Of the many challenges facing developers of museum Web sites, usability and
engagement rank high. Many developers have adopted Macromedia Flash as a
useful tool that allows greater interactivity and multimedia compared to HTML
pages. This paper reports on a comparative evaluation of Flash and HTML versions
of a single site, focusing on user information-seeking goals, behavior, and
responses to each version of the site. We then compare the two versions based on
holding power, time on task, user satisfaction, and qualitative interviews.
Testing found notable differences between the two versions of the site, and
between youth and adult tester groups. The results provide valuable insights into
the relative strengths and weaknesses of Flash and HTML. While we cannot draw
broad conclusions from a single case study, these data can help us begin the
discussion around developing preliminary standards and basic frameworks for
suggesting rationales for choosing Flash or HTML in a number of typical situations
facing museum Web developers
