COM 205 MULTIMEDIA APPLICATIONS - Northern India Engineering College

Chapter 1

Introduction to Multimedia

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

What is Multimedia?

• Multimedia is any combination of

– text,

– graphic art,

– sound,

– animation,

– video,

delivered by computer or electronic

means


What is Multimedia?

•Text

•Graphics

•Sound

•Animation

•Video


Multimedia takes may forms

• Greeting Cards

• Conferencing

• Movies

• Photo albums

• Image catalogs


Creating and Delivering Multimedia

Graphic User Interface - GUI


Producing a Multimedia Project

• Requires

a) creative skill

b) technology tools

c) organizational and business talent

d) knowledge of ownership and

copyright rules


Where Do You Begin?

• Study each element of Multimedia

• Read trade periodicals

• Visit web sites


Where Do You Begin?

• Learn tools to create or edit that

element

• Learn to use texts and fonts

effectively

• Learn how to make and edit colorful

images

• Learn how to animate images into

movies

• Learn how to record and edit sound


Types of Multimedia

• Interactive multimedia

• Hyperactive multimedia

• Linear multimedia


Interactive Multimedia

• Allows the user to control

– what and

– when the elements are delivered


Hypermedia

• Interactive Multimedia which

provides a structure of linked

elements through which the user

can navigate


Multimedia Project

• Software vehicle, messages and

content presented on a computer or

TV screen

– Multimedia title - if sold or shipped to

users with or without instructions

– Web page if on the www and composed

of HTML or DHTML ( Dynamic Hypertext

Markup Language)


Multimedia Project

• Linear - users watch from beginning

to end

• Non-linear and interactive - users are

given navigational control and can

wonder through the content


Authoring Tools

• Multimedia elements are “sewn”

together using tools like Authorware

– to provide facilities for creating and

editing text and images

– have extensions to drive videodisc

players and other peripherals

– playback the sound and movie elements

created with other tools


Requirements

• Multimedia requires:

– large amounts of digital memory and

network bandwidth;

– GUI (“gooey”) - a graphical user interface

– CD-Rom or DVD technology for storage

In the future these may be replaced by

“connected” fiber, and radio/cellular

technology

– DVD – Digital Versatile Disc


Delivering and Using Multimedia

• Multimedia demands bandwidth

• CD-ROMs hold 650-700 MB (80

minutes of full screen video)

• DVD-ROMs hold 4.7-18 GB

• Multimedia can be delivered on line


Why Multimedia?

• Multimedia enhances learning,

memory and retention

– audio stimulation - 20% retention rate

– audio/visual - up to 30% retention rate

– interactive multimedia - up to 60%

retention rate



• Online uses include:

– Books and Magazines

– Movies

– News and Weather

– Education

– Maps

– Entertainment


Appropriate uses

• Business

• Schools

• Homes

• Public Places

– 1995 Al Gore - White House Challenge

to connect every classroom, clinic,

hospital to Information Superhighway

by 2000



• Virtual Reality


New Technologies

• VR- Virtual Reality

– Goggles, helmets, gloves, etc. place

users “inside” a life-like experience

– View changes as user moves forward,

left/right, etc.

– Composed of thousands of geometric

to be realistic

– Will require new standards (VRML) for

transmitting virtual worlds on the web


Results

• Multimedia will cause radical

changes in teaching and learning

• “Teachers will become mentors and

guides along a learning path that is

student centered…” (See pp. 12-13)

• Education will shift from the

“SAGE on the STAGE to the

GUIDE at the SIDE” of each student.


Chapter 2

Introduction to Making

Multimedia


Stages of a Project

• Planning and costing-begin with an

idea

– plan text, graphics,music, video

– develop graphic layout (“look and feel”)

– develop a structure and navigation

system

– estimate time needed to complete

– prepare budget ( if necessary)

– work up a prototype


Stages of a Project

• Plan Develop an idea

Identify objectives

Identify skills and resources

Develop a prototype

Estimate time and cost


Stages of a Project

• Designing and Producing - perform

each planned task

• Testing - test to be sure project

meets objectives and needs of client

• Delivering- package and deliver to

end user

– create CD-ROM, labels, etc.

– prepare user manual


What You Need

• Hardware

• Software

• Creativity

• Organization


Hardware

• The Macintosh as well as Windows PC

offers a combination of affordability, and

software and hardware availability.

• The Macintosh platform is better suited for

multimedia production than the Windows

platform.

• The hardware platforms provided by Apple

are better equipped to manage both,

sound and video editing.


Software

• Multimedia software provides

specific instructions to the hardware

for performing tasks.

• Software tools are divided into

production tools and authoring tools.


Creativity and

Organizational Skills

• In a multimedia project, being

creative implies knowledge of

hardware and software.

• It is essential to develop an

organized outline detailing the skills,

time, budget, tools and resources

needed for the project.


Developing Multimedia

• To make multimedia, you need

hardware, software, good ideas.

• To make GOOD multimedia you also

need talent and skill, organization,

time, money and the help of others.

• Teamwork is essential


Summary

• The basic stages of a multimedia project

are planning and costing, design and

production, testing and delivery.

• Knowledge of hardware and software, as

well as creativity and organizational skills

are essential for creating a high-quality

multimedia project.


Sample Project

• You will create a multimedia

demonstration of your company‟s new

product, the Staplechase 3000 (a really

nice stapler). The demonstration will

highlight three key features of the product.

End users will view the demonstration on

the company‟s Web site. On paper,

develop a basic plan for the project. The plan should include:


Project:

• The plan should include:

A flow chart or timeline showing the

basic flow of the project

A list of hardware and software

resources that will be required

A list of skills that will be required

A time estimate for project completion


Chapter 3

Multimedia Skills and Training


Skills and Background

• 1. What are some of the skills needed

to develop good multimedia ?

• 2. What is the responsibility of each

member of the software team?

• 3. What background/training/skill is

required of each?


Multimedia Development Team

• Project Manager

• Multimedia Designer

• Interface Designer

• Writers

• Video Specialist

• Audio Specialist

• Multimedia Programmer

• Multimedia Producer for the Web


Project Manager

• Responsibilities

– Overall project

– Day to day operations and budget

– Put together good core team

– Maintain the “big picture” – the vision

• Background/skills

– Understand hardware & software

– Communication skills

– Good “people” skills- a good listener


Multimedia Designer

• Responsibilties:

– Overall content and structure

– Prepares blueprint for project: content, media,

interaction

– Sometime overlaps with Interface Designer

– Coordinates team

• A) Graphic Designers

• B) Instructional Designers

• C) Information Designers


Multimedia Designer

• Background/skills – Ability to analyze content structurally and

match it with effective presentation

– Expert with different media types

– Ability to look at information from different points of view

– Interpersonal skills

– Understand resources- both technological and human

– Solid organizational skills, attention to detail


Multimedia Designer

• A) Graphic designer – deals with

visuals • Illustrators ( Freehand)

• Animators ( Flash)

• Image processing specialists ( Photoshop)


Multimedia Designer

• Instructional Designers – deal with

subject matter

– Clear and proper presentation

– Knowledge of content


Multimedia Designer

• Information Designers – deal with

contents and navigation

– Structure content

– Determine user feedback and pathways


Interface Designer

• Responsibilities:

– Provides access to media and control to people

who use it

– Makes interface “transparent” to users (

effective use of windows, icons, backgrounds,

controls, etc.)

• Background/skills

– Familiar with different multimedia interfaces

– Knows authoring system, user testing

– Basic drawing skills


Writers


– Create character, action, point of view, interactivity

– Write proposals, script actor‟s narration, write text screen( content writers)

• Background/skills:

– Background in marketing

– Ability to work within tight deadlines


Video Specialist


– Coordinate videographers, sound technicians, lighting designers, set designers, script supervisors, production assistants, actors


– Skilled with QuickTime or MS Video for editing

– Macromedia Premiere for special effects


Audio Specialist


– Locating and selecting suitable music and

talent

– Scheduling recording sessions

– Digitizing, editing recorded materials


– Skilled in studio recording

– Fluency in MIDI

– Experience with sequencing software


Multimedia Programmer • Responsibilities:

– Integrates multimedia elements into “seamless” whole using programming language or authoring system (Authorware)

– Coding displays to controlling devices


– Multimedia languages (C++, Java, Lingo)

– HTML, VRML, XML

– Ability to quickly learn new systems


Multimedia Producer for the Web


– Coordinates set of pages for the web


– Knowledge of HTML, CGI scripts,

Photoshop, etc.


Good Multimedia

• Many multimedia systems are too passive- users click and watch

• For fully interactive systems, designers need clear picture of what happens as user interacts

• Adaptive systems modify themselves based on user input ( intelligent tutors)


Chapter 4

Text


Overview

• Importance of text in a multimedia presentation.

• Understanding fonts and typefaces.

• Using text elements in a multimedia presentation.

• Computers and text.

• Font editing and design tools.

• Multimedia and hypertext.


• Text came into use about 6,000

years ago

Text in History


Revolution in Communication

• Using symbols for communication

relatively recent - 6,0000 years old

• 15th Century- Johann Gutenburg

printing press revolutionized

information

• Recently - another revolution - the

World Wide Web and its native

language - HTML


The Power of Meaning and the

Importance of Text

Titles

Menus

Navigational aids

•Words must be chosen carefully

•Words appear in:

•Test the words you plan to use

•Keep a thesaurus handy


Using Text in Multimedia Type terminology

•Typeface

Arial Courier

Times

•Fonts

•Points

•Styles

•Leading

•Kerning


Fonts and Faces

• A typeface is a family of graphic characters that includes many type sizes and styles (such as Times, Arial, Helvetica)

• A font is a collection of characters of a single size and style belonging to a typeface family (such as bold, italic)

• Font sizes are in points 1 point = 1/72 inch (measured from top to bottom of descenders in capital letter)

• X-height is the height of the lower case letter x


Character Metrics


Factors affecting legibility of text

– Size.

