Who can View Flash?

Macromedia writes: "In September 2000, NPD Research, the parent company of MediaMetrix, conducted a study to determine what percentage of Web browsers have Macromedia Flash preinstalled. The results show that 96.4% of Web users can experience Macromedia Flash content without having to download and install a player."

Macromedia Shockwave Player is shipped with Windows 95, 98, MacOS, Internet Explorer CD, America Online, and Netscape Navigator.

If you do not have the Shockwave Player installed you can download it for free from Macromedia's site (200 K).

Who can Create Flash Movies?

To create your own Flash movies you need to buy a Flash program.

The latest version from Macromedia is Flash Basic 8 (or Flash Professional 8).

If you do not have a Flash program, you can download a 30 days free trial version of Flash from Macromedia.

Where to Start?

After you have installed Flash, you should go through the lessons that are included in the program. Start Macromedia Flash, click Help in the menu and choose Lessons. These lessons will teach you the basics of Flash.