sIFR (or Scalable Inman Flash Replacement) is an open source method that uses flash and JavaScript to display small amounts of non-web standard fonts on a webpage. It is typically used for titles or small blocks of text. Mike Davidson goes through how sIFR started and how it works and novemberborn, provides the latest version (sIFR 3) for download.

As a web designer, sIFR gives me that bit more freedom to create unique and better looking websites. It also is a more practical solution to using images as headings, especially when considering SEO (Search Engine Optimisation). The following are some websites that use sIFR:

But even with these pros, sIFR is not the perfect solution. Even Mike Davidson (developer of sIFR) has admitted that 'While sIFR gives us better typography today, it is clearly not the solution for the next 20 years. ' This could be due to some of the following:

 

1. It is not guaranteed the users will always see sFIR. Common factors preventing this would be if the user's browser did not have flash or if JavaScript was not enabled.
2. It slows down the loading of a webpage. This is not a huge issue, but the more sFIR on a page, the more load time the page requires.
3. Older versions of sIFR do not work in the newer versions of Firefox. sIFR needs to be updated for it to work.

The websites above show an appropriate use of sIFR, whereas with a site I am currently working on, I may have gotten a little carried away and am now having to scale back it's use, as the load times have resulted in the effect no longer adding value to the site.

As a web designer, even with sIFR's downfalls, I still see it as an asset to the design of a website. I am well aware that not everyone will agree with me, and I do believe that in the future there will undoubtedly be a better technology, but until then, sIFR is a good solution.