– Background and foreground color.

– Style.

– Leading (pronounced “ledding”).


Styles

• Examples of styles are boldface and italic

Italic

Bold

Underlined


Leading and Kerning

Computers can

• adjust the line spacing (called

leading)

leading

and

• the space between pairs of letters,

called kerning


Fonts and Faces

• PostScript, TrueType and Master

fonts can be altered

• Bitmapped fonts cannot be altered

• The computer draws or rasterizes a

letter on the screen with pixels or

dots.


Cases

• When type was set by hand, the type

for a font was kept in a drawer or case,

• The upper drawer held the capital

letters, and the lower drawer held the

smaller letters

• From this we get the terms uppercase

and lowercase


Case Sensitive

• Password, and paths in a URL are case

sensitive ( that is “home” is different from

“HOME”)

• It is easier to read words that have a

mixture of upper and lower case letters

rather than all upper case

• Computer terms use an intercap for

readability as in PageMaker, or LastName


Serif and Sans Serif

• Type either has a little decoration at

the end of the letter - called a serif

• or it doesn‟t - sans serif ( “sans”

from the French meaning without)

• Examples ( Times - serif “T” )

( Arial - sans serif “T”)

• Use what is appropriate to convey

your message


Using Text In Multimedia

• WYSIWYG - What you see is what you get!

• Aim for a balance between too much text and too little

• Make web pages no more than

1 to 2 screenfuls of text

• Bring the user to the destination with as few actions as possible


Text Font Design Tips • Use the most legible font available

• Use as few different faces as possible ( too

many called “ransom-note” typography

• Use bold and italics to convey meaning

• Adjust line spacing ( leading)

• Adjust the spacing between letters in

headings to remove gaps

• Use colors and background to make type

stand out

• Use meaningful word for links and menus


More Text Font Design Tips

• Anti-aliasing or dithering blends colors

along the edges of letters to create gentle

effect.

• Experiment with shadows

• Surround headlines with white space

• Try attention grabbing effect with color,

word art or large drop letters at the

beginning of text


Menus For Navigation

• A Multimedia project or web site

should include:

– content or information

– navigation tools such as menus, mouse

clicks, key presses or touch screen

– some indication or map of where the

user is in the presentation


Buttons for Interaction

• Buttons are objects that make things

happen when they are clicked

• Use common button shapes and

sizes

• Label them clearly

• BE SURE THEY WORK!


Fields for Reading

• Reading from a computer screen is

slower than from a book

• People blink 3-5 times/minute, using

a computer and 20-25 times/minute

reading a book

• This reduced eye movement causes

fatigue, dryness

• Try to present only a few paragraphs

per page


Portrait vs. Landscape

• Monitor use wider-than-tall aspect

ratios called landscape

• Most books use taller-than- wide

orientation, called portrait

• Don‟t try to shrink a full page onto a

monitor

portrait

landscape


HTML Documents • Standard document format on the web is

called Hypertext Markup Language ( HTML)

• Originally designed for text not multimedia - now being redesigned as Dynamic HTML ( DHTML), which uses CSS (Cascading Style sheets) and permits defining text choices.

• Specify typefaces, sizes colors and properties by “marking up” the text with tags (such as <B>, </B>)


HTML Documents

• The Font tag is used to specify the font to be displayed (if present)

• <font face = “Verdana, Arial, Times”>

• If those fonts are not on the system, the default is used ( see p. 55-57 for common fonts)


Symbols and Icons

• Symbols act like “visual words” to convey meaning, (called icons)

– MAC - trash can

– Windows - hourglass

• Icons and sound are more easily remembered than words

• It is useful to label icons for clarity

• See “smileys” in textbook (p. 61)


Animating Text

• To grab a viewer‟s attention:

– let text “fly” onto screen

– rotate or spin text, etc.

• Use special effects sparingly or they

become boring


Computers and Text

• Mac standard - 72 pixels/ inch

• PC - VGA - 96 pixels/inch

• Screen ( 640 pixels across x 480

down, called 640 x480 resolution)

• Today much higher resolution

possible


Fonts “Wars”

• Apple - Adobe PostScript page description

font language

– describes an image in terms of

mathematical constructs (Bezier curves)

– Can be scaled larger or smaller

– Currently > 6,000 typefaces available

• Apple & Microsoft created TrueType


Computers and Text

Allow text to be drawn at any size without

“jaggies”, by anti-aliasing the edges of the

characters


Fonts and Characters

• Fonts smaller than 12 point are not

very legible on a monitor

• Never assume the fonts installed on your

computer are on all computers

• Stay with TrueType fonts ordinarily

• ASCII character set - most common

• Extended Character set - used for HTML

• UNICODE –supports characters for all

known languages


Unicode

• Developed in 1989 for multilingual text

• Contains 65,000 characters form all known

languages and alphabets

• Where several languages share a set of

symbols, they are grouped into a

collection called scripts ( eg. Latin,

Arabic, Cyrillic, Greek, Tibetan, etc.)

• Shared symbols are unified into

collections called scripts


Unicode

• Numbers

• Mathematical symbols

• Punctuation

• Arrows, blocks and drawing shapes

• Technical symbols


Mapping Text Across Platforms

• Viewing a presentation on either

MAC and PC reveals differences

• Fonts must be mapped from one

machine to another

• If same font doesn‟t exist on the

other machine, one is substituted

( called font substitution)

• To avoid this, convert to bitmaps


Representing Languages

• Some contain different symbols

• Others represent an entire concept

with a single symbol (as in some

Asian languages)

• Translating into another language is

called localization


Font Editing and Design Tools

• Allow you to create your own fonts

– ResEdit for MAC

– Fontographer (from Macromedia) caan

be used to create Postscript, TrueType

and bitmapped fonts for MAC, PB, SUN

includes a freehand drawing tool

– 3D programs, such as COOL 3D and

HotTEXT, create special effects

– See text for descriptions


Font Editing and Design Tools

– Fontographer (from Macromedia)


Editing and Design Tools


Hypermedia and Hypertext

• Hyper media provides a structure of links

• Hypertext words are linked to other

elements

• Hypertext is usually searchable by

software robots


Hypermedia and Hypertext

• Multimedia - combines text, graphics

and audio

• Interactive multimedia - gives user

control over what and when content

is viewed (non-linear)

• Hypermedia -provides a structure of

linked elements through which user

navigates and interacts


Hypermedia Structures

Hypermedia elements are called

nodes

Nodes are connected using links

A linked point is called an anchor


Hypermedia Structures

• Link - connections between

conceptual elements (navigation

pathways and menus)

• Node - contains text, graphics sounds

• Anchor - the reference from one

document to another document,

image, sound or file on the web

• Link anchor - where you came from


Hypermedia and Hypertext • Doug Englebart - inventor of mouse

• 1965 Ted Nelson coined the word

“hypertext”

• Computer-based hypertext systems

will fundamentally alter the way

humans think, approach literature

and the expression of ideas

• Hotlinks - lead user from one

reference to another


Using Hypertext

• Searching for words

– boolean search using AND, OR, NOT

– truncation - using only part of word,

such as geo might yield result with

geology, geography, George, etc.

• Search engines employ “robots” to

visit web pages and create indexes.


Hypertext Tools

• Building or authoring

– builder creates links, identifies nodes,

generates an index of words

• Reading

– both linear and increasingly non-linear

• Becoming more comfortable with

non-linear hypertext systems will

change the way we think….


Chapter 5

Sound


Overview

• Introduction to sound.

• Multimedia system sound.

• Digital audio.

• MIDI audio.

• Audio file formats.


Overview

• MIDI versus digital audio.

• Adding sound to multimedia project.

• Professional sound.

• Production tips.


Power of Sound

• Vibrations in the air create waves of pressure that are perceived as sound.

• Sound waves vary in sound pressure level (amplitude) and in frequency or pitch.

• „Acoustics‟ is the branch of physics that studies sound.

• Sound pressure levels (loudness or volume) are measured in decibels (dB).

• Humans hear sound over a very broad range (see p. 91)


Sound

• Sound is energy, caused by molecules vibrating

• Too much volume can permanently damage your ears and hearing

• The perception of loudness depend on the frequency or pitch

• Harmonics cause the same note played on a cello to sound different from one played on a piano.


Using Sound in Multimedia

• You need to know

– How to make sounds

– How to record and edit sounds on the

computer

– How to incorporate sounds into your

multimedia project


Multimedia System Sounds

• System sounds are assigned to various system events such as startup and warnings, among others.

• Macintosh provides several system sound options such as glass, indigo, laugh.

• In Windows, available system sounds include start.wav, chimes.wav, and chord.wav.

• Multimedia sound is either digitally recorded audio or MIDI (Musical Instrumental Digital Interface) music.



• Most computers have sounds ready

to use



• Mac and Windows have built in

sound recorders



• Windows system sounds are .WAV

files in the Windows\Media directory

• MS Office includes additional sounds

• You can add your own sounds by

including them in the Windows\Media

directory and selecting them from

the Sound Control Panel


MIDI Audio

• MIDI is a series of musical

instructions

Click to play


MIDI vs. Digital Audio

• MIDI ( Musical Instrument Digital

Interface) is a communications

standard developed in the 1980‟s for

electronic instruments and

computers.

• It allows instruments from different

manufacturers to communicate.



• MIDI data is NOT digitized sound- it is music stored in numeric format

• Digital audio is a recording, which depend on your sound system

• MIDI is a score and depends on both the quality of the instruments and the sound system

• Quality depends on end user‟s device rather than on the MIDI device and is device dependent.


