Over the last few years, a phenomenon has occurred in the way websites are designed and used, which has been given the label "Web 2.0". Part of this refers to the rise of social networking sites and user generated content as being one of the major drivers of internet use. However, the term also refers to the technology which has allowed this change to happen, the most significant of which is Adobe Flash. Flash was initially used on mainstream sites in around 2001 to make websites more attractive, by allowing the use of high resolution images as part of the actual page, rather than as a separate element. Images were integrated into the use of the web page by way of animation, which the user can interact with.

As a result, Flash has had a noticeable impact since around 2004 on the design of banner advertisements on the web (e.g. allowing the user to enter search information into the Flash advert, rather than being directed to the site first), and in the abundance of Flash based games. Flash gaming has been seen as an internet revolution in its own right, as scores of visitors who wouldn't normally play computer games have been attracted to their simple layout. Flash games are relatively easy to develop due to Flash's usability and have proven a useful way of attracting site traffic, as well as encouraging advert click through. However, arguably the biggest advantage of Flash that has driven the development of the web, is the ability to stream audio and video, and has been mainstream since around 2006. This functionality has been behind the success of sites like YouTube, where users no longer expect to be taken to a stand alone player. Instead, such sites take advantage of higher internet connections, and allow users to play video instantly, with links to other videos and content actually within the video.

Because Flash is now accepted as the standard in the industry for the use of animation, graphics and interactive content, Flash training has become an essential part of creating the right basic skills base for web design. As the use of Flash continues into the future, with more and more users gaining access to web speeds that can reliably deliver media intensive content, the use of a wider range of interactive tools is likely to become standard for any web page. Even now, many older websites can be seen to be incorporating Flash into their basic design for simple uses such as animated menus. As the browser market (and indeed, operating system market) has opened up slightly in the last few years, interoperability is key, and Flash is designed to be OS and browser independent - compare the situation to trying to view Windows Media Player videos on a Mac in the late 2000s. Clients in future are likely to demand more and more media intensive design, indeed, it is expected there will be an increasing degree of convergence between website and television in the long term. This means that many designers are getting to grips with Flash now, giving them a firm base on which to develop their skills for the future.

Related Courses: CIW Web Foundations, CIW Web Foundations and Design, Adobe Dreamweaver and Flash, Adobe Dreamweaver, CIW Web Design