Multimedia in web design

There are many types of multimedia in web design. Music, video, animation, graphics even text. There are a number of web technologies available but the main ones are Flash, Shockwave, Real Media and Java.

• Flash: One of the most widely used and effective multimedia tools on the market is Flash which, because it comes pre-installed on most browsers, has a very large user base and therefore accounts for a huge chunk of the market. A majority of web surfers already have the Flash plug-in installed on their browser so no download is necessary, providing another reason why this program is so popular. It is different to other multimedia design programs in that a whole website can be created using Flash instead of HTML, and the fact that is able to compress animations into extremely small files that look very impressive mean the end results and overall effects can be quite outstanding. The downside to developing an entire website using Flash technology is that it prevents effective optimisation, so for anyone hoping for high rankings in the search engines, the use of Flash in website development should be selective. [1]
  
• Shockwave: This was the first multimedia website design program on the market and was brought out by Macromedia who then went on to develop Flash. It is a technology adapted from the most popular program used in traditional multimedia - Macromedia Director. Initially only really used by advertising agencies to create multimedia presentations and promotional CD's, Macromedia took the Shockwave program and adapted it for the web so they could harness a much wider and more diverse user base. While Shockwave is an excellent tool, it does not, however, have the same kind of usability or impressive capabilies of Flash, simply because Shockwave is merely the modification of an existing program created for an entirely different purpose - resulting in larger file sizes and a more complex development environment - and not designed specifically for a wide range of uses on the web. [1]
  
• Real Media: This encompasses Real Video and Real Audio and allows videos, music and sound to be played on the web. What makes Real Media superior to many other similar products is its streaming technology, meaning that when a certain file is selected it will begin playing almost immediately, before the full file has downloaded. This makes Real Media a popular and useful tool for showing video presentations and is often more effective than Shockwave. [1]
  
• Java: This is the exception to the usual rules of multimedia and unique in that it is the only website design technology that doesn't require a plug-in. It is a full cross platform programming language and as most browsers support the Java language, it can be viewed by anyone. Shockwave files also have the option of allowing you to save them in Java format, thereby avoiding the need for the Shockwave plug-in. The downside of Java is that it is slow to load. [1]
  

Multimedia makes a website interactive as well as interesting. If you really want your website to stand out from the rest, use multimedia. However, "Depending on the message you want to convey using a Multimedia web Design depends on the web site design you need. The very last thing you want is to distract your viewer from the key message on your web page through Multimedia web Design. Multimedia Design flying in from everywhere on your web site is most definitely a distraction." [2]

Multimedia should be used with caution, as with animation. Multimedia can distract and annoy the user. Multimedia can also badly affect loading times. Plugins need to be downloaded, especially with Flash sites. Always offer a HTML version of a Flash website as they take a long time to load and this will almost definitely put off the average user.

Multimedia should always be used as a tool to communicate. It should be used sparingly to improve a website and should not be used just for the 'sake of it.' Multimedia done well can impress a user, yes content is the most important factor but humans are visual creatures, we appreciate beauty and if a web designer does it right, you can have wonderful content with a wonderful layout which is far more attractive than a website that contains only one of those factors.


References

1. Unknown. (). Multimedia website design. Available: http://www.knobblycrab.co.uk/multimedia.html. Last accessed 18 March 2010.
2. Unknown. (). Multimedia Web Design. Available: http://www.a1technology.com/multimedia-web-design.htm. Last accessed 18 March 2010.