Flash vs. Java Applet

The better of two evil?

[DrDoc]

I'm trying to decide whether to use Flash or a Java Applet... They would both perform the exact same tasks (displaying dynamic text).

Which method should I choose? Which one is more likely to work for most users? Which one would you prefer?

Pros and cons, ideas welcome :)

[tedster]

I would definitely go with Flash, no question. The JVM can take forever to load and Flash has great market penetration.

Just watch your code - if you only require Flash 4 features, don't accidentally copy/paste a version 6 requirement into your codebase attribute!

[jatar_k]

flash

speed, compatibility and truly the lesser of the two evils

[IeuanJ]

What kind of dynamic text are you talking about?

If it is a movie/ticker/scroller type thing then use flash.

If it is static (only changes on page load) then try using something like ASP/PHP.

If you want text to change only on clicks then it can also be done using DOMs.

But whatever you do, NEVER EEEEEEEEVER use Java Applets unless you absolutely have to.

[DrDoc]

Thanks for your input, everyone! That's what I had figured too. It's great to get quick and straight forward answers from other professionals in the business.

Flash it is :)

[R1chard]

Er, you can display almost all forms of dynamic text with CSS/Javascript!

[DrDoc]

Yes, I know I can ;)
I can use PHP/Perl for static dynamic (!) pages,
and CSS/JavaScript for dynamic static (!) pages...

But, in this case neither is the optimal solution.
For what I want (and need) to do, Flash is the only good answer.