Making MIDI Audio

• Creating a MIDI score requires:

– Knowledge of music and some talent

– Ability to play a musical instrument

– Sequencer software

– Sound synthesizer • Built into PC board

• Add-on for MAC

• MIDI can synthesize over 100 instruments


Making MIDI Audio

You will need:

• Sequencer Software (Smart Score)

• A Sound synthesizer ( built into PC

sound board, an add on for MAC)

• MIDI keyboard or device

• Ability to play the piano and music

theory background

• or a hired “expert”


MIDI

• A MIDI file is a list of commands that

are recordings of musical actions,

that when sent to a MIDI player

results in sound

• MIDI data is device dependent

• MIDI represents musical instruments

and is not easily used to playback

spoken dialog


MIDI Audio

• MIDI is a shorthand representation of music stored in numeric form.

• Since they are small, MIDI files embedded in web pages load and play promptly.

• Length of a MIDI file can be changed without affecting the pitch of the music or degrading audio quality.

• Working with MIDI requires knowledge of music theory.


Digital Audio

• Digital audio is a representation

of the original sound

• Sampling rate is measured in

kilohertz (kHz)

Click to play


Digital Audio

• Digital audio represents a sound

stored in thousands of numbers or

samples.

• Digital data represents the loudness

at discrete slices of time.

• It is NOT device dependent and

should sound the same each time it

is played

• It is used for music CD‟s


Digital Audio

• The three sampling frequencies most often used in multimedia are CD-quality 44.1 kHz, 22.05 kHz and 11.025 kHz.

• The number of bits used to describe the amplitude of sound wave when sampled, determines the sample size.

• Digital audio is device independent.

• The value of each sample is rounded off to the nearest integer (quantization).


Preparing Digital Audio

• Balance file size versus

quality

• Set recording levels

• Edit the recording


Preparing Digital Audio

• Balance file size versus quality

To calculate file size in bytes:

Mono: sampling rate duration of recording

in seconds (bit resolution 8) 1

Stereo: sampling rate duration of recording

in seconds (bit resolution 8) 2


Digital Audio Editing

• Once a recording had been completed, it

almost always needs to be edited.

• Basic sound editing operations include:

trimming, splicing and assembly, volume

adjustments and working on multiple

tracks.


Digital Audio Editing

Additional available sound editing

operations include format conversion,

resampling or downsampling, fade-ins and

fade-outs, equalization, time stretching,

digital signal processing, and reversing

sounds.



• MIDI data and digital audio are like

vector and bitmapped graphics:

• Digital audio like bitmapped image –

samples original to create a copy

• MIDI – like vector graphic- stores

numeric data to recreate sound



• MIDI data is device dependent; digital

audio is not

• MIDI sounds (like vector graphics)

are different on different devices;

• Digital sounds are identical even on

different computers or devices.


MIDI Advantages

• MIDI file are much more compact and take up less memory and system resources

• MIDI files embedded in web pages load and play much faster than digital

• You can change the length of a MIDI file by varying its tempo

• With high quality MIDI devices, MIDI files may actually sound better than digital


MIDI Disadvantages

• MIDI represents musical instruments

not sounds and will be accurate only

if your playback device is identical

to the production device

• MIDI sound is inconsistent

• MIDI cannot be easily used to

reproduce speech


Digital Audio Advantages

• Digital audio sound is consistent and

device independent

• A wide selection of software support

is available for both MAC and PC

• A knowledge of music theory is not

required for creating digital audio,

but usually is needed for MIDI

production


Choose MIDI data

• If you don‟t have enough RAM

memory, or bandwidth for digital

audio

• If you have a high quality sound

source

• If you have complete control over the

playback hardware

• If you don‟t need spoken dialog


Choose Digital Audio

• If you don‟t have control over the

playback hardware

• If you have the computing resources

and bandwidth to handle the larger

digital files

• If you need spoken dialog


Digital Audio

• You can digitize sound from a

microphone, synthesizer, tape

recording TV broadcast, or CD‟s.

• Digitized sound is sampled every nth

of a second. The more often you take

the sample, the better the sound.

• Sample sizes are either 8 or 16 bits

and common frequencies are11.025,

22.05, and 44.1 kHz (See pp. 209- 211)


Digital Audio

• To prepare digital audio from analog

media, record it from a device, like a

tape recorder, into your computer

using digitizing software.

• Balance the sound quality with your

available RAM

• Set proper recording levels for a

good clear recording


File Size vs. Quality

• Audio resolution determines the

accuracy with which a sound is

digitized. (More bits in the sample

size produces better quality and

larger files)

• Stereo recordings are more realistic

and require twice as much storage

space and playback time.

• Mono files tend to sound “flat”


Editing Digital Recordings

• Apple‟s QuickTime Player Pro provides for primitive playback and editing

• Sonic Foundry‟s Sound Forge is a more serious sound editor

• These can be used to trim, splice, volume adjustment and format conversion as well as special effects


Audio File Formats

• A sound file‟s format is a recognized methodology for organizing data bits of digitized sound into a data file.

• On the Macintosh, digitized sounds may be stored as data files, resources, or applications such as AIFF or AIFC.

• In Windows, digitized sounds are usually stored as WAV files.

• Both can use MIDI files (.mid)


Audio File Formats

• CD-ROM/XA (Extended Architecture)

format enabled several recording

sessions to be placed on a single

CD-R (recordable) disc.

• Linear Pulse Code Modulation is

used for Red Book Audio data files

on consumer-grade music CDs.


Sound for the World Wide Web

• To play MIDI sound on the web

– wait for the entire file to download and

play it with a helper application

– stream the file, storing it in the buffer and

playing it while it downloads

• Streaming is dependent on the

connection speed

• FLASH allows sound to be integrated

in a multimedia presentation,

controlled by buttons and saved as

.mp3 Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Adding Sound to a

Multimedia Project

• Decide what sounds you will need and

include them in the story board or cue

sheet.

• Decide whether to use MIDI or digital

audio

• Acquire source material (record/buy)

• Edit the sounds

• Test the sounds to be sure they are

timed properly


Adding sound to Multimedia

• CD- quality audio

Standard is ISO 10149, a.k.a. the “Red Book Standard”

Sample size is 16-bit

Sample rate is 44.1 kHz

11 seconds of audio uses 1.94 MB of space


Professional Sound

• The Red Book Standard- ISO 10149

– ( 16 bits at 44.1 kHz) allows accurate

reproduction of all sounds humans can

hear

– Software such as Toast and CD-Creator

can translate digital files from CD‟s

directly into a digital sound editing file

or decompress.mp3 files into CD-Audio


Professional Sound

• Compression techniques reduce space but

reliability suffers.

• Space can be conserved by downsampling

or reducing the number of sample slices

taken per second.

• File size of digital recording (in bytes) =

sampling rate X duration of recording (in

secs) X (bit resolution/8) X number of

tracks.


Advanced Sound Management

• Scripting Languages such as Open

Script (Toolbook), LINGO(Director),

or Action Script ( FLASH) provide

better control over audio playback

• Requires some programming

knowledge


Production Tips

• Vaughn‟s Law of Minimums - there is

an acceptable level of adequacy that

will satisfy the audience;

• If your handheld microphone is good

enough to satisfy you and your

audience, conserve your money and

energy.


Production Tips

• Recording on inexpensive media

rather than directly to disk

prevents the hard disk from being

overloaded with unnecessary data.

• The equipment and standards

used for the project must be in

accordance with the requirements.

• Sound and image synchronization

must be tested at regular intervals


Production Tips

• Audio recording - use CD‟s, or VCR

tapes, or DAT ( digital audio tape)

tapes

• Create a good database to organize

your sounds, noting the counter and

content

• Testing and Evaluating- (delaying a

fast machine if needed to sync with

animation)


Production Tips

• Copyright Issues

• Securing permission for the use of

sounds and music is the same as for

images

• Can buy royalty-free digitized sound

clips

• DO NOT use someone‟s original

work without permission!


Summary

• Vibrations in air create waves of pressure

that are perceived as sound.

• Multimedia system sound is digitally

recorded audio or MIDI (Musical

Instrumental Digital Interface) music.

• Digital audio data is the actual

representation of a sound, stored in the

form of samples.


Summary

• MIDI is a shorthand representation of music stored in numeric form.

• Digital audio provides consistent playback quality.

• MIDI files are much smaller than digitized audio.

• MIDI is device dependent digital audio is not

• MIDI files sound better than digital audio files when played on high-quality MIDI device.


Chapter 6

IMAGES


Overview

• Creation of multimedia images.

• Creation of still images.

• Colors and palettes in multimedia.

• Image file types used in multimedia.


Before You Start to Create:

• Plan your approach using flowcharts and storyboards

• Organize your tools ( text, buttons, sounds, etc.)

• Use multiple monitors (especially for a program like Director where changes in one window are visible in the presentation window)


Making Still Images

• Bitmaps ( or paint graphics) – used for

photo-realistic images and detailed

drawings

• Vector graphics – used for lines, polygons

and other mathematical objects

• Saved as GIF,JPEG,PNG files with

compression


Making Still Images

• Stills are drawn in one of two

ways and are usually compressed

Bitmaps

Vector-drawn graphics


Bitmaps

• Bitmap is derived from the words

„bit‟, which means the simplest

element in which only two digits are

used, and „map‟, which is a two-

dimensional matrix of these bits.

• A bitmap is a data matrix describing

the individual dots of an image.


BITMAPS

• A simple information matrix describing the dots or pixels which make up the image

• Make it with paint or drawing program

• Grab it and (save it) then paste it into you application

• Scan or digitize an image


Bitmaps

Bitmaps are an image format suited for

creation of:

– Photo-realistic images.

– Complex drawings.

– Images that require fine detail.


Bitmaps

• Bitmapped images are known as

paint graphics.

• A bitmap is made up of individual

dots or picture elements known as

pixels or pels.

• Bitmapped images can have varying

bit and color depths.


Bitmaps

Available binary Combinations for Describing a Color


Bitmaps

Bitmaps can be inserted by:

– Using clip art galleries.

