INTRODUCTION xvii INTRODUCTION Advertising online has come to have a not-so-favorable reputation with Internet users. Combine that reputation with the often unin- formed opinion that Flash is for creating nothing more than excep- tionally annoying banners or Web site intros and preloaders that are so bloated in file size they need their own preloaders and you've got a recipe for disaster. On the other hand, when done correctly, Flash can be (and is) used to create some of the most eye-catching, awe-inspiring, mind-blowing, award-winning work on the Web. A major contributor to the unfortunate misconception of this combination is the fact that there IS work out there that fits directly within its own reputation. However, with a little forethought and planning, those same ads could be very quickly redesigned with the outcome of much better user reception and interaction. If the work that is causing the bad reputation for Flash advertising can be made better, then so can the reputation itself. Just as its predeces- sor, this book was written in hopes of doing exactly that. It was