HTML5 for e-Learning – Drawbacks

Before the wide usage of HTML5, it was necessary to download plug-ins, such as Adobe Flash, to watch videos online. With this new version of HTML you can now write videos in to the code and worry less about potential viruses or worry about needing the correct plug-in. Furthermore, devices will be able to play content that they weren’t able to before since Adobe Flash plug-in is required in most videos and mobile devices rarely support it.
The proliferation of mobile devices with their HTML5 browsers requires that we shift to it. The lack of Adobe Flash support for the majority of mobile devices has enhanced the need for this change. Many major e-Learning authoring tool companies are already working on delivering HTML5 output, as this new language appears to be one of the best approaches for e-Learning content on mobile devices.
Despite this major advantage, there are still a couple of factors that you should keep in mind when opting for HTML5, browser compatibility and visual limitation.
Browser Compatibility
As much as they want to make it compatible with all browsers, it cannot be. The intent of HTML5 initiative is to be compatible with older browsers; this has been achieved so far but not completely. Some legacy IE versions, which are still widely used by many corporations, still do not support HTML5 that’s why may e-Learning developers opt for HTML4 instead.
Limited Graphics
Flash is better suited for delivering highly interactive animations and quality graphics. Due to the lack of efficient tools, developers using HTML5 would need hours to code animations using CSS or Javascript while the same task can be accomplished in Flash in a couple of minutes.
HTML5 can be said to be just in its infancy, it is still a work in progress and will no finalized for another couple of years. Because of this, HTML5 has some important limitations that keep e-Learning professionals from fully utilizing it. Hopefully, its shortcomings will be dealt with so it can be a fully viable tool in the e-Learning sector.