– Using bitmap software.

– Capturing and editing images.

– Scanning images.


Bitmap Example

• Clipart


Clip Art

• Available from many sources on the

web or on CD ( such as PHOTODISC)

• Often included with packages such

as Corel Draw, Office, etc.

• Can manipulate some properties

such as brightness, color, size

• Can paste it into an application


Clip Art Galleries

• A clip art gallery is an assortment of graphics, photographs, sound, and video.

• Clip arts are a popular alternative for users who do not want to create their own images.

• Clip arts are available on CD-ROMs and on the Internet.


Bitmaps • Clipart

• Bitmap Software


Using Bitmap Software

The industry standard for bitmap

painting and editing programs are:

• Adobe's Photoshop and Illustrator.

• Macromedia's Fireworks.

• Corel's Painter.

• CorelDraw.

• Quark Express.


Bitmap Software

• Primitive Paint programs included with

windows and MAC

• Director included a powerful image editor

with advanced tools such as onion-skin

and image filtering

• Adobe Photoshop and Fractal Design‟s

Painter are more sophisticated painting

and editing tools


Tip

• Use paint program for cartoon, text,

icons, symbols, buttons, or graphics.

• For photo-realistic images first scan

a picture, then use a paint or image

editing program to refine or modify

them


Bitmaps

• Clipart

• Bitmap software

• Capturing

• Scanning


Capturing and Editing Images

• Capturing and storing images directly

from the screen is another way to

assemble images for multimedia.

• The PRINT SCREEN button in Windows

and COMMAND-CONTROL-SHIFT-4

keystroke on the Macintosh copies the

screen image to the clipboard.

• From there you can insert it into a paint

program or other application.


Advanced Image Editing

• Image editing programs allow you to

insert and remove images from

photos

• Enable you to alter and distort

images, add and delete elements

• Morphing blends two images so that

one seems to “melt” into the other


Scanning Images

• Everyday objects can be scanned

and manipulated using tools such as

Photoshop

• Traditional artwork created with pen

and ink or watercolors can be

created and scanned


Vector Drawings

• Vector graphics are defined using

formulas

– RECT 0,0,200,200,RED,BLUE


Vector Drawing

• Used for lines, rectangles, geometric objects- stored mathematically

• CAD ( computed aided design) programs created complex and geometric renderings needed by architects and engineers

• Graphic artists use vector graphics to eliminate the “jaggies”

• Programs for 3-D animation use vector graphics for rotation,spinning and shading


How Vector Drawing Works

• Vector drawn object are drawn to the computer screen using a fraction of the memory space required by a bitmap.

• A vector is a line described by its endpoints, and sometimes direction

• A rectangle might be described as: – RECT, 0, 0,200, 200

– Starts at 0,0 and extends 200 pixels horizontally and 200 pixels downward from the corner ( a square)

– RECT, 0, 0,200, 200, red, blue

– This is the same square with a red border filled with blue


Vector- Drawn vs. Bitmaps

• Colored square as a vector contains < 30 bytes of data

• The same square as a bitmapped image would take 5,000 bytes to describe ( 200x200)/8) and using 256 colors would require 40K as a bitmap

((200x 200) / 8 X 8)

• Vector objects are easily scalable

• Sometimes a single bitmap gives better performance than many vector images required to make the same image


Converting Between

Bitmaps and Vectors

• Most drawing programs offer several file formats for saving and converting images.

• Converting bitmaps to drawn object is more difficult and is called autotracing

• It computes the bounds of an object and its colors and derives the polygon that most nearly describes it

• It is available in some programs such as Adobe Streamline


Vectors vs. Bitmaps

–Vector drawings are easily

scaled

–Vector files are usually smaller

–Calculation time can draw

resources

–Bitmaps cannot easily be

converted to vector

–Vector drawings require plug-ins


3-D Drawing and Rendering

• Drawing in 3-D on 2 2-D surface or screen

takes practice and skill

• Software helps to render ( or represent)

the image in visual form- but these

programs have a steep learning curve.

• Object in 3-D space carry many properties,

shape color, texture, location… and a

scene often contains many objects


3-D Drawing

• 3-D software usually offers:

Directional lighting

Motion

Different perspectives


3-D Drawing

• 3-D creation tools include:

Ray Dream Designer

Caligari True Space 2

Specular Infini-D

form*Z


3-D Drawing

3-D objects

combine

various shapes


Modeling 3-D objects

• Start with a shape ( block, cylinder,

sphere, …)

• You can draw a 2-D object and extrude or

lathe it into the third dimension

• Extrude – extends the shape

perpendicular to the shapes outline

• A lathed shape is rotated around a defined

axis to create the 3-D object.



Shapes can be

extruded…



…or lathed



• Once a 3-D object has been created, you can apply color and texture to make it look realistic

• To model a scene, place all the objects into 3-D space and set up lighting effects and shadows.

• Objects will reflect or flare where light is most intense.



• Add a background or set a camera view from which you will view the scene

• Shading can be applied in many ways ( See p. 304)

• Finally, the scene must be rendered- using the algorithms to apply the effects you have specified on the objects

• Rendering requires great computer power and can often take hours for a single image



A scene can use different types of shading

Ray

tracing

Phong

shading

Gourand

shading Flat

shading


Color

• Natural Light and Color

– Quantum Theory of Light (Max Planck 19th Century and 20th Century Niels Bohr – photons)

Atoms produce unique colors as light passes

through

Light travels in the form of photons, or quanta


Color

• Natural Light and Color

– Quantum Theory of Light

– Color is the frequency of visible light

– ROY G. BIV ( increasing frequencies)

– Infrared | Visible Light | Ultraviolet

– White light is a mixture of all the frequencies


Color • Computerized color

Computers combine red, green, and blue (RGB) light

Bit depth determines the number of possible colors

1-bit

2 colors 4-bit

16 colors

8-bit

256 colors

24-bit

16,777,216 colors


Color

• Cornea of your eye focuses light rays onto

the retina to stimulate rods and cones

which transmit the patterns of color

information to the brain.

• ( Cones are sensitive to red, green and

blue light.)

• Green, blue, yellow.orange,purple, pink,

brown black, gray and white are most

common colors in all cultures.


Color

• Color and Culture

– Western culture: Red = anger, danger

Black = death, funerals

– Eastern culture Red = happiness

White = death, funerals

( Eastern Weddings and restaurants most often

use RED )

Internet study (p.142) world‟s favorite color is

blue


Color • Psychology of Color – how you perceive it

• Computer monitors produce color with red,

green and blue light – the ADDITIVE primary

colors. Tiny red, blue and green dots on the

screen, light up when bombarded by

electrons.

• The reflected light from a printed page is

SUBTRACTIVE primary colors ( cyan,

magenta, yellow and a little black)


Color

• Computerized Color

• Monitors and Color – most monitors today

are set to display 640 X 480 pixels and 256

colors, can be adjusted for more

• Called VGA ( Video Graphics Array)

• Minimum configuration for Windows and

MAC

• More colors requires more memory


Color Wheel


Color Models • Additive Color: RGB

– Describes colors that emanate from glowing bodies such as lights, TV, and computer monitors

• In additive color models, mixing two colors results in a brighter color

• Overlapping colors from 3 projectors produces new colors: – red+ green -> yellow

– green+ blue -> cyan

– red + blue -> magenta


Color Models - Additive


Color Models

• Subtractive Color : CMYK

– Most object reflect light

– Mixing two colors creates a darker one

– Similar to pain and printer‟s ink

– Primary colors are cyan, magenta, yellow, which are complements of red, green and blue, respectively

– Where 3 inks overlap, there is black ( gray)


Color Models - Subtractive


Color

• Computer Color Models

• Color of a pixel is expressed as the amount of red, green and blue ( RGB)

• HSB ( hue, saturation, brightness) and HSL

( hue, saturation, lightness) models specify color as an angle from 0 –360 degrees on a color wheel and saturation, brightness, and lightness as percentages.

• 100% Lightness = white

• Saturation is the intensity of the color Other color models are used for TV, photos and other media


Color Models - HSB


Color Palettes • Palettes or color look up tables (CLUT)

are mathematical tables that define the color of a pixel displayed on the screen

• Paint programs provide a palette tools for displaying available colors – not uniform across programs or platforms

• Color graphics adaptors work with 256 shades of each color producing over 16 million colors (256 x 256x 256)


Color Models

Varying Brightness

Varying Saturation


Color Harmony

• Certain combinations of colors tend

to be pleasing. They arise from the

color harmony schemes:

– Monochromatic

– Complementary

– Analogous

– Triadic


Color Harmony

Primary Colors Secondary colors Tertiary Colors


Color Harmony Schemes

• Primary colors: red, yellow and blue

• Secondary colors: obtained by mixing two primary colors - orange violet, green

• Tertiary colors: obtained by mixing equal amounts of a primary and secondary color - red-violet, blue-violet, blue-green, yellow-green, yellow-orange, red-orange

• Warm (yellow, orange, red) or cool ( blue, green) colors



• Monochromatic

– all colors have hues that are the same

or within a few degrees of one another

– colors vary in saturation or brightness,

but hue is consistent

– enhances cohesiveness to overall

layout of web page



Monochromatic Examples


Monochromatic Example



• Complementary

– uses a pair of complementary hues,

which appear opposite one another on a

color wheel

– one color is dominant, the other is an

accent

– use the dominant hue to fill the large

areas


Complementary Example


Color Schemes

• Analogous

– two colors which lie close together on a color wheel

– often echo the colors found in nature

– pleasing combinations ( such as orange, yellow, green)

– more interesting if the colors do not have the same brightness and saturation



Analogous


Color Schemes

• Triadic

– Any 3 colors, spaced equally around a color

wheel

– Color hues form a triad

– Offers wide variety of choice and can create

excitement

– Can be overpowering unless colors chosen

vary in brightness and saturation, or the

number of text and background are limited


Color Schemes - Triadic


Color in Text and Background

• Text should be legible

• Contrast between text and background is important

• Dark text on light background is best or one with high brightness and low saturation

• Avoid combinations that differ only in their blue component ( yellow on white)

• Avoid red-green, red-blue, magenta-green combinations which cause vibration and eye fatigue.


