Media Integration Issues M.Dastbaz Designing Interactive Multimedia Systems Media Integration Issues - Chapter 5

Multimedia Authoring Tools Multimedia authoring tools provide the important framework that Multimedia designers require to organises and edit the various elements of a multimedia projects including, Video, Sound, Animation, Graphics and Text. Authoring tools are used for designing interactivity and User Interface. Media Integration Issues - Chapter 5

Multimedia Authoring Tools II There are three general categories of Multimedia authoring tools. These are: Card or page-based tools Icon-based tools Time-based tools Media Integration Issues - Chapter 5

Multimedia Authoring Tools III Card - or Paged based tools Are systems that are based on a book or a page metaphor. This means that the way the elements are organized are similar to pages of a book or a card file. The authoring system lets you link these pages or cards into an organized sequence. E.g. Hypercard Media Integration Issues - Chapter 5

Multimedia Authoring Tools IV Icon-Based Tools These authoring tools multimedia elements or interaction cues are organised as objects in a structural framework. The programme typically displays flow diagram of activities along branching paths E.g Macromedia Authorware Media Integration Issues - Chapter 5

Multimedia Authoring Tools V Time-Based Tools These authoring systems view the development of a multimedia package as organising objects along a time line. Sequentially organised frames are then played back to the user. E.g Macromedia Director Media Integration Issues - Chapter 5

Media Integration Issues - Chapter 5 Multimedia Elements I Text Text forms an important part of any multimedia package. Depending what the application is for the use of text could me minimum or maximum. For example an action arcade type of game may require very little text while a Multimedia encyclopedia will require enormous amount of text. Media Integration Issues - Chapter 5

Multimedia Elements II Text II In any case issues that need to be taken into account when you integrating text are as follows: Different Fonts look different on various platforms Use of special type of fonts require provisions on the clients machine Need to strike a right balance for Text size, colour and special effects like anti-alias, where the text is gently blend into the background Media Integration Issues - Chapter 5

Multimedia Elements III Sound The introduction of audio capability into Desktop PC add powerful new functionality that could be exploited developing interactive and Multimedia packages. Recording, editing and playing back audio files is speciality that requires in-depth knowledge of digital audio and big multimedia projects usually have a sound engineer advising the development team. Media Integration Issues - Chapter 5

Multimedia Elements IV Sound II There are two main types of approaches in incorporating audio files in a multimedia environment: 1. Digital Audio 2. MIDI files MIDI Files (Musical Instrument Digital Interface MIDI): is a communication standard developed in early 1980s for electronic musical instruments & Computers. Media Integration Issues - Chapter 5

Media Integration Issues - Chapter 5 Multimedia Elements V Sound III MIDI standards allows music and sound synthesizers from different manufactures to communicate with each other by sending messages along the cables connecting them together. MIDI provides a protocol for passing detailed descriptions of a musical score, such as notes and what instrument will play these notes. Media Integration Issues - Chapter 5

Multimedia Elements VI Sound IV Hence MIDI is not digitized sound - it is short-hand representation of music stored in numeric form. MIDI files are therefore much smaller that digital wav files by between 200-1000 times. Creating MIDI files are usually quiet difficult and complex task. Media Integration Issues - Chapter 5

Media Integration Issues - Chapter 5 Multimedia Elements V SOUND V Digitize Sound: You can digitize sound from microphone, a synthesizer, CD-player and even TV broadcasts. In contrasts to MIDI data, digital audio is the actual representation of sound, stored in the forms of thousands of individual numbers called “samples” Media Integration Issues - Chapter 5

Multimedia Elements VI SOUND VI For best quality of sound play-back i.e. CD-quality you require a 44KHz sampling rate, 16bit resolution, Stereo which creates very large “.wav” files. A typical 1 minute CD-quality audio requires around 10.5 MB of space. If the same file is sampled ate 5.5 KHz sampling rate, 8 bit resolution and mono recording the file size for 1 minute of digital sound will reduce to typically 325 KB. Media Integration Issues - Chapter 5

Multimedia Elements VII Graphics Still images are also an important part of multimedia applications that require knowledge and expertise in terms of both creating them as well as manipulating graphic tools to add various effects and create various types of files. In general we could identify three types of graphic files. Media Integration Issues - Chapter 5

Multimedia Elements VIII Graphics II Colour Grpahics (which then could have and represent varying shade of of color (4 bit - 16 colours; 8 bit, 256 colors; 16 bit 32,768 colours, 24 bit millions of colours). Gray Scale Graphics (graphic files that are effectively in black and white but capable of displaying various depth (4bit,8bit,16bit) shade of gray. Mono Graphics (2 colour, balck & white). Media Integration Issues - Chapter 5

Multimedia Elements VIII Graphics III Files Types include: BITMAPS- .bmp JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group) compressed graphic files TIFF PSD CDR PICT etc…. Media Integration Issues - Chapter 5

Multimedia Elements IX Animation Adds visual impact to a multimedia project. But creating animation requires quiet an in-depth knowledge of 2D and 3D drawing and image manipulation. Animation is possible because of a biological phenomenon known as persistence vision. This means that an object seen by the human eye remains mapped on the eye’s retina for a brief time after viewing, hence making it possible for a series of images changing very slightly to seemingly blend together to create an illusion of movement. Media Integration Issues - Chapter 5

Media Integration Issues - Chapter 5 Multimedia Elements X Digital Viedo Carefully planned, well executed video clips can make a dramatic difference to a multimedia project. Creating Digital video Requires professional tools Professional editing facilities and Lots of storage space. Media Integration Issues - Chapter 5

Multimedia Elements XI Digital Video II There are different video standards and formats NTSC (National Television Standards Committee - 1952, which defines a single video frame of being made up of 525 horizontal scan lines drawn every 1/30 of a second by a fast-moving electron beam ) Used in USA, Japan and many other countries Media Integration Issues - Chapter 5

Multimedia Elements XII Digital Video III PAL (Phase Alternate Line) system used in UK, Europe, and some other countries. This is an integrated method of adding colour to a black and white television signal that paints 625 lines at a a frame rate of 25 Fps, each taking 1/50 of second to draw (50 Hz). SECAM (Sequential Colour and Memory system)- Used in France is 625 lines, 50 Hz. HDTV (High definition TV) 1200 lines of resolution (similar to Cinemascope) Media Integration Issues - Chapter 5

Multimedia Elements XIII Digital Video Recording Video requires Video capture cards installed in your Desktop PC Video Integration - Size vs. Quality Video Formats : Quick-time MPEG (Motion Picture Experts Group) AVI , etc... Media Integration Issues - Chapter 5

Media Integration Issues - Chapter 5 Finally As can be gathered from what we have covered so far creating multimedia projects is no longer just about programming but requires a range of varying skills such as sound engineering, digital video, animation to graphic manipulation. Media Integration Issues - Chapter 5