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Should my college still be teaching Flash? (self.webdesign)

submitted ago* by ThePeoplesMagikarp

I'm in first year of a multimedia course and I was talking to some second years who are learning Flash, apparently we will also be being taught Flash in second year as opposed to HTML5, CSS3 and Javascript (which we barely touch). They have just moved on from Director this year and I talked to the lecturer who would be teaching us.

What I got was basically that it's not easy enough to teach yet and some other bullshit.

Are they wrong? I mean, is it really worth our time to learn a dying standard and not touch the new one when the purpose of the course is to produce competent web designers?

EDIT: Thank you all for the comments. It has assuaged me somewhat, I may still send a mail to the course administrator querying whether we will be learning the alternatives to Flash rather than complaining about why we are learning Flash.

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[–]eric22vhs 9 points10 points ago

I think flash is great for teaching UI design because students are less restricted by their current coding skills, allowing in depth critiques of more complex interaction with a website. That said, the school I graduated from still teaches it, however, they unfortunately teach it because they're convinced that flash and using WYSIWYG is real web design. Although, I'm convinced most of the professors know this is hack bs, and are just too lazy to teach something more complex like actually writing the code.

Flash is in a weird spot right now. Like k1n6 said, I wouldn't voluntarily ignore it, but in terms of web design, it's been looking more and more like people are getting away from flash. I've even had non-tech savvy friends tell me flash sucks when they barely have a clue what it is.

[–]ThePeoplesMagikarp[S] 0 points1 point ago

Thank you very much. I get that it's easier to walk people through designing more aspects of a website without having to teach them tons of code with no GUI. It's just a tad depressing that it seems like they're coddling the students rather than actually teaching them relevant to workplace skills. After talking with some other students I don't think that's the case here but it amounts to the same thing, though not as bad.

No one else in the class cares so I guess for the most part I shall just let it be, learn by myself and ace that class, presumably if the others had an interest in the field of web design and coding they would be aware and care but they don't so it doesn't affect them.

[–]freeogy 1 point2 points ago

Flash may not be very relevant on the web anymore, but, as somebody who does this for a living, I can tell you that being proficient in Flash still means something in bids. We offer a digital brochure service using Flash. Haven't had a client actually ask for one in a long time, but offering people options like that looks good.

[–]mr_tony_blair 4 points5 points ago

Well seeings Flash is still the rich-media tech that you can actually use in the real world then, yes, I would say it is appropriate to teach it. Until canvas/SVG are mature enough and have the browser support to produce the sort of thing you can do in Flash it will still be relevant.

[–]droy0 3 points4 points ago

I advocate going to school for web dev, I am very happy I did, but the sooner you realize you will learn more on your own then in a class the better. Get at the stuff you want to learn in some side projects, and incorporate it into school work if you can. Good luck!

[–]joshuajonah 2 points3 points ago

Most schooled web developers I've met couldn't code themselves out of a paper bag. If they taught you how to learn on your own then it would be useful. What sets a shitty dev from an excellent one is the drive to never stop learning. I don't think schooling has much of an effect on this, in fact it makes it a task and you learn to hate it. You're either a web dev type of person or you're not.

As for the original question, Flash should be mentioned, but not taught. If you want to take it upon yourself to learn it, then cool, otherwise they are setting students up for an expectation that there will always be jobs in this market.

[–]ThePeoplesMagikarp[S] 0 points1 point ago

Thank you! The course is a bit too general for my liking but I need the help with concepts of graphic design so it's fine for what I want. I have accepted and embraced that, already titting about on things which is proving quite enjoyable, I just worry about the standard being set for others less enthused.

I'm learning HTML5, CSS3, Javascript and Jquery, what would you suggest after?

[–]droy0 1 point2 points ago

Those 3 skills combined with 3 or 4 really solid portfolio pieces will hands down get you a job when you graduate. I wouldn't worry much about what to study in addition, anything you're interested in, but keep in mind it's much more valuable to be proficient/expert in 3 things than borderline/amateur in 4, 5, or 6 different things. Some CMS experience is a nice complement to html/css/js.

ps - I graduated in 2010 and have been working for over a year at a job I love, hope my 2 cents are helpful!

pps- the less enthused others, while a pain to work on group projects with, ultimately are competing for jobs with you, so look after #1 and then be a good samaritan.

[–]ThePeoplesMagikarp[S] 0 points1 point ago

Awesome, absolutely perfect dude. Thank you very very much for your advice, it's very reassuring. I think i'm the only one in the class interested in coding at all so they won't be much competition I would imagine.

What's your job description? Is there jobs that would place me just coding the websites, not necessarily also doing the graphics for it or have you found that you're expected to do both?

[–]droy0 1 point2 points ago

I'm an Online Producer for a tv network, which is just a fancy way of saying front end developer. I don't do any designing (in the traditional sense not including functionality, ux, etc...), we have a whole team that does that...the amount of design work you're responsible for usually depends on the size of the company. In a smaller place you're more likely to be doing some design work as well as coding. Some people like doing both because it changes it up, but I like not designing at work because it means I can keep at it as a hobby at home and not get tired of it.