Palette Flashing Problem

• Palette Flashing occurs when you use a

series of images each with its own color

palette. When the new image replaces the

older one a flash occurs on the screen - a

serious problem in multimedia

• Solution

– use a single palette for all project images or

– fade each image to white or black before

showing the next image since white and black

are present in most palettes


Dithering

• Dithering is a process where the color

value of each pixel is changes to the

closest matching color value in the target

palette, using a mathematical algorithm

• It “averages” the color over an area and is

usually close to the original color

• Dithering software is usually built into

image editing and multimedia programs


Image File Formats

• MAC has a single standard format PICT

• Windows uses device independent bitmaps DIBs written as .bmp files, which is a windows bitmap file

• TIFF ( tagged interchange file formats) are universal bitmap files – used in desktop publishing

• Adobe creates .psd files for photoshop

• See pp. 150-151 for other formats


Image File Formats

• Be sure that your program can

import the files that you create or

save.

• Most common bitmap formats for the

web are GIF and JPEG, since all

browsers can display them


Chapter 7

Animation


The Power of Animation

• Animation grabs attention

• Transitions are simple forms

of animation

Wipe

Zoom

Dissolve


Principles of animation

• How Animation Works

Persistence of vision

Still images are flashed in sequence

Frame rate measures the speed of

change


Principles of Animation

• Persistence of Vision -biological

phenomenon - an object seen by the

human eye remains mapped on the

retina for a brief time after viewing.

• Causes the visual illusion of

movement, when images change

slightly and rapidly



• Television video creates 30 frames per

second

• Movies are shot at a rate of 24 frames

per second and replayed at 48 frames

per second

• Both are used to create motion and

animation



• Cel Animation

Keyframes identify the start and end of

action

The process of filling in the action is

called tweening


Animation Techniques

• Cel Animation

– The technique made famous by Disney

– Progressively different graphics on each frame of movie film

– Clear celluloid sheets were used to draw each frame

– ( 24 frames/sec. * 60 sec/min) = 1440 separate frames needed to produce one minute of a movie


Animation Techniques

• Cel Animation

– Begins with keyframes (first and last frames of an action)

– Tweening – the series of frames drawn in between the first and last

– Originally hand drawn and “flipped” through to check the “motion”

– Now replaced by computer generated graphics



• Computer Animation

Kinematics is the study of motion of

jointed structures


Computer Animation

• Based on the same model as cel

animation

– Uses layers, keyframes, and tweening

techniques

– Inks special methods for computing RGB pixel

values, providing edge detection and layering

so that images can blend or produce

transparencies, inversions and effects

– Speed of the animation depends on computer;

– If it is display is greater than 1/15 sec,

animation may seem slow and jerky


Kinematics • Study of movement and motion of

structures that have joints, (such as a person or a walking dog)

• Complex- need to calculate position, velocity, rotation and acceleration of all joint and body parts involved

• Inverse kinematics – process of linking objects together and define their relationships and limits and then drag the parts and let the computer calculate the result ( for example, connect hands and arms and bent the elbow in various directions)

• Fractal Design‟s Poser – a 3-D modeling program Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC


Morphing is the process of

transitioning from one image to

another


Morphing

• A special effect in which one image

transforms into another

• Process involves connecting a series

of key points, which are mapped

from the start image to the end image

to make a smooth transition

• ( See p.328)



• Animation file formats

Windows Media – .AVI, .ASF, or .WMV

Apple QuickTime – .QT or .MOV

Motion Video – .MPG or .MPEG

Flash – .SWF

Shockwave – .DCR

Animated GIF – .GIF


Animation File Formats

• Director (dir) compressed into a Shockwave animation file (dcr) for the web

• Windows Audio Video Interleaved Format (avi)

• Macintosh ( quicktime, mov)

• Motion Video ( mpeg, mpg)

• Compuserv ( gif)

• Shockwave (dcr)

• Compression for Director is 75%+ turning a 100k file into a 25k file


Making Animations that Work

• Use animations carefully so your

screens don‟t become too “busy”

• Animation tools

– Director

– Adobe GOLive

– GIF animators


Creating Animation • Software helps create objects

such as:

A rolling ball



such as:

A rolling ball

A bouncing ball

s=1/2gt2


Bouncing Ball

• Requires a series of rotations

• A knowledge of physics (s= 1/2gt2)

• Ball will uniformly accelerate and

decelerate by squares 1,4,9,16,….

(as Galileo discovered)

(See examples, pp.329-334)



such as:

A rolling ball

A bouncing ball

•An animated scene


Chapter 8

Video


Overview

• Using video.

• How video works?

• Broadcast video standards.

• Analog video.

• Digital video.

• Video recording and tape formats.

• Shooting and editing video.

• Optimizing video files for CD-ROM.


Video

• Video is the most recent addition to the

elements of multimedia

• It places the greatest demands on the

computer and memory (using about

108 GB per hour for full motion)

• Often requires additional hardware

(video compression board, audio

board, RAID - Redundant Array of

Independent Disks- for high speed data

transfer) Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Using Video

• Carefully planned video can enhance

a presentation (eg. film clip of JFK,

better than an text box of same

message)

• Before adding video to a project, it is

essential to understand the medium,

how to integrate it, its limitations,

and its costs


Using Digital Video

• Digital video has replaced analog as

the method of choice for making and

delivering video for multimedia.

• Digital video device produces

excellent finished products at a

fraction of the cost of analog.


Using Digital Video

• Digital video eliminates the image-

degrading analog-to-digital

conversion.

• Many digital video sources exist, but

getting the rights can be difficult,

time-consuming, and expensive.


Video Clips

• Ways to obtain video

– shoot new film clips with a digital

camcorder

– convert you own video clips to digital

format

– acquire video from an archive - often

very expensive, difficult to obtain

permissions or licensing rights

• Be sure to obtain permission from

anyone you film or for any audio you

use!


How Video Works

• Light passes from an object through the video camera lens and is converted into an electrical signal by a CCD (charge-coupled device).

• High quality cameras have 3 CCD

• Signal contains 3 channels of color information (red, green, blue) and a synchronization pulse.


How Video Works

• If each channel of a color signal is

separate it is called RGB ( preferred)

• A single composite of the colors and

sync signal is less precise

• A typical video tape has separate

tracks for audio, video, and control


Video Basics


How Video Works

• The video signal is magnetically

written to tape by a spinning

recording head following a helical

path

• Audio is recorded on a separate

straight track

• The control track regulates the speed

and keeps the tracks aligned as the

tape plays/records.


Video Basics


Broadcast Video Standards

• NTSC

• PAL

• SECAM

• HDTV

Six different formats

Aspect ratio is 16:9



National Television Standards

Committee (NTSC):

– These standards define a method for

encoding information into electronic

signal that creates a television picture.

– It has screen resolution of 525

horizontal scan lines and a scan rate of

30 frames per second.



• NTSC- National Television Standards Committee - 1952, (“never the same color”)

• 1 frame = 525 horizontal lines every 1/30 second

• 2 passes - odd/even lines, 60/second

(60 Hz)

• interlacing - to reduce flicker



Phase Alternate Line (PAL) and Sequential Color

and Memory (SECAM):

• PAL has a screen resolution of 625 horizontal lines

and a scan rate of 25 frames per second.

• SECAM has a screen resolution of 625 horizontal

lines and is a 50 Hz system.

• SECAM differs from NTSC and PAL color systems in

its basic technology and broadcast method.



Advanced Television Systems Committee

(ATSC) Digital Television (DTV):

• This digital standard provides TV stations

with sufficient bandwidth to present four or

five Standard Television (STV) signals or

one High Definition TV (HDTV) signal.

• This standard allows for transmission of

data to computers and for new Advanced

TV (ATV) interactive services.



• Several incompatible standards:

• NTSC (US, Japan, many other

countries)

• PAL - (United Kingdom, parts of

Europe, Australia, South Africa)

• SECAM - (France Russia, few others)

• HDTV - ( US ) - newest technology


Broadcast Video Standards • HDTV- High Definition Television

now available, allow viewing of

Cinemascope and Panavision movies

with aspect ratio 16:9 ( wider than

high) (See p. 184)

• Twice the resolution, interlaced

format

• Digitized then compressed for

transmission



• 4: 3 Aspect Ratio



• 16: 9 Aspect Ratio


Integrating Computers and

Television

• Television video is based on analog

technology and international

broadcast standards

• Computer video is based on digital

technology and other image display

standards

• DVD and HDTV merges the two


Analog Video – Analog television sets remain the most widely

installed platforms for delivering and viewing video.

– Television sets use composite input. Hence

colors are less pure and less accurate than

computers using RGB component.

– NTSC television uses a limited color palette and

restricted luminance (brightness) levels and

black levels.


Analog Video

– Some colors generated by a computer that

display fine on a RGB monitor may be

illegal for display on a NTSC TV.

– While producing a multimedia project,

consider whether it will be played on a RGB

monitor or a conventional television set.


Video Overlay System

• To display analog video (TV) images

on a computer monitor, the signal

must be converted from analog to

digital form ( Where else does this

conversion commonly take place?)

• A special digitizing video overly

board is required for the conversion

• Produces excellent quality, full

screen, full motion video, but costly.


Video Overlay System

• Many companies use computer based

training (CBT) systems

• These require a computer and monitor

cabled to a TV and video disc player.

• Overlay boards allow the video disc to be

controlled by the computer and display

the images on the computer screen.


