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JavaScript vs. Flash

by Dan C. Rinnert
4 replies
  • WEB DESIGN
    • |
I have a website I'm working on, and one section will have auto-changing photos.

I can do this in either Flash or JavaScript.

Can anyone think of any significant advantages/disadvantages in one over the other? I'm thinking that people that may have JavaScript turned off might also have plugins turned off, so they wouldn't see the Flash either. Or, some people may have too old a version of Flash, but would those people be greater in number than those who don't support (or have turned off) JavaScript?

Just looking for some idea of where to go here. From my end, the JavaScript is easier to maintain, so if there's little difference in viewability numbers, I would go JS. But, if more people would be able to view the Flash, I'd go with Flash.

TIA!
#flash #javascript
  • Profile picture of the author TristanPerry
    Personally I'd imagine that JavaScript would be supported more than Flash (in the average browser) nowadays. Hence I'd go for JS.

    Plus, depending on how you code it, the search engines (and screen readers, etc) may be able to detect the first image in your markup if you do it via JS.

    I'd also imagine it'd be easier to maintain - if you wanted to add an image, you'd simply need to add a new element to the JS array which contains a list of the images to show in rotation)
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    • Profile picture of the author Steve Diamond
      JavaScript is supported and enabled in about 95% of web sessions according to some stats I found recently. (I posted the source here a couple of weeks ago but can't locate the link right now.)

      Faced with this choice, I've opted for JavaScript every time. For the other 5% of visitors, you can use the <noscript> tag to supply a rudimentary alternative, such as a message about what they're missing or simply a single photo.

      Here's an example of a gallery I did for a client in WordPress with a JavaScript slideshow (based on mootools) - Residential Landscapes | Our Landscaper in Tucson.

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    • Profile picture of the author Dan C. Rinnert
      Originally Posted by TristanPerry View Post

      I'd also imagine it'd be easier to maintain - if you wanted to add an image, you'd simply need to add a new element to the JS array which contains a list of the images to show in rotation)
      It's even easier than that. It's PHP driven. I just need to upload (or delete) an image from the directory and it is automatically added or removed from the rotation.
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      • Profile picture of the author TristanPerry
        Originally Posted by Dan C. Rinnert View Post

        It's even easier than that. It's PHP driven. I just need to upload (or delete) an image from the directory and it is automatically added or removed from the rotation.
        Hehe, that's even better. Sounds a nice script
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