MULTIMEDIA

Chap 1.Introduction to Multimedia

Definition and Scope of MultimediaDefinition : Mutimedia is any combination of text,

art, sound, animation, and video delivered to you by computer or other electronic or digitally manipulated means.

Definition and Scope of Multimedia

Definition and Scope of MultimediaInteractive Multimedia : When you allow an end user or viewer of a multimedia project to control what and when the elements are delivered, it is called interactive multimedia.

Hypermedia : When you provide a structure of linked elements through which the user can navigate, it is called hypermedia.

Definition and Scope of Multimedia

Definition and Scope of MultimediaScope of Multimedia :1. The technology of multimedia design utilizes various

features like animation, video, graphics, audio and sound to impress the users.

2. Multimedia technology is used for 3D cinema applications and mobile environments.

3. Animation is also being used in titling films, creating special effects or in web entertainment programs. Thus scope of animation is huge in context to market.

4. In the field of education multimedia is being used extensively especially for online courses and trainings.

5. Multimedia is also used in advertising purposes.

Definition and Scope of MultimediaScope of Multimedia :6. Education and training

A great learning tool, the use of multimedia allows for interactive learning at the users pace. Training sessions can be transportable on DVD or CD ROM to allow for maximum flexibility.

7. Sales and MarketingThe use of multimedia at kiosks at trade shows

are used to entertain and educate. Businesses design flexible and interactive multimedia presentations to describe their products and services for their sales force as well.

Definition and Scope of MultimediaScope of Multimedia :8. Displays and Kiosks

Multimedia can also be used in stores to entertain, educate, engage and market to customers. Whether your customers are standing in line waiting to check out, at a trade show or walking or driving on the street, multimedia can be used to engage, motivate and inspire your potential client to make a purchasing decision.9. Websites

Want to add pizzazz to your website? Multimedia is the way to go. With varying levels of interactivity, you can engage your audience and increase the ‘stickiness’ of your site by including interactive tests and quizzes, learning sequences, and engaging mini-movies.

Definition and Scope of MultimediaScope of Multimedia :10.Entertainment

Animation, music, sound, graphics and lots of multimedia programming are used to give life to these to huge industries.

Components & Applications

Multimedia is the field concerned with the computer-controlled integration of text, graphics, drawings, still and moving images (Video), animation, audio, and any other media where every type of information can be represented, stored, transmitted and processed digitally.

The basic five Elements of Multimedia1. Text2. Images3. Audio4. Animation5. Video

Components & ApplicationsText

It may be an easy content type to forget when considering multimedia systems, but text content is by far the most common media type in computing applications.

Most multimedia systems use a combination of text and other media to deliver functionality.

Text in multimedia systems can express specific information, or it can act as reinforcement for information contained in other media items.

For example, when Web pages include image elements, they can also include a short amount of text for the user's browser, Wikipedia is the best example.

Components & ApplicationsImages

Digital image files appear in many multimedia applications.

Interactive elements, such as buttons, often use custom images created by the designers and developers involved in an application.

Digital image files use a variety of formats and file extensions. Among the most common are JPEGs and PNGs.

Both of these often appear on websites, as the formats allow developers to minimize on file size while maximizing on picture quality.

Graphic design software programs such as Photoshop and Paint.NET allow developers to create complex visual effects with digital images.

Components & Applications

Components & ApplicationsImages

BMP file format

PNG file format

TIFF file format

JPEG file format

Components & ApplicationsAudio

Audio files play a major role in some multimedia systems. Audio files appear as part of application content and also to aid interaction.

When they appear within Web applications and sites, audio files sometimes need to be deployed using plug-in media players.

Audio formats include MP3, WMA, Wave, MIDI and RealAudio.

When developers include audio within a website, they will generally use a compressed format to minimize on download times.

Web services can also stream audio, so that users can begin playback before the entire file is downloaded.

Components & Applications

VideoDigital video appears in many multimedia

applications, particularly on the Web. As with audio, websites can stream digital video

to increase the speed and availability of playback. Common digital video formats include Flash,

MPEG, AVI, WMV and QuickTime. Most digital video requires use of browser plug-

ins to play within Web pages, but in many cases the user's browser will already have the required resources installed.

