Flash is a program used to generate time-based and hyper-linked media. You can embed the "SWF" file that flash produces in a web page, or run it as a standalone application on a local computer. Unlike the other technologies we have looked at so far (HTML, CSS, Javascript), Flash is a proprietary application--you can only create and edit flash documents in the flash application.
A browser plug-in is required to show Flash content. A great majority of browsers have this plug-in. The Javascript routine used to embed flash content checks to see if the browser has the plug-in, and offers a web address where it can be downloaded if the plug-in is not present.
The Flash development environment borrows working methods from traditional animation and video editing software. It uses the notion of frames and key frames placed along a time line. Actionscript, yet another scripting language, allows interactive control of the resultant movie clip. Flash "movies" therefore, can range from being completely linear-- the viewer starts at the beginning and goes to the end-- to being fully hypertextual--the viewer controls how they navigate the movie-- with every conceivable variation between these two end points.
Flash is used extensively by artists and writers exploring the collaborative space between the visual and textual: sometimes know as "New Media Poetics" or "Hypertext Literature."
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