Even so, Flash based sites have been disputed to be bloated and unnecessary. Where exactly do we draw the line? Here's a simple breakdown.
The Good:
Interactivity
Flash's Actionscript opens up a vast field of possibilities. Programmers and designers have used Flash to produce interactive features ranging from feedback forms to attractive Flash-based games. This whole new level of interactivity will always leave visitors returning for more.
A standardised site
With Flash, you don't have to worry about cross-browser compatibility. No more hassles over how a certain CSS code displays differently in Internet Explorer, Firefox and Opera. When you position your site elements in Flash, they'll always appear as they are as long as the user has Flash Player installed.
Better expression through animation
In Flash, you can make use of its animating features to communicate a message in a much more efficient and effective way. Flash is a lightweight choice for animation because it's vector based (therefore smaller file sizes) as opposed to real "movie files" that are raster based and much larger in size.
The Bad:
The Flash player
People have to download the Flash player beforehand before they can view Flash movies, so by using Flash your visitor range will decrease substantially as not everyone will be willing to download the Flash player just to view your site. You'll also have to submit extra work in redirecting the user to the Flash download page if he or she doesn't have the player installed.
Site optimisation
If your content is presented in Flash, most search engines won't be able to index your content. Therefore, your ranking will be low in search engines and there will be less traffic heading to your site.
The Ugly:
Loading Time
Visitors will have to wait longer than normal to load Flash content compared to regular text and images, and some visitors may just lose their patience and click the Back button. The longer your Flash takes to load, the more you risk losing visitors.
Recommendation
The best way to use Flash is only when you absolutely need the interactivity and motion that comes with it. Otherwise, use a mixture of Flash and HTML or use pure text if your site is purely to present simple textual and graphical information.
