13.1. Animation on the Web

Animation on the Web today takes many shapes and forms. We still see animated GIFs, Flash animation, Java applets and servlets, Shockwave, VRML, 3D metafiles, QuickTime VR files, video files (QuickTime, MPEG, AVI, etc.), and streaming video which can be live or recorded. Collectively, these comprise most multimedia on the Internet, notwithstanding music and images. Some of these types can be complicated to create, but others—especially with the right tools—are simple.

Not to gloss over most of these media forms, but the vast majority of them are not really related to the topic of this book. However, it is worth noting the role these media types have played in shaping the Web into what it is today. For instance, in 1997, I never imagined being able to watch live news feeds or play the sophisticated Shockwave games we have today.