I used to really hate Flash.

I hated the stupid fancy animated intros to websites (still do). On repeat visits, the intro is annoying and a waste of time, unless the site is meant for a one-time-visit only in which case the site is pretty useless.

I was unimpressed with flash widgetry (especially when they employ a scrollbar without the scrollbar and only the arrows - the scrollbar lets the user know how much content there is and your position within it so you know how much you have left to read!)

On the whole many of the early implementations of Flash UI were just that - flashy, but not an improvement in any pragmatic sense to the HTML version of the site. In fact, the HTML version was quicker to load and less buggy therefore often the most utilitarian experience. I'm all about utilitarian.

My attitude towards flash changed recently with the new developments in flash technology. One great example of a flash product is the new Yahoo! Baseball GameChannel/StatTracker. Now there is something you cannot do in HTML (at least not as smoothly) and it's useful!

Now I'm sitting in front of my computer trying to learn how to use flash. Not for a UI project but for animation school. I need a reel of some sort to get into the fast-tracked mfa in animation program and they have said that a flash animation could suffice.

So, I'm back to hating Flash.