Video Capture Boards

• Video overlay boards can capture or

digitize video frames and play them

back as QuickTime MPEG and AVI

movies.

• Some also include audio input and

sound management to interleave

sound and images

• Some also offer compression and

accelerate digitizing, or support

NTSC video. Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Differences Between Computer

and TV Video

• Computer scan refresh rate = 480

lines/sec

• Computer scan is progressive ( non-

interlaced) at 66.67 HZ or higher

• TV scans at 525 (or 625) lines/sec,

with interlacing at a frame rate of 60

Hz


Interlacing Effects

• The TV electron beam actually

“draws all the odd line, then all the

even lines, interlacing them

• On a computer (RGB) monitor, lines

are painted one pixel thick and are

not interlaced. Displayed on a TV

they “flicker” because they appear in

every other field. To avoid this avoid

very thin lines and elaborate serifs.



and TV Video

• TV broadcasts an image larger than

the screen so that the “edge” of the

image is against the edge of the

screen. This is called overscan

• Computer images are smaller than

the screen area (called underscan)

and there is a border around the

image


Computers and Video



and TV Video

• When a computer screen is

converted to video the outer edges

do not fit on the TV screen only about

360-480 lines of the computer image

are visible.

• Avoid using the outer 15% of the

screen for graphics, or titles for use

on TV

• Use the safe title area ( See p. 184)


Video Color

• Color reproduction and display are

also different in TV and computers

monitors

• Computers use RBG component

video and produce more pure color

• NTSC TV uses a limited color palette

and restricted luminance

(brightness) and black levels


Working with Text and Titles for

Video Productions • Use plain, bold, easily read fonts

• Use light color text on a dark

background

• Avoid color combinations like

yellow/violet, blue/orange which

“vibrate”

• Avoid black or colored text on white

background



Video Productions

• Make lines and graphics at least two pixels wide

• Use parallel lines and boxes sparingly and draw them with thick lines

• Avoid “hot” colors

• Keep graphics and titles in the safe screen area



Video Productions

• Bring titles on slowly and let them

remain on the screen sufficiently

long, fade out

• Avoid “busy” screens- use additional

pages instead


Digital Video

• Digital video architecture.

• Digital video compression.


Digital Video Architecture

• Digital video architecture consists of

a format for encoding and playing

back video files by a computer.

• Architecture includes a player that

can recognize and play files created

for that format.


Digital Video Compression

• Digital video compression schemes or “codecs” ( coder/decoder) is the algorithm used to compress (code) a video for delivery.

• The codec then decodes the compressed video in real-time for fast playback.

• Streaming audio and video starts playback as soon as enough data has transferred to the user‟s computer to sustain this playback.


Video Compression • To store even a 10 second movie clip

requires the transfer of an enormous

amount of data in a very short time

• 30 seconds of video will fill a 1 GB

hard drive

• Typical hard drives transfer about

1MB/second and CD- ROMs about

600K/second


Video Compression

• Full motion video requires the

computer to deliver the data at 30

MB/second more than today‟s PCs

and MACs can handle

• Solution- use video compression

algorithms or codecs

• Codecs compress the video for

delivery and then decode it for

playback at rates from 50:1 to 200:1


Video Compression & Streaming

• Codecs ( such as MPEG, JPEG) use

lossy compression schemes

• Streaming technologies are also

used to provide reasonable quality ,

low-bandwidth on the WEB

• Playback starts as soon as enough

data have been transferred to the

user‟s computer instead of waiting

for the whole file to download

• ( RealAudio and RealVideo software) Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

MPEG

• Standard developed by the Moving

PIcturesExperts Group for digital

representation of moving pictures

and associated audio

• http://mpeg.org


http://mpeg.org/

Digital Video Compression

• MPEG is a real-time video compression

algorithm. (Moving Picture Experts Group)

• MPEG-4 (1998-1999) includes numerous

multimedia capabilities and is a preferred

standard.

• MPEG-7 (2002) (or Multimedia Content

Description Interface) integrates

information about motion video elements

with their use.

• MPEG –21 under development


Digital Video

• Video clips can be shot or converted

to digital format and stored on the

hard drive.

• They can be played back without

overlay boards, second monitors or

videodiscs using QuickTime or

Active Movie for Windows

• Analog video can be converted to

digital or now created in digital form


Video Recording and Tape

Formats

• Composite analog video.

• Component analog video.

• Composite digital.

• Component digital.

• ATSC digital TV.


Composite Analog Video

• Composite video combines the luminance

and chroma information from the video

signal.

• Composite video produces lowest quality

video and is most susceptible to

generation loss.

• Generation loss is the loss of quality that

occurs while moving from original footage

to editing master to copy.


Component Analog Video

• Component video separates the luminance and chroma information.

• It improves the quality of the video and decreases generation loss.

• In S-video, color and luminance information are kept on two separate tracks (Y/C) to improve the picture quality.

• Betacam is a new portable professional video format which lays the signal on the tape in three component channels.


Composite Digital

• Composite digital recording formats

combine the luminance and chroma

information.

• They sample the incoming waveforms and

encode the information in binary (0/1)

digital code.

• It improves color and image resolution

and eliminates generation loss.


Component Digital

• Component digital formats add the advantages of component signals to digital recording.

• D-1 component digital format is an uncompressed format which has a very high quality image.

• It uses a 19 mm (3/4-inch) tape in order to save data.

• Several other digital component formats are DCT, Digital Betacam, DV format, DVCPRO, and DVCAM formats.


ATSC Digital TV

• These standards provide for digital

STV and HDTV recordings that can

be broadcast by digital TV

transmitters to digital TV receivers.

• ATSC standards also provide for

enhanced TV bringing the

interactivity of multimedia and the

Web to broadcast television.


Vaughn’s Law of Multimedia

Minimums

• Your goal is to produce multimedia

that is adequate and does it‟s job but

doesn‟t throw you into bankruptcy.

• Experiment with various levels of

consumer grade equipment

• Professional sound and video

equipment is very expensive


Recording Formats

• S-VHS and Hi-8 consumer quality

• Component (YUV) - Sony BetacamSP the professional standard for broadcast quality

• Component Digital- a digital version of the Betacam- best format for

graphics > $900,000 and produces 15 minutes of video

• Composite Digital most common >$110,000


Shooting and Editing Video

• Shooting platform

– use a steady tripod

– or a camera with an electronic image

stabilization feature to avoid “shaky

hand effect”

– or use camera moves and moving

subjects to disguise your lack of

steadiness



• Lighting performance is the main

difference between professional and

consumer camcorders

• Use a simple floodlight kit or natural

daylight to improve the image

• Onboard flood lights can be used as

fill light to illumine faces





• Chroma Key or Blue Screen - popular

technique for making multimedia without

the use of expensive backgrounds

• In shooting against a blue screen, be sure

that the lighting is perfectly even and that

actors are not too close to the screen so

that color “spills” over on them



• Composition

– Avoid wide panoramic shots

– Use close-ups, head and shoulders

– Remember the more a scene changes

the slower the playback will be

– Keep the camera still, let the subject

add the motion by walking, turning...


Using Video Tapes

• Fast forward new tapes and rewind

them so that the tension is even

(called “packing”)

• Black-stripe the tape by running it

through the recorder with the lens

cap on -eliminates “snowy noise”

• Do not reuse tapes after editing

• Remove break off tab to avoid

overwriting


Video Hardware Resolution

• Horizontal resolution -the number of lines

of detail the camera can reproduce

• Different from the vertical scan lines on TV

• The lens, and number, size and quality of

the CCDs determine the resolution

• Poor resolution = poor image


Consumer Grade Equipment

• Mass production at low cost; easier

to use

• Cameras and camcorders that use

HI-8 and S-VHS formats are superior

to 8 mm and VHS systems

• HI-8 is most widely available tape

format and best consumer grade


Making Tape Copies

• For demo or promo tapes use at least

Super VHS ( HI-8 is best and allow

unlimited copies to be made without

degradation)

• Copying ( dubbing) depends on the

tape format and the quality of the

equipment being used

• Copy in SP mode- faster writing

produces better images


Video Window Size

• Shrinking a digitized image improves

it perceived sharpness

• ( Also happens when you switch

from 19” to 13” TV)

• The image is crisper because the

scan lines are closer together


Editing with Consumer VCRs

• Editing with 2 VCRs causes

problems because the two machines

are not in sync

• Editing software, such as Premier, or

After Effects, has become more

commonly used in multimedia


P*64

• Video telephone conferencing

standard for compressing audio and

motion video images

• Encodes audio and video for

transmission over copper or fiber

optic lines

• Other compression systems are

currently being developed by Kodak,

Sony, etc.


Optimizing Video files

for CD-ROMs

• CD- ROMs are an excellent

distribution media for multimedia:

inexpensive, store great quantities of

information, with adequate video

transfer rates

• Suitable for QuickTime and AVI file

formats as well as those produced by

Director, etc.



for CD-ROMs • Limit the synchronization between

video and audio

– AVI interleaves them

– QuickTime files must be “flattened” - to interleave the audio and video

• Use regularly spaced key frames (10 to 15 frames apart)

• Limit the size of the video window- the more data the slower the playback



for CD-ROMs

• Choose the software compression algorithm carefully

– Sorenson codec is optimized for CD-ROM playback

– Cinepack algorithm, available with AVI and QuickTime, is also optimized for CD-ROM playback

– Use Norton speed Disk to defragment your files before burning the master


Chapter 9

Multimedia Hardware

Mac vs. PC


Overview

• Macintosh versus Windows platform.

• Networking Macintosh and Windows

computers.

• Connections.

• Memory.

• Storage devices.

• Input and output devices.

• Communication devices.


Which Platform Mac or PC?

• Select platform based on

– Personal preference

– Budget constraints

– Project delivery requirements

– Type and content of project materials

– Availability to target audience


Mac versus Windows

The Macintosh platform:

– Was launched by Apple in 1984.

