I’ve been on and off this site for a long time. The opening page, the introduction to this site, is simple. When I first came across this site, it took me a while to finish roaming the entire site. However, it wasn’t the complexity that made me stay on that long. It was the simple, but attractive features used in the site. The flash used is amazing. From that, I can tell that it’s definitely a professional website, with professional designers behind working on it here and there. Another thing is the perfect timing in every flash content. Whether it’s the blinking or the transitions, the flash content is well organized. Also, the color used is also eye-catching as well, which is the whole purpose of having this site on the internet in the first place. Great marketing strategy. The colors, the tints used, the color transformation used on every category, are all interesting. I play tennis, so this site is interesting to me to begin with, but even if you don’t play tennis, you’ll be amazed. There’s more, take a look.

An interesting example of Flash content is Snapple’s website, which is located here.  The website’s opening instantly amazes me. It has an elaborate 3-dimensional map of all the locations that inspired Snapple’s products. The map has Africa, China, England, India, and New York City on it. If you click on each place, you will be able to zoom into it and see some of the famous landmarks in that area. Then you will be given the opportunity to click on specific Snapple drinks that originated from those places. Another pro of this website are the warm colors and the upbeat music.

Although the content is overall very impressive, I do not like the zooming in of the places too much. It makes me dizzy because the zooming is so fast that it makes some parts blurry. I also get bored of clicking on the Snapple products because there are so many of them that look similar to each other.

The website conveys the message that Snapple is “made from the best stuff on earth.” The scenery is astounding, as well as the music. It gives the sense that Snapple is not an ordinary drink because of its exotic origins.  Though I do not agree that Snapple is the best drink, the Flash animation does a splendid job of promoting Snapple.

Homestarrunner.com

                    The website I chose to write about has been one of my favorite websites for many years,homestarruner.com. Although simplistic and would probably be perceived as silly by most, this website provides many, many hours of entertainment which was produced with the use of Adobe Flash.

                    The things that make this website so interesting to me are that the builders made it very interactive and with the intention to keep the user involved even when they are actually watching one of their short ‘toons, for example the main page in of it self can be changed to many different themes with cute little animations and jokes to go along with that theme and then in turn directs the visitor to which ever area they wish to go to . There are also many hidden links included so that while you watch some of the cartoons you can click on them to reveal even more, mostly related jokes. The colours used are quite eye catching and would appeal to both adults as well as children and also adults who still act like children.

                    In my opinion there is nothing in this website ( that I have personally seen ) that was boring, all the animation is well done ( even though it is simple ) and even when the visiter isn’t actually doing anything there are things that happen as they move the mouse around which I believe helps keeps the viewer interested and entertained and the jokes are quite funny (in my opinion ). All the typography that is used is large enough for most to see except the lower most menu, however, this is remedied by the fact that one can always re-route to the main menu.  

                  In conclusion, as I mentioned before, this website looks simplistic however the idea that the builders made it so user friendly and interactive as well as asthetically appealling while also achieving ACTUALLY being funny makes this website a winner to me!

http://www.toastconcept.com

I have noticed recently that artists have started using the flash interface as a layout for their online portfolios. Or maybe I am just a little behind the times and that artists have been using this medium for some time now. Anyways, I got a chance to visit this site called the Toast Concept. It is a website showcasing a portfolio of designers that include design and motion graphics,  product, and toy designs. It has a basic website interface which works because it doesn’t seem so complicated to maneuver around. It has a great opening animation of a toaster which attunes to the websites name. While loading there is also an animation of a toaster flipping bread to keep the user interested while the page loads. The animation isn’t flat but rather eye catching with the 3d rendering. The artwork showcased is nothing short of amazing and well put together. The only thing I felt didn’t work was how small the font was.

Overall I was pleased with the website. The colors were interesting, being to bright and flashy. The simple interface is easy on the eyes and mind. The content is enjoyable and inspiring. I think the concept of a toaster is brilliant.

“Good Things Should Never End”

Company: Orange

Orange is a phone company with a pay as you go plan that comes with unlimited text messaging. They are promoting their unlimited text messaging with this never ending website.

This never ending website is full of fun little interactive items. You can make things grow out of pots, chat with a furry beast, watch dancing monkeys, make ice cream, draw, learn German, learn Spanish, play word games, etc. You can just click around on objects and see what happens. Turn the volume up and you can also hear some interesting sounds. This website contains many interactive parts. You will find new things as you scroll down the page and the page will never end. However, at a certain point, you will start to notice things becoming repetitive.

Everything catches my attention (the colors, the sounds, and interesting shapes). I become curious and start clicking on every object I see, hoping something cool will happen. The only thing that starts to bore me is when I start seeing the same things I saw a couple of minutes ago. I wish they would have made more interactive items.

How long did you scroll for before you gave up trying to find out if the website really never ends?

This link is a website that contains a flash game created for “Got Milk?“ This site is listed by eBizMBA as number 1 in their list of the top 10 flash website designs for 2009. I thought the website was designed very well. It was fun and interactive and the images presented were also nicely crafted. I really liked how they made all the components of the game in a 3D style and I think the sound effects throughout the whole game made it even more interesting to play with. I also liked how the dice could be dragged and rolled with a mouse. However some parts of the game was a little confusing and I didn’t understand what should be done to move on to the next part of the game. There seemed to be a sense of mysteriousness when playing because you can’t see what’s ahead and what other little games you’ll come across until you actually go through the entire game. For example, the enter code and asking a question part at the end to me was a surprise. I didn’t expect that to happen at the end.

Overall I thought this website was very well done and it was an interesting experience to go through. The idea of using a flash game to help promote milk and to increase milk consumption was very creative. In addiion, the interactiveness of flash in this case made it more enjoyable to think about milk and made me realize that getting a cup of milk is very easy in real life but can instead become a challenge in a game.