Flash vs ajax for web application

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Sorry but it's another flash vs ajax thread.

I’m working on a project where I want the admin panel to be as user friendly as possible. What I need from my application are features such as instant form validation, rich UI also I need it to be flexible and easy to update.

So it came down to using flash or ajax. With all the hype of ajax lately I've been so close to just jumping on the band wagon and diving into using an ajax framework or coding my own javascript functions. My application is already using some javascript so it would fit in nicely.

However I consider myself a better flash/action scripter than at javascript so thought I better try to compare the two.

I was quite stunned. Everything seemed to be in favour of Flash.

Flash is accessible on more than 90% of machines, using the flash player there are no browser compatibility issues. This is debatable but i know IE and mozilla read javascript code differently which does cause problems. Along with CSS issues etc.

I decided to compare some flash apps with ajax apps. Take a look at http://maps.google.com/ vs http://maps.yahoo.com/. I find yahoo's flash version much easier and richer.

Flash applications are really quick to build with only two programming languages to learn. Actionscript and php, which are fairly similar to each other. Take a look at ajax. You need to combine a lot of languages that are totally different from each other.

My application needs to be in the backend of a website so there is no need to be search engine friendly. Although flash pages can get indexed now. Example can be seen here.


So what should I use?

 

[monty]

Hi there,

I don't have that much experience building with Flash but I will give you my two cents anyway.

Let me start by pointing out that the reason why I never got into Flash is the fact it's proprietary and requires a plug-in to run.

in favor of Ajax: no plug-in required and it works FINE on all browers. If you use a decent JavaScript library (such as Dojo or Prototype), you don't have to worry about different implementation of the XMLHttpRequest object. The js library provides a very nice layer of abstraction and handles all the browser issues for you.

Next, you have got your load time, with Flash that is. In my experience comparible solutions implemented in Ajax load heeps faster then their equivalent in Flash.

And let's not forget about broader development tool support and a interface which is consistent with the rest of the browser.

Your final choice should depend on what kind of application you're aiming to build. I feel that for most applications these days, using Flash instead of Ajax compares to killing a mosquito with a baseball bad. Example, who would use Flash for live tables or responsive forms?

However, for a solution involving a lot of rich media I might consider using Flash.

[edit]
Forgot to mention that your argument of having to learn more then two languages doesn't hold. You only need JavaScript and some script on the back-end, since you're already familiar with PHP, that only leaves you with Javascript. If you know your way around with ActionScript, js shouldn't be any problem.
[/edit]

best of luck!

Mattijs