– Has a good built-in audio and high-quality graphics capability.

– Includes hardware and software for digitizing and editing video and producing DVD discs.

– Makes multimedia project development easier and smoother.


Mac versus Windows

The Windows platform:

– Is a collection of different vendor-neutral

components that are tied together by the

requirements of the Windows operating

system.

– Initially focused on business computing and

was not suitable for multimedia. However, it is

now easier to find multimedia hardware and

software for Windows as compared to the

Macintosh.


MAC vs. PC

• Macintosh

• Since 1984 has

been multimedia

• Good built-in

audio

• Easy to learn GUI

PC

• Intended for business

• System beeps and tiny, tinny speaker

• DOS screen- command driven

• Since late 1980‟s provides multimedia

capabilities


Macintosh Platform

• All Macs can play sound

– Latest include hardware for digitizing

sound

• 8/16/24 bit graphics available

• Can digitize both sound and video

• Requires a mouse


Macintosh Platform

• Power Mac

– 1994 (RISC) – reduced instruction set computing ( IBM/Motorola)

– 1997 G3 series – clock speeds > 233MHz • Higher performance than existing Pentium

based windows machines

– 2003 G4 series – clock speeds > GHz • Dual processor

• Performance 20 times better than G3


Windows Multimedia PCs

• MPC Standard- manufacturers

guarantee that software written to

the MPC standard (labeled MPC

compliant) will play on their

machines.

• Three levels of minimum

requirements: MPC1, MPC2, MPC3



• 1990- Level 1 ( MPC1)

– 16 MHz, 386SX, 2MB RAM, 30 MB drive

– CD-ROM, VGA video ( 16 colors)

– 8 bit audio board, speakers/headphones

– MS Windows with Multimedia Extensions

package

• Not powerful enough to develop Multimedia

• Hardly powerful enough to play it



• 1993- Level 2 ( MPC2)

– 25 MHz, 486SX, 4MB RAM, 160 MB drive

– 2xCD-ROM, VGA/SVGA video

– 16 bit audio board,

speakers/headphones, microphone



• 1995- Level 3 (MPC3)

– 75 MHz, Pentium, 8 MB RAM, 540 MB

drive

– 4xCD- ROM, MPG support

– MPEG1 video playback

– Full motion video ( in small window)

with TV quality

– CD quality sound


Networking

• LANs- local area

networks

• Located within short

distances ( such as a

campus, or building)

• Allow sharing of

resources such as

printers

• Ethernet for cross-

platform development

• WANs- wide area

networks

• Used for long

distances

• More expensive to

install and maintain

• ISPs like AOL, MSN

make it available and

affordable


Networking Mac and Windows

• Networking is essential for direct

communication and sharing of

resources across platforms.

• Local area network (LAN), wide area

network (WAN), and Internet

connections provide connectivity

and networking capabilities.


Networking

• In a LAN, workstations are located within a short distance. They are relatively less expensive.

• In a WAN, communication systems span great distances and are typically set up and managed by large corporations. They are expensive to install and maintain.

• A dial-up connection to the Internet through an Internet Service Provider (ISP) also enables communication.


Networking

• To establish communication between a Macintosh and Windows PC, install Ethernet system and client-server software.

• Ethernet is a method of wiring up computers.

• Client/server software is required for communication and transfer of files.

• Macintosh computers have built-in Ethernet networking, while Windows PCs require an additional Ethernet card.


Networking

• MACs

• Have ethernet built

in

• Usually run

Appletalk

• Need DAVE to

communicate with

PC

• PCs

• Need ethernet

cards

• Usually run TCP/IP

• Need MACLAN to

communicate with

MAC

Client/server software enables computers to

communicate through an ISP


Connections

• SCSI ( “scuzzy”) – Small Computer System Interface – lets you add peripherals ( up to 8)

• IDE- connect internal devices

• USB- universal serial bus- “plug and play” and “hot swappable”

• Firewire (IEEE 1394)- supports high bandwidth serial data transfer among multiple computers


Memory

• Sufficient memory must be allocated for storing and archiving files.

• Memory requirements of a multimedia project depend on the project's content and scope.

• The two types of memory are random access memory (RAM) and read only memory (ROM).


Memory and Storage Devices

• RAM

• ROM

• Floppy and Hard Disks

• Zip, Jaz and Syquest – Zip – 100MB

– Jaz – 1 GB

• Optical Storage CD, CD-R, etc.)

• DVD (Digital Versatile Disk) upto 1GB – DVD-video

– DVD-ROM


Input Devices • Keyboards

• Mice and Trackballs

• Touchscreens

• Magnetic Card Encoders and Readers

• Graphic Tablets

• Scanners

• Optical Code Recognition (OCR)Devices

• Infrared remotes

• Voice Recognition Systems

• Digital Cameras

• Lightpens


Output Hardware

• Audio Devices

• Amplifiers and Speakers

• Monitors

• Video Devices

• Projectors • CRT – cathode ray tube

• LCD – liquid crystal display

• Printers – Injet

– laser


Communication Devices

• Modems ( Hayes Compatible) v.90

• ISDN – Integrated Services Digital

Network

• DSL-Digital Subscriber Line

• Cable Modems


Modems

• Modems modulate and de-modulate analog signals.

• They provide connectivity through standard phone lines.

• Modems can be internal or external.

• Modem speed is measured in baud, and the standard modem speed should be at least 56 Kbps.


ISDN

• ISDN stands for Integrated Services Digital Network.

• It is used for higher transmission speeds by telephone.

• They transfer data at the rate of 128 Kbps.

• ISDN lines are used for networking, Internet access, and audio-video conferencing.

• They are more expensive than the conventional analog lines.


Cable Modems

• They provide Internet access at

speeds 100 to 1,000 times faster than

a telephone modem, over the same

cable network that supplies the

television signal.

• However, due to noise in the system,

sending rates may be much slower

than receiving rates.


Summary

• Macintosh and Windows are the two most

common hardware platforms used in

multimedia.

• LANs, WANs, Ethernet, and client-server

software facilitate communication and

connectivity among computers.

• Storage devices include floppy disks, hard

disks, Zip drives, Jaz drives, MO drives,

DVDs, and CD-ROMs.


Summary

• Input devices include keyboards, mice, trackballs, touchscreens, graphic tablets, scanners, OCR devices, infrared remotes, voice recognition software, and digital cameras.

• Output devices include audio devices, speakers, amplifiers, monitors, video devices, projectors, and printers.

• Communication devices include modems, ISDN lines, and cable modems.


Chapter 10

Basic Software Tools


Basic Tools - Overview

• Authoring system ( Authorware)

• Text Editing, Word Processing Tools ( Word)

• Painting and Drawing Tools

• 2D,3D Modeling and Animation Tools

• Image Editing Tools

• Sound Editing Tools

• Animation, Video, and Digital Movie Tools

• Utilities useful for multimedia


Text Tools •Word Processors


Text Editing and

Word Processing

• “Each new tool has a learning curve”

• Word Processor ( WORD ) – for basic typing, also allows embedded multimedia elements

• OCR ( optical character recognition) – software which turns bitmapped characters into electronically recognizable text – can be used with scanners – Can be imported into Word document

– BE CAREFUL of COPYRIGHT LAWS!!!!


Text-based tools

Word processors: – Are powerful applications that include spell

checkers, table formatters, thesaurus, and

pre-built templates for commonly used documents.

– Are used for creating project letters, invoices, and storyboards.

– Allow embedded multimedia elements.

– Microsoft Word and WordPerfect are Word processors.

– Often come bundled in an "Office Suite."


Text Tools •Word Processors

•OCR Software


Text-based Tools

Optical Character Recognition (OCR)

software:

– Converts bitmapped characters into

electronically recognizable ASCII text.

– Makes use of probability and expert

system algorithms.

– Is very accurate and saves time and

effort.


Graphics Tools •Painting and Drawing Tools



•3-D Modeling Tools



•3-D Modeling Tools

•Image Editing Tools


Painting and Drawing Tools

• Most graphic programs use bitmapped images since they provide the greatest choice.

• Include the Eyedropper tool, Autotrace tool, and anti-aliasing, airbrushing, blending, and masking functionalities.

• PhotoShop, Fireworks, and Painter are painting software.

• CorelDraw, FreeHand, and Illustrator are drawing software.



• Painting Software (Photoshop) – can

produce bitmapped images

• Drawing software

(Freehand, Corel Draw or Illustrator)

can produce vector- based line art

easily printed to paper

• Some combine the features of both



Features include:

– An intuitive graphical user interface.

– Scalable dimensions.

– Multiple undo capability.

– Scalable text font support.

– Support for third-party special effect

plug-ins.

– Layering capability.


Features of Drawing/Painting

Programs

• Graphical interface

• Scalable dimensions to resize, stretch

• Ability to pour color, pattern in areas

• Ability to paint with pattern and clip art

• Customizable pen, brush, eyedropper

• Support for scalable text fonts

• Zooming and multiple undo‟s

• Object layering


Bitmapped vs. Vector graphics

• A bitmap is a set of pixels or a grid of dots which are displayed on the computer screen to forma an image

• Bitmapped images are more powerful for rendering fine detail and effects

• Vector images are stored as mathematical equations or algorithms that define the curves, lines and shapes in a picture

• Vector-graphics produced by programs such as FLASH load quickly


Bitmap vs. Vector Graphics

• Vector images have advantages over

bitmaps:

– Vector images are scalable ( size can be

changed without loss of quality

– Smaller file size usually results in faster

internet downloads


3-D Modeling Tools

Features include:

– Good color and palette management.

– Multiple dimension windows and

unlimited cameras.

– Lathe and extrude features.

– Ability to drag and drop primitive

shapes, sculpt organic objects.

– Color and texture mapping.