Components & Applications

Digital video

Components & ApplicationsAnimation

Animated components are common within both Web and desktop multimedia applications.

Animations can also include interactive effects, allowing users to engage with the animation action using their mouse and keyboard.

The most common tool for creating animations on the Web is Adobe Flash, which also facilitates desktop applications.

Flash also uses Action Script code to achieve animated and interactive effects.

Components & ApplicationsApplication of Multimedia :1. Creative industries : use multimedia for a variety of

purposes ranging from fine arts, to entertainment, to commercial art, to journalism, to media.

2. Commercial uses : Much of the electronic old and new media used by commercial artists is multimedia. Exciting presentations are used to grab and keep attention in advertising.

3. Entertainment and fine arts : In addition, multimedia is heavily used in the entertainment industry, especially to develop special effects in movies and animations. Multimedia games are a popular pastime and are software programs available either as CD-ROMs or online. Some video games also use multimedia features.

Components & ApplicationsApplication of Multimedia :4. Education : multimedia is used to produce

computer-based training courses (popularly called CBTs) and reference books like encyclopedia and almanacs. A CBT lets the user go through a series of presentations, text about a particular topic, and associated illustrations in various information formats. Edutainment is the combination of education with entertainment, especially multimedia entertainment.

5. Journalism : Newspaper companies all over are also trying to embrace the new phenomenon by implementing its practices in their work.

Components & ApplicationsAn almanac (also archaically spelled almanack and

almanach) is an annual publication that includes information such as weather forecasts, farmers' planting dates, tide tables, and tabular information often arranged according to the calendar.

Astronomical data and various statistics are found in almanacs, such as the times of the rising and setting of the sun and moon, eclipses, hours of full tide, stated festivals of churches, and so on.

Components & ApplicationsApplication of Multimedia :6. Engineering : Software engineers may use

multimedia in Computer Simulations for anything from entertainment to training such as industrial training.

7. Industry : In the Industrial sector, multimedia is used as a way to help present information to shareholders, superiors and coworkers. Multimedia is also helpful for providing employee training, advertising and selling products all over the world via virtually unlimited web-based technology.

8. Medicine : In Medicine, doctors can get trained by looking at a virtual surgery or they can simulate how the human body is affected by diseases spread by viruses and bacteria and then develop techniques to prevent it.

Interactive Multimedia

Interactive means that the user or audience has control over the program or presentation.

Multimedia applications that allow users to actively participate instead of just sitting by as passive

recipients of information are called Interactive Multimedia.

Interactive Multimediainteractive multimedia,  any computer-delivered electronic system that allows the user to control, combine, and manipulate different types of media, such as sound, video, computer graphics, and animation. Interactive multimedia integrate computer, memory storage, digital (binary) data, telephone, television, and other information technologies. Their most common applications include training programs, video games, and travel guides. Interactive multimedia shift the user’s role from observer to participant and are considered the next generation of electronic information systems.

Interactive Multimedia

Appropriate Uses of IM.Games.Education.Training.Corporate presentation.

Interactive Multimediae.g.

A personal computer (PC) system with conventional magnetic-disk memory storage technically qualifies as a type of interactive multimedia.

The most common multimedia machine consists of a PC with a digital speaker unit and a CD-ROM (compact disc read-only memory) drive, which optically retrieves data and instructions from a CD-ROM.

Interactive Multimedia

Interactive Multimedia

Multimedia Growth

1. Marketing Standpoint.

2. User Standpoint.

Multimedia Growth

Marketing Standpoint :

Computer price1992 – 1 mil - $2,500 or $1,000 upgrade1996 – 24 mil - $1,500 or $300 upgrade

Multimedia titles1992 – 5,000 - $1001996 – 15,000 - $30

Hype - “killer applications”Value added – enhances computer use

Multimedia Growth

User Standpoint :

User controlNo longer only lectures and/or printed materialsAny sequence of the material, any time, anywhere,

any modality

Individualization Address different learning styles and needs User decides how material is presented:

visual, audio, textual Adjusting level of difficulty

Multimedia Growth

User Standpoint :

Action Active processes: simulations, acting out a play,

testing knowledge and feedback

Examples500 Nations, Grandma and Me , Magic School Bus

Multimedia Advantages & Disadvantages.Advantages :1. The use of multimedia offers many advantages: 1.

