Do you really need Flash for that?
Flashback: When I started my web development experience back in 2000, it looked so cool to use Flash for anything. Great looking rounded and shiny buttons, polished frames and rolling images. Some components were even built into DreamWeaver to make our lives easier. Browsers weren't powerful enough to create such effects in JavaScript.
Today: I received an email from The Movie Network on my iPhone that asked me to check out their redesigned web site. Alright. Considering that I canceled my subscription from The Movie Network with Rogers and using zip.ca instead to rent movies, I don't care much but I liked to see how the new web site looks. I tapped on the link and BAM! There's a big Flash in the middle of the home page staring right at me. Well, iPhone doesn't support Flash and neither does any other mobile browser so far as far as I know. So all I see is a blank area with a message that asks me to install Flash player. Sure let's tap on that link!
I went home and checked the web site. What is in that middle part? Just a good looking image selector. Did they really need Flash for that? NO, THEY DIDN'T! The same thing could be done using a JavaScript library like jQuery with little coding. The same goes for MuchMusic.com and MTV.ca and it's a pity that such big companies in Entertainment industry never thought of consequences of their web development decisions for different browsers, platforms or even niche markets like mobile browsers which by the way is used the most by younger audience that they are targeting.
You should check out jQuery, a new kind of library for writing code in JavaScript. It changed the way I look at and think about writing code in JavaScript to the extent that I don't remember what I did before using jQuery! jQuery is now also the standard JavaScript library in ASP.NET MVC and Telerik ASP.NET Ajax UI controls.
So this goes for all web developers, please make your choices wisely when using Flash, Silverlight or whatnot. I believe the only things we cannot use JavaScript for are playing movie or music in browsers or running advanced games. Remind me if we need Flash for anything else. Even if a web site needs to have Flash in it, it's better to create two versions of web site, one in HTML and another in Flash rather than a broken one if you don't have Flash. Remember that having Flash for some is not a choice, it's a limit in browser or platform (such as iPhone).
An example of a good image rotator is Image Cycle Plugin for jQuery. This is just a sample of what is out there for creating web sites Flash free. If you don't believe in what browsers are recently capable of, I invite you to watch this long but great and mind blowing movie that demonstrates Google's upcoming new online communication and collaboration tool: Google Wave.