one, for it does a job that ordinary HTML would not do, or only poorly.

Evaluation of 3 Flash Sites
Name & Location of Site	Happy Feet	Nerinna	Map of 50 States
Evaluation-Like/Dislike	Exhilarating! Fun and interesting and lots to do…	clean, quick, beautiful	fun, "addictive", easy
Splash screen only?	Splash leads to Flash site	entire site is flash	just the map is Flash
All content in Flash?	Flash site is all flash	yes	no
Use of color & graphics	Excellent!	very classy	not necessary - game is enough
Quality & integration of sound	Excellent!	no sound	no/minimal sound
Intuitive navigation	Yes	yes	Yes
Unexpected happenings?	Everything seemed new & fresh; every click of the mouse brought new delights	a classic kind of site, with no surprises, just what you need where you need it	yes - the right answers popped up when the puzzle pieces are placed wrongly
Expected nonhappenings?	No	No	No
Reasonable download speed	yes - visually alluring - keeps you interested while you wait	Yes	Yes
Mode of Access	DSL	DSL	DSL
Preload sequence?	Yes, but it's ok because enough is happening	yes	No
Repeated Animation?	The 2nd or 3rd time it's not so thrilling, but still satisfying	No	Not much happens - you control the speed of the game
Choice of HTML/Flash?	Yes	No	No
Flash plug-in detection?	I think so	I don't know	I don't know
Unfortunately for me, in the two days since I reviewed site #2, it has COMPLETELY changed! Now, there is no flash at all! And, the site is much more mundane. The photos are larger, but the "classyness" is gone. Besides, it prints up terribly - the entire right side gets left behind. Hope it gets "updated" again! January 15, 2007

Assignment