[–]ThePeoplesMagikarp[S] 0 points1 point ago

Good plan, doing something at work sort of leaves it hard to treat it as a hobby as well. That's really cool, thank you again for all the advice, it is greatly appreciated.

[–]transplendent 3 points4 points ago

Here's the way I see it...if they are teaching Flash for Web Design or Web Development then that is not a good idea. If they are teaching Flash for the ability to fast prototype ideas, learn some basic object oriented fundamentals, and make lightweight Air Apps, then that sounds good to me. I work in Flash everyday, and it is far from dead, though it no longer has any place in my web browser.

[–]varkson 2 points3 points ago

I would advocate teaching Flash because if done properly, it teaches the students how to structure applications, UI Design, discipline and work flow. AS3 is quite similar to Javascript, and I feel it's better to learn AS3 first. It's much more structured than Javascript and it doesn't take long to learn good practice from tutorials and examples, as opposed to Javascript and particularly JQuery, where most tutorials are filled with low quality spaghetti code.

Pretty much what I'm getting at is, the AS3 community is a bit more mature than Javascript, so IMO you're better off learning in that community, than applying those skills to Javascript.

[–]spader-man 1 point2 points ago

The way I see it, Flash is a good start to multimedia career. AS3 and Javascript are very similar, so at least you'll get that skill.

Flash can be used to develop ios/android apps too, so there's that too.

[–]wils9745 0 points1 point ago

iOS? HTML5 is still the way to go for the platform for rich media and apps and more people are desperately needed. Lately it seems those with the most AS3 experience are the specialists, not the norm.

[–]k1n6 1 point2 points ago

It shouldn't be ignored, but shouldn't be the focus.

Flash skills can still you get plenty of jobs out there, but most folks are leaning towards html5 / css.

[–]ThePeoplesMagikarp[S] 0 points1 point ago*

Thank you, that's what I thought.

That was actually a part of his reasoning, that there are still plenty of jobs for it. My rebuttal was that that may not be the case in 4 years when the course is finished. I'd rather learn the much broader standard in class (more for others sake than my own as I can learn it in my own time if needs be).

[–]transplendent 1 point2 points ago

Here's the way I see it...if they are teaching Flash for Web Design or Web Development then that is not a good idea. If they are teaching Flash for the ability to fast prototype ideas, learn some basic object oriented fundamentals, and make lightweight Air Apps, then that sounds good to me. I work in Flash everyday, and it is far from dead, though it no longer has any place in my web browser.

[–]sfacets 1 point2 points ago

No. They could teach it as an optional subject, but the truth is, if you prioritize Flash over real web design, you will pay for it later on in your career. You should take this higher, talk to the head of your school, and ask why he's teaching you irrelevant material... it's your money, and you're just throwing it away if you only learn Flash as a web creating tool.

Also, you should take a hard look at your course - the term "multimedia" is archaic.

[–]ThePeoplesMagikarp[S] 0 points1 point ago

I don't really agree, but I value the extra opinion.

This course is a good definition of multimedia though as it's a very general course, it more looks to teach people a bit of everything and help them decide which path. I didn't pay for the course as I got a grant but I can't afford any other so it's not possible for me to change at the moment and as long as I get a degree in the field I want and learn the skills i'll need myself for a deeper understanding of my chosen path, this course still teaches me plenty of relevant stuff that will support my career choice. It's not the course, it's just this module that's the problem. Sadly the word just has a bad rep as a new media buzz word.

Thank you though, I certainly will be pushing myself to make up for the shortcomings in the course.

[–]alfieeee 0 points1 point ago

consider your self lucky, I had to work with director... The teacher knew nothing else and oh god it was hell >.>.

I think its just schooling can't keep up with technologies since a course is planned 12 - 24 months before the course starts so thats already behind before starting. I just took the basics from my multimedia classes and self taught my self in html, css, & jQuery.

[–]ThePeoplesMagikarp[S] 0 points1 point ago

You poor soul ;_; The current second years are being taught Director, we won't be though as far as I know.

Yeah, I imagine it's almost impossible to keep up which is really unfortunate, it would be a lot more work but I wish the course material was more dynamic so it wasn't outdated quite so bad.

Mhm, that seems to be the general consensus on what to do. Thank you!

[–]alfieeee 1 point2 points ago

dont forget to dig into some more programming as well, like even php or ruby on rails, I just finished messing around with php and moving into learning rails in the next few months, I graduated in 2010 to give you a idea of how far courses are behind.

In this industry you never stop learning, keeping your mind fresh and open to new technologies is a good way to stay ahead of the competition & stand out :)

[–]ThePeoplesMagikarp[S] 0 points1 point ago

I shall! I just have to get one under my belt then I imagine the rest shall be easier to tackle. I won't be graduating until 2015 so starting now I should be able to keep up with developments heh.

Duly noted :D

[–]jimothyjim 0 points1 point ago

I was taught Director.. was it me or is Director just a horrible program? :/ I've done the basics of Flash and Director and enjoyed Flash but despised Director. Maybe it's just because I did Flash first (a long time before) and got nostalgia bias.

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