Usually I would jump to the defense of Flash at all costs. Mostly because I fell in love with Flash as soon as I opened the program and our love affair just keeps getting spicier every time I open it.

As I have grown older and wiser I realize that there really isn't a cut and dry solution to everything. It is possible to have a beautifully designed, content rich, user friendly flash site. And it is possible to have an amazing interactive experience utilizing HTML and other various "static" languages.
(I call them static, others might use another term)

There are three rules that I try to stick by at all times (even when it pains me to do so)

1.Flash intros, whether you are using a flash or HTML site - are not acceptable. These are a pain in the butt and avoiding them will only do you good. (the only exception I make albeit a small one, is for an animated loader screen in a flash site)

2. Good (or great!) Design is not dependant on what medium you use, if a customer or colleague automatically associates either Flash or HTML with good design, gently but firmly assure them that a flash site and an HTML site can look identical to the user and only the developer would know (except maybe if they don't have the plugin). Eye-catching design is dependant on you, the designer.

3. Never confuse Design with Development.
Design is how it looks, development is how it works.
One of the big mistakes is thinking that the term "works" means that nothing gives you an error and that none of the scripts are buggy.
I have always classified something that "works" as;
it effectively communicates to its audience, the content is easy to read and to find, navigation is intuitive and it loads relatively fast. I guess all the scripts working is good too!

I don't know if I agree with you muhrijn, HTML doesn' t alwasy focus on the delivery of information like you say it does. That is dependant on good development.
I have seen some pretty confusing HTML sites in my time.

All in all a good discussion....but I don't think that anyone will ever really truly resolve it. Its all a matter of opinion!

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