Enhancement of Text Only Messages: Multimedia enhances text only presentations by adding interesting sounds and compelling visuals.

2. Improves over Traditional Audio-Video Presentations: Audiences are more attentive to multimedia messages than traditional presentations done with slides or overhead transparencies.

3. Gains and Holds Attention: People are more interested in multimedia messages which combine the elements of text, audio, graphics and video. Communication research has shown that the combination of communication modes (aural and visual) offers greater understanding and retention of information.

Multimedia Advantages & Disadvantages.Advantages :4. Increases learning effectiveness.5. Is more appealing over traditional,

lecture-based learning methods.6. Provides high-quality video images &

audio. 7. Reduces training costs.8. Offers system portability.9. Creates knowledge connections

Multimedia Advantages & Disadvantages.Disadvantages :1. Expensive2. Not always easy to configure3. Requires special hardware4. Not always compatible5. Complex to create

Major categories of Multimedia titles.

Entertainment

Education

Corporate communications

Reference

Major categories of Multimedia titles.

Entertainment• Games: action and graphics• Action + storytelling

Education• Accommodates different learning styles: association vs. experimentation; auditory vs.

visual

Major categories of Multimedia titles.

Corporate communications (marketing and training)Attract attention to a message

Product catalogs, published magazines, touch-screen kiosks, online shopping, …

Stockholder's meeting, conference speaker, employee orientation and training, …

Major categories of Multimedia titles.

ReferenceCD: encyclopedias, census data, directories,

dictionaries

Multimedia Products. There are many different types of Multimedia Products, so many that sometime you may not even realise that you are using one.there are:

Educational Products :

Interactive CD-ROMs - Have been used in classrooms for a while. At the beginning people could only access text, then soon came video and sound.  The ease that the programs advantage the students with help them finish their own work quicker.

Multimedia Products. Multimedia Presentations - let people to creat slide shows with helpful things in them like, animations, web links, animated text and digital movies. In Classrooms and lectures at schools and universities, Powerpoint are often used as a teaching aid.

Computer-based training - (CBT) uses multimedia to help people learn about a subject, or to help teach other people in the work place. A person can learn how to operate machinery or learn a procedure used in an office. An advantage of CBT over the types of training is that, users can retrace their steps in a complex operation as many times as they wish.

Multimedia Products. Entertainment Products:

Entertain often drives advances in computing and multimedia is an example of this. Games have become one of the most popular applications of multimedia.

Multimedia games - Games today are extremely interactive. Gamers can control the camera angles and the direction and speed of their character in the games as well . These games have realistic sounds and effects, offer complex puzzles to solve, and make the player feel very apart of the imaginary world.

Multimedia Products. Interactive DVD movies - DVDs dont only offer more applications then when seen at the movies, they also let the person watching interact with the plot, actors, by selection actions on screen.

Interactive digital television - Now a days, shows on television often include the watching audience more often then not make the home entertainment systems more and more apart of you daily life.

Multimedia Products. Information Products:

Information kiosks - Recently people have been replaced with machines, like touch screen information kiosks instead of an information desk.

Electronic books and magazines - are a lot more sufficient then having a whole pile of magazines at home, you can have then all on your touch screen book. Such and idea was brought up to see if people rather reading a boom on paper or on their computer screen.

Multimedia Products. Multimedia databases - are used to basically show media, the person who designed a database can make it very easy to retrieve information that you seek quickly by putting key works or buttons that take you straight what you need.A lot of school have started to use these as it will be a lot quicker and easier for the schools to manage.e.g. all text, audio, video etc. include in mutimedia page.

Other Multimedia Products. - Communication has become a fairly important multimedia category lately with such things as phones, ipod, and computers developing and being wanted more and more rapidly.

