R.I.P. Flash

If you haven’t heard by now, Adobe will be ending support for Flash by the end of 2020. And if you are at a larger organization, with an LMS full of courses you haven’t touched in years, this could be problematic.

Before you panic, here are some suggestions:

1. Find out which courses are using Flash.

Chances are anything older than 2017 may have some Flash files, and if you’re unsure you can check the published SCORM file for .flv or .swf files by looking in the zip folder.

2. Determine which Flash-based courses learners are currently accessing.

You can do this by looking at your LMS reports. You’ll want to know if people are still accessing the course, how often, and who the audience is. If the courses aren’t being used, chances are you can retire them.

3. Verify your conversion/update list with course owners.

Before you try to do an as-is conversion from Flash to HTML5, it’s best to find the course sponsor or owner. Build in your content updates at the same time as the conversion.

The conversion may be as simple as republishing or as complicated as a complete rebuild depending on the complexity of the course and the availability of the original source files. If the course is wildly out of date, it might make sense to make a new course.

Don’t panic! Use your learning analytics to determine what should be converted, and verify your list with course owners before you proceed.