I have discovered two examples of effective multimedia design, both developed with Flash. I chose these two examples because they demonstrate a contrast in how a design can be both dramatic or simple, yet still be effective by covering basic design principals.
Design #1: Waterlife
Waterlife is a multimedia interface created by the National Film Board of Canada (https://www.nfb.ca/). The site raises awareness about the degrading ecology and pollution of the Great Lakes of North America. This site is extremely effective at engaging the user emotionally. The design is stunning. It's clean, balanced and thematically coherent and rich in content. It uses a dynamic combination of audio, video, graphics, animation and links to engage the user and really suck them in to an interactive experience, not just a presentation. The navigation takes a little getting used to, but after some experimentation the user can navigate easily a few ways. It has linear navigation using the timeline at the bottom and there is drop-down tab menu on the top left. Finally, the user can jump around using the main interface screen which consists of photos compiled in a mosaic-type structure on which the user can click to go to a certain part of the site.
Here is an example:
Overall, Waterlife effectively follows the basic design principals of an effective design. It is profoundly dramatic and engages the user's emotions and provides an immersive, interactive and informative user experience.
Design #2: Titanic Interactive
Titanic Interactive is a multimedia Flash presentation created by the History Channel (http://www.history.com/) that allows the user to explore the Titantic from the time of it's construction until after its disastrous sinking. This is an example of a Flash design that is simple, effective and educational. It is easy to navigate because the design uses balance, repetition and consistency. the user can scroll over the three main navigation areas, "1909," "1912," and "1913." These areas are animated provide short description of what information they contain. Once inside of of these areas there are photo galleries, scrolling written content, animations, interactive maps, etc... contained inside a linear navigation menu. There are also sound effects when an area is clicked. This helps the user feel more interactive with the design. My favorite part of the design is the "Ship Cutaway" and "Tour" inside the "1909" menu. Although this design is smaller in screen area it is very educational and informative due to it's clear organization, easy navigability, consistency and quality content.
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