Multimedia Products. Edutainment products - basically mix educations and entertainment together, like educational games and such, these have also become a large teaching aid, especially within primary school.

Infotainment products - basically mix information and entertainment together, like documentary and entertainment, by maybe making it funny, or more enjoyable and interesting to watch.

Kiosk. An interactive kiosk is any computer-like device

deployed in a public venue to give people self service access to products and services.

Kiosks are typically placed in retail stores, airports, libraries, company cafeterias, and other places where personal computers are not available but self-service applications can provide some benefit.

Kiosk.

Unlike a typical PC, though, a kiosk typically performs only a few specific tasks, is designed to be used by many different people.

Who Uses Kiosks?Kiosks are most often deployed in situations

where a problem can be solved by giving people access to self-service tools.

Kiosk. For example, imagine a large shipping company

with dozens of warehouses around the country, and hundreds of employees working in each.

To find out about remaining vacation days, sick leave or pension information, each of these employees would have to contact a human resources representative, who would then have to call up the employee’s file, and send the information back by fax or phone.

This system is expensive, inefficient, and error-prone. A simple solution would be to use interactive kiosks placed on the warehouse floor to allow employees to look up answers to their own questions.

Unlike additional support staff, kiosks provide immediate access to information, are available 24 hours a day, and don’t get paid overtime.

Kiosk. The Anatomy of a Kiosk :

Interactive kiosks come in many shapes and sizes, and are often custom-built for a specific application.

A kiosk on a cosmetics counter displaying beauty tips might come in a svelte, fashionable case.

Regardless of how they look, kiosks tend to have several features in common. Most readily apparent is the cabinet, the shell which houses the kiosk's innards. The cabinet holds a CPU, display, and any peripherals that the kiosk might need to do its job.

Kiosk.

Kiosk. The CPU, or central processing unit, is the

computer that runs the kiosk application. In most cases, it is simply a regular personal computer bought from a major manufacturer (e.g. Dell or IBM), or made with off-the-shelf parts. It contains the processor, RAM, hard disk, and other components found in the average PC.

The display presents the kiosk application to the user. Often, it is simply a computer monitor, television, or flat-panel screen connected to the CPU. However, more exotic displays like large-format plasma screens are becoming increasingly popular in kiosk applications for consumer marketing and advertising.

Kiosk. Kiosks often contain additional peripheral

devices to provide increased functionality. For example, a library self-checkout kiosk might have a barcode reader for scanning library books and cards, while a movie ticket kiosk might have a printer and credit card reader for making transactions and printingtickets. In addition, special input devices like touch screens and industrial trackballs are often used to make the kiosk as durable and easy-to-use as possible.

A fully-assembled kiosk with cabinet, CPU, display and peripherals is still little more than a glorified PC. Special software is needed to turn such a system into a fully-qualified interactive kiosk.

Multimedia in Public PlacesMultimedia is present in standalone terminals, or

kiosks, in airport terminals, hotels, mall, train stations, museums, grocery stores, and more.

It provides us information and help about a particular place. Interactive kiosks enables you to make a transaction without talking a sales agent.

Multimedia is piped to wireless devices such as cell phones. So that information available around the clock, even in the middle of the night, when live help is off duty.e.g. : a menu screen from a supermarket kiosk that provides services ranging from meal planning to coupons.

a hotel kiosks list nearby restaurants, maps of the city, airline schedules, and provide guest services such as automated checkout.

Multimedia in Public Places

Museum kiosks are not only used to guide patrons through the exhibits, but when installed at each exhibit, provide great added depth allowing visitors to browse through richly detailed information specific to that display

Multimedia in Web

Multimedia was introduced in the internet with the advent of WWW. In face, the web is the multimedia part of the internet.

In the early stages of the internet, you can view information in plain text.

The web enables multimedia to be delivered online.

Playing live internet games with multiple players around the world has caught much attention.

Some e-learning systems use multimedia on the internet as a method to deliver learning materials to students anywhere.

e.g. all types of websites.

Multimedia in Business

Business application that are multimedia based include presentations, training, marketing, advertising, product demos, databases and networked communication.

Multimedia is getting much utilization in training programs.

