Resource-hogging and hideous-interface-encouraging kludge that it is, Flash did have its virtues. Namely, the ability to create dynamic animated websites that were universally viewable. We have other, “cleaner” tools for creating effects of that type these days, but one rarely comes across highly-dynamic websites these days, while such sites were common in the early 2000s.
One of our favorite Flash-based end results was the website for Beyond the Gates of Splendor, an independent documentary about the discovery and contact of a murderous Amazonian tribe in the 1950s. The site was vibrant, richly animated and complex in its construction. While we don’t lament the death of Flash, we do miss the days when this level of presentation depth was a larger part of the web design landscape.
Screen captures appear here for those on Flash-uncompliant browsers, but to view a mirror of the actual site (highly recommended), click here
