UNIT 10
Multimedia
E-books
computer-
encyclopedia
based
and
training dictionary
courses
How many
products can you
virtual think of that slide
reality
systems incorporate presentation
multimedia? Make
a list.
3G mobile
web page
phones
computer
games
Listen to a sales assistant in a computer shop explaining to a
customer the system requirements needed to run multimedia
software. Which answers (a or b) best describe what she says?
Listen again and complete this diagram of a multimedia
system.
Fast
Interactive
High-quality Sound
Speakers Animation
Headphones
Rippers
Microphone
Multimedia magic!
The potential of multimedia
a ______________________________
Multimedia applications are used in all sorts of fields. For example, museums, banks and estate
agents often have information kiosks that use multimedia; companies produce training
programs on optical discs; businesspeople use Microsoft PowerPoint to create slideshows; and
teachers use multimedia to make video projects or to teach subjects like art and music. They
have all found that moving images and sound can involve viewers emotionally as well as inform
them, helping make their message more memorable.
The power of multimedia software resides in hypertext, hypermedia and interactivity (meaning
the user is involved in the programme). If you click on a hypertext link, you can jump to another
screen with more information about a particular subject. Hypermedia is similar, but also uses
graphics, audio and video as hypertext elements.
Sound, Music, MIDI
b _______________________________
As long as your computer has a sound card, you can use it to capture sounds in digital format
and play them back. Sound cards offer two important capabilities: a built-in stereo synthesizer
and a system called MIDI, or Musical Instrument Digital Interface, which allows electronic
musical instruments to communicate with computers. A Digital Audio Workstation (DAW) lets
you mix and record several tracks of digital audio.
You can also listen to music on your PC, or transfer it to a portable MP3 player. MP3 is short for
MPEG audio player 3, a standard format that compresses audio files. If you want to create your
own MP3 files from CDs, you must have a CD ripper, a program that extracts music tracks and
saves them on disk as MP3s.
Multimedia magic!
Audio is becoming a key element of the Web. Many radio stations broadcast live over the
Internet using streaming audio technology, which lets you listen to audio in a continuous
stream while it is being transmitted. The broadcast of an event over the Web, for example a
concert, is called a webcast. Be aware that you won't be able to play audio and video on the
Web unless you have a plug-in like RealPlayer or QuickTime.
Creating and editing movies
c _________________________
Video is another important part of multimedia. Video computing refers to recording,
manipulating and storing video in digital format. If you wanted to make a movie on your
computer, first you would need to capture images with a digital video camera and then transfer
them to your computer. Next, you would need a video editing program like iMovie to cut your
favourite segments, re-sequence the clips and add transitions and other effects. Finally, you
could save your movie on a DVD or post it on websites like YouTube and Google Video.
Products full of pictures, action and sound
d ________________________
Multimedia is used to produce dictionaries and encyclopedias. They often come on DVDs, but
some are also available on the Web. A good example is the Grolier Online Encyclopedia, which
contains thousands of articles, animations, sounds, dynamic maps and hyperlinks. Similarly, the
Encyclopedia Britannica is now available online, and a concise version is available for iPods,
PDAs and mobile phones. Educational courses on history, science and foreign languages are
also available on DVD. Finally, if you like entertainment, you'll love the latest multimedia video
games with surround sound, music soundtracks, and even film extracts.
B Correct the technical mistakes in these sentences.
1. Multimedia training software is distributed on magnetic disks.
2. You need to have MIDI on your computer to hear speech and
music.
3. A stereo synthesizer allows your computer to communicate with
electronic musical instruments.
4. A CD ripper converts CDs to live streams.
5. The Encyclopedia Britannica is only available on DVD.
D Match the words (1-5) with the definitions(a-e).
1 hypertext a the process of manipulating video images
2 hypermedia b text with links which take you to other pages
3 streaming с a technique for playing sound and video files while
they're downloading
4 webcast d a live event broadcast over the Internet
5 video editing e a form of enriched multimedia which allows an
interactive and dynamic linking of visual and audio
elements
Câu điều kiện
} để diễn đạt rằng hành động trong mệnh đề chính chỉ có thể xảy ra nếu một điều kiện
nhất định được thỏa mãn
} Thường có if, unless (=if not), as long as (=provided/providing)
You won't be able to play audio and video on the Web unless you have a plug-in like
RealPlayer or QuickTime. (=if you don't have a plug-in ...)
} Câu điều kiện loại 1 (với trường hợp thực tế hoặc có thể).
If A happens В will happen
(hiện tại đơn) (will + verb)
If you like entertainment, you will love the latest multimedia video games.
} Mệnh đề chính có thể có động từ khuyết thiếu (can, must)
If you want to create your own MP3 files from your CDs, you must have a CD ripper.
} Câu điều kiện loại 2 (cho các tình huống giả thuyết)
If A happened В would happen
(quá khứ đơn) (would + verb)
If you wanted to make a movie on your computer, first you would/you'd need to ....
} Mệnh đề chính, có thể sử dụng các động từ khuyết thiếu khác (could, should, might)
} Nếu be xuất hiện trong mệnh đề if, ta thường sử dụng were thay vì was, ngay cả với
đại từ I, he, she, it
If I were you, I'd get a new MP3 player.
A Complete these sentences with the correct form of
the verbs in brackets.
1. If you (bring) ______________
bring your digital video camera, we can
make a movie on my PC.
2. You won't be able to play those video files if you (not have)
______________
don‘t have the correct plug-in.
3. If the marketing manager (have) _____________
had PowerPoint, she
could make more effective presentations.
4. If I could afford it, I (buy) __________
would buy___ a new game console.
5. If I had the money, I (invest) would
_______________
invest in some new
multimedia software.