2D, 3D Modeling and Animation

• MiniCAD can translate 2D into 3D

• Good 3D modeling tools include: – Multiple windows to view from the “camera‟s

perspective”

– Ability to drag and drop into a scene

– Ability to create objects

– Color and texture mapping

– Ability to add realistic effects (fog, shadow..)

– Ability to add special lighting effects

– Ability to draw spline- based paths for animation


Image-Editing Tools

• Are specialized and powerful tools for enhancing and retouching existing bitmapped images.

• Features include conversion of image-data types and file formats, masking features, employment of virtual memory scheme, etc.

• Support third-party plug-ins.


Image Editing Tools

• Specialized tools for enhancing and

retouching existing bitmapped images

• Some provide tools of drawing and

painting packages

• Some can create images from scratched

as well as import images from digital

cameras, scanners. Original artwork or

files made with drawing/painting packages


Features of Image Editing Tools

(Example- Photoshop) –See pp. 95-96 for complete list of features

• Multiple windows

• Conversion of major image formats

• Direct input from scanner, video sources

• Good selection tools for editing

• Good masking tools

• Multiple levels of undo‟s

• Color mapping controls

• Tools to retouch, blur, sharpen, lighten…

• Geometric transformations….


Common Computer

Graphics Formats

• .bmp - Windows bitmap

• .pic – PC Paint graphics format

• .mac – Macintosh MacPaint format

• .gif ( Graphics Interchange Format) –

common for graphics on the world wide web

• .jpg – JPEG image (Joint Photographic

Experts Group) – platform independent –

used for photos

• .pcd – Kodak‟s Photo CD format


Common Computer

Graphics Formats

• .pict – Macintosh standard image format

• .png - Portable Network Graphics Format –

approved by W3C to replace the GIF

format for the web

• .tga – targa video capture board format

• .tif ( Tagged image file format (TIFF)

• .wpg – Word Perfect graphics format


Other Graphics

• Clip Art – extensive clip art libraries

exist on the internet; many have

general categories such as nature,

icons, backgrounds, etc.

• Digitized Pictures – captured from

cameras, videos, etc.


Audio and Video Tools •Sound Editing Tools

•Animation and Video Tools


Sound Editing Tools

• Enables the user to “see” music as well as hear sound.

• This is done by drawing a representation of sound in fine increments.

• Enable the user to create custom system beeps.

• System beeps are pre-packaged sounds that indicate an error, warning or special user activity.


Sound Editing

• Sound editing for digitized and MIDI sound

let you “see” sound ( as a score or wave

form) as well as hear it.

• Allows you to create sound and special

effects

• Creative Labs Wave Studio often comes

with PC sound boards; Mac users need to

get Sound Edit16 or similar tools


Sound Objects

• Waveform Audio

• MIDI soundtracks

• Compact disc ( CD) audio

• MP3 files


Waveform Audio

• Similar to digital images, sounds can

be digitized

• The waveform describes its

frequency, amplitude and harmonics

• Digitized by sampling wave many

times a second and stored as data in

a .wav file


MIDI

• Stands for

Musical Instrument Digital Interface

• MIDI stores the performance information needed for your sound card to play the music : notes on/off, duration, loud/soft/ timbre/tone and other special effects

• Stored as .mid file


Audio CD

• Stores up to 75 minutes of high

quality sound

• Sampled at a rate of 44,100 /second

• Samples are 16 bits, with a range of

98dB ( from a quiet whisper to a loud

scream)


MP3 Format

• Stands for MPEG Audio Layer 3

• Audio file format that uses a code to encode (compress) and decode

(decompress) recorded music into smaller files to transmit across the internet

• Software which creates MP3 files from an audio CD is called a ripper


Animation, Video, and Digital

Movie Tools

• Animation is a sequence of bitmapped graphic scenes or frames, rapidly played back.

• Animations can be made within some authoring systems by moving objects or sprites to simulate motion.

• Moviemaking tools take advantage of QuickTime and AVI formats to create, edit, and present digitized motion video segments.



Movie Tools

• Digital video editing and playback require

a large amount of free disk space.

• When working with digital video, it is

necessary to defragment and optimize the

disk before recording and playing back

movie files.

• It is necessary to compress movie files

before delivery.



Movie Tools

• Compression ratio is the size of the

original image divided by the size of the

compressed image.

• Compression can by lossy or lossless.

• Lossy schemes ignore picture information

the viewer may not miss.

• Lossless schemes preserve the original

data precisely.


Animation

• Frame Animation

• Vector animation

• Computational animation

• Morphing


Animation, Video and Digital

Movie Tools

• Animations are often sequences of

bitmapped graphics( frames), which are played back rapidly ( frame –oriented)

• Authoring systems can create animation by rapidly changing the location of objects or sprites (object-oriented or vector animation.)


Animation

• Vector animation varies the

beginning, length and direction

parameters for the lines that define

an image, such as in FLASH

• Computational animation allows you

to move object across the screen by

changing their x,y coordinates


Morphing

• An animation technique that allows

you to blend two still images creating

a sequence of in-between images

that show one image

metamorphosing into the other ( for

example a race car changing into a

running tiger…)


Animation, Video and Digital

Movie Tools

• Special hardware (video capture boards)

are often needed to convert analog signal

(camera) to digital (computer) – more

recently digital cameras and camcorders

have become available

• (Adobe Premiere ) allows you to edit video

clips assembled from camera videotape,

scanned images, digitized audio or MIDI

files


Video Formats

QuickTime:

– Is a software-based architecture for integrating

sound, text, animation, and video on Macintosh

and Windows platform.

– Is an extensible system for multimedia delivery.

– Can deliver 3-D animations, virtual reality, and

streaming audio-video on the Web.

– The three QuickTime elements are Movie file

format, Media Abstraction Layer, and Media

services.


Video Formats

QuickTime (continued):

– Includes built-in support for ten

different media types.

– Offers a comprehensive set of services.

– Allows embedded commands in HTML

documents.


Video Formats

Audio Video Interleaved (AVI):

– Is a Microsoft-developed format for playing full-motion interleaved video and audio sequences in Windows.

– Does not require specialized hardware.

– Is an inextensible, open environment.

– Lacks serious video editing features.

– The OpenDML format was developed to make AVI more functional.


Video Formats

• QuickTime and Audio Video Interleaved

(AVI) formats support special algorithms,

provide a methodology for interleaving,

and allow organized streaming of data

from disk into memory.

• Digital Versatile Disc (DVD) is a hardware

format that uses laser light to store and

read digital information.


Common Video Formats

• QuickTime from Apple for both Mac and

PC

• AVI – MS Audio Video Interleaved for

Windows

• Both blend (interleave) audio and video

• Neither is currently capable of producing

full screen images at 30 frames/second

(TV standard)


QuickTime • Multitrack recorder with almost

unlimited range of tracks.

• Supports digitized video and sound,

computer animations, MIDI data, and

external devices ( CD-ROM players,

videodisks, etc.)

• Provides imbedded support and

services for 10 media types ( p.101)

• Provides embedded HTML

commands


QuickTime

• Integrates sound, text, animation and

video

• Can be used on the internet to

deliver multimedia through plug-ins

• Provides the foundation for the new

MPEG-4 Multimedia format for the

web


QuickTime

• Movie file format- provides a standard method for storing audio, video, text

• Media Abstraction Layer – describes how your computer should access the media

• Media Services- includes built-in support for different media types and offers services for: timing, synchronization, data compression, format conversion, audio mixing, special effects, media capture,

movie controllers, etc. ( See p.114-115)


Some QuickTime Embedded

Commands for HTML

• Powerful commands for controlling a QuickTime file can be embedded right in the HTML code: – AUTOPLAY- starts movie automatically

– BGCOLOR – sets background color for movie

– HEIGHT and WIDTH specifies size of movie in

web page

– LOOP- plays movie in continuous loop

– VOLUME- sets default playback volume

– HIDDEN – plays sound only


Windows Video

• Media Control Interface ( MCI) provides a

uniform command interface for managing

audio and video that interleaves them

together in the file called AVI – (audio

video interleaved).

• AVI plays about 15 frames/second in a

small window

• Lacks features needed for serious

video/sound editing


Windows Video Features

• Playback from hard disk or CD-ROM

• Uses limited amount of memory

• Quick loading and playing

• Video compression available

• Some tools VidCap and VidEdit to

capture and edit video ( see p. 116)


Movie Editors

• With desktop editing software and video digitizing boards you can digitize video clips, edit the clip, add special effects and titles, mix sound tracks and save the finished product on magnetic or optical media

• Reuires an enormous of hard drive space

• Software : Adobe Premiere

• Digitizing Boards: Targa, Creative Labs

• ( see p. 117)


Movie Compression

• Image compression algorithms are essential to deliver motion video and audio

• Massive amounts of data are needed to display a new screen image every 1/30 second

• Compression ratio of at least 5:1 needed to transmit over phone lines


Movie Compression

• Compression ratio- size of the

original image divided by the size of the compressed image; usually only the part of the image that changes form image to image ( delta), The higher the ratio, the lower the image quality

• Image quality – Lossy- ignores picture information that the

viewer may not miss

– Lostless- preserves the original data precisely

• Compression/decompression speed – ideally as fast as possible


Helpful Accessories •Screen Capture Software

•Format Converter


Utilities Useful For Multimedia

• Screen grabber- allows you to grab all or

part of a screen display and put it into an

authoring system or image editor. (Can

use the clipboard)

• Format converters – for converting source

materials form UNIX, MAC, etc.

• GIF animator – to create animated GIFs,

available on the web, ( public-domain)


Summary

• Word processors and OCR software are

used to handle text in multimedia.

• Painting and drawing tools, 3-D modeling

tools, and image editing tools manipulate

the graphical content of the project.

• QuickTime for Macintosh and AVI for

Windows are the two most widely used

video formats.
