jQuery is Killing Flash!
We’re migrating and so is the rest of the development world.
So I bite my own tongue by saying this, but it’s true …
“jQuery is killing flash!”
jQuery is a lightweight JavaScript library that emphasizes interaction between JavaScript and HTML. It allows developers and artists to create animation and interactive features that previously “only” looked good in flash.
For example, a year ago topLingo handled ALL requests for eye candy such as homepage animations solely in Flash. But now, we’re about 80% converted to jQuery.
Why the transition?
Besides the obvious reason that we’re a “B2B” development firm who focuses less on eye candy and more on usability i.e. a group who would decline the opportunity to redevelop BritnaySpears.com, jQuery pros versus Flash are as follows:
Small size. Lightweight means fast web page loading times.
Free. Hundreds of previously produced animations, transitions, are easily accessible.
Easier to learn. Have you seen someone’s face when they launch Flash software for the first time? Eek!
Dull elements look better. Visually enhances non-exciting web elements. Boring forms are now slightly more exciting.
CMS synergy. In the example of a homepage flash animation, for the content manager to make updates it’s highly likely they’d have to produce a Flash .SWF file themselves or pay someone to do so. It’s much simpler to code the CMS for jQuery modifications where the content manager can simply change a line of text or upload an image … and BAM! The homepage animation changes! (Sidenote, and to be fair, this can also be done in flash but does take more development time/cost).
SEO, SEO, SEO. Text is text in a jQuery animation and the engines love it!
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