Should I use Flash code in my site?

There is no correct answer to this question. The conventional SEO answer has been "no." Any file type that cannot be easily spidered is forbidden, detractors say. Since spiders cannot read text embedded inside a flash video, Flash files shouldn't be used.

However, this conventional SEO wisdom is not without its opposition. Those in favor of using Flash in websites remind us that Flash files are usually smaller and load faster than other file formats. This can be beneficial in terms of SEO.

A maxim one of my SEO gurus taught me:

As a general rule of thumb, anything that helps to decrease load time of a web page or object element, is a good SEO practice.

Despite the inherent SEO limitations with Flash files, there are video optimization techniques that can make these files a bit more palatable to the search spiders' tongue.