Voice mail and video conferencing are useful in business.

A multimedia presentation can make an audience come alive. Most presentation software packages let you add audio and video clips to the usual slide show of graphics and text material.

Multimedia in Businesse.g.

Medical doctors and veterinarians can practice surgery methods via simulation prior to actual surgery.

Mechanics learn to repair engines.Salespeople learn about product lines and leave

behind software to train their customers.Laptop computers and high-resolution projectors

are commonplace for multimedia presentations on the road.

Cell phones and personal digital assistants(PDAs) utilizing blue-tooth and Wi-Fi communications technology make communication and the pursuit of business more efficient.

Multimedia in Mobile phoneMobile devices such as personal digital assistants

(PDAs or handheld computers), smartphones, and mobile divices are not exceptions to multimedia.

MMS (multimedia messages servives) is a store-and-forward method of transmitting graphics, video clips, sound files, and short text messages over wireless network.

It also supports email addressing, so the device can send-emails directly to communication between mobile phones.

Hypermedia & Hypertext.Multimedia becomes interactive multimedia when

you give the user some control over what information is viewed and when it is viewed.

Interactive multimedia becomes hypermedia when its designer provides a structure of linked elements through which a user can navigate and interact.

When words are indexed to other words, we have a HYPERTEXT SYSTEM. Hypertext is what the WWW is all about.

When text is stored in a computer instead of on printed pages, the computer’s powerful processing capabilities can be applied to make the text more accessible and meaningful. The text can then be called hypertext; because the word, sections and thoughts are linked, the user can navigate through text in a nonlinear way, quickly.

Hypermedia & Hypertext.Using Hypertext…….. Special programs for information management and hypertext have been designed to present electronic text, images and other elements in a database fashion.

Commercial systems have been used for large and complicated mixtures of text and images.

for example, a detailed repair manual for a Boeing 747 aircraft, a parts catalog for Pratt & Whitney jet turbine engines, an instant reference to hazardous chemicals, and electronic reference libraries used in legal and library environments.

Google’s search engine produces about 1220000000 hits in less than a quarter of a second.

Hypermedia & Hypertext.Hypermedia Structure….Two buzzwords used often in hypertext systems are link and node.

Links are connections between the conceptual elements, that is, the nodes that may consist of text, graphics, sounds, or related information in the knowledge base.

Along with the use of HTML for the WWW, the term anchor is used for the reference from one document to another document, image, sound or file on the Web.

Links are the navigation pathways and menus nodes are accessible topics, documents, messages, and content elements.

A link anchor is where you come from;A link end is the destination node linked to the anchor.Some hypertext systems provide unidirectional

navigation and offer no return pathway; others are bidirectional.

Hypermedia & Hypertext.Hypermedia Structure….The simplest way to navigate hypermedia structures is via buttons that let you access linked information that is contained at the nodes. When you have finished examining the information, you return to your starting location.

Navigation becomes more complicated when you add associative links that connect elements not directly in the hierarchy or sequence.

These are the paths where users can begin to get lost if you do not provide location markers.

Hypermedia & Hypertext.Hypertext tools….Two functions are common to most hypermedia text management systems, and they are often provided as separate applications: building (authoring) and reading.

The builder creates the links, identifies nodes and generates the all important index of words.

The index methodology and the search algorithms used to find and group words according to user search criteria are typically proprietary.

Hypertext systems are currently used for electronic publishing and reference works, technical documentation, educational courseware, interactive kiosks, electronic catalogs, text and image databases.

Hypermedia & Hypertext.Hypermedia Application….Wide variety of application areas:– small size: memos, letters, hypertext fiction,announcements, advertisements.completely authored manually.

– large size: service manuals, technicaldocumentation, educational material, archives,encyclopedia, libraries.information content often stored in databases.many links often generated automatically(e.g. based on occurrence of words or terms).

Hypermedia & Hypertext.Hypermedia Application….Memo

hypertext fiction

Hypermedia & Hypertext.Hypermedia Application….Announcement

hypertext fiction

Hypermedia & Hypertext.Hypermedia Application….Service mannual