INTRODUCTION TO MULTIMEDIA TECHNOLOGY

Multimedia - is the means for conveying and using multiple forms of

information content and information processing (e.g. text, image, audio,
graphics, animation, and video, interactivity) in a variety of application
environments such as informing or entertaining the user.
Multimedia - Computer-based techniques of text, images, audio, video,
graphics, animation, and any other medium where every type of
information can be represented, processed, stored, transmitted, produced
and presented digitally.
Multimedia technology applies interactive computer applications, such
as graphics, text, video, sound and animation, with the goal of delivering
a message. Professionals in multimedia use computer software to
develop and manage online graphics and content.
Multimedia is similar to traditional mixed media in fine art, but with a
broader scope. The term "rich media" is synonymous for interactive
multimedia.
Interactive Multimedia- multimedia applications that allow users to
actively participate instead of just sitting by as passive recipients of
information.
Multi:- more than one
Medium (singular): middle, intermediary, mean
Media (plural): means for conveying information
- Media in the press, newspaper, radio and TV context- mass media
- Media in communications: cables, satellite, network – transmission
media
- Media in computer storage: floppy, CD, DVD, HD, USB – storage
media
- Media in HCI context: text, image, audio, video, CG – interaction
media

In terms of computing, there are four fundamental multimedia attributes:

- Digitized: All media including audio/video are represented in digital
format
- Distributed: The information conveyed is remote, either pre-produced
and stored or produced in real-time, distributed over networks
- Interactive: It is possible to affect the information received, and send
own information, in a non-trivial way beyond start, stop, fast forward
- Integrated: The media are treated in a uniform way, presented in an
orchestrated way, but are possible to manipulate independently

Multimedia facts:
• more than 80 % by sight - of which 20 % is remembered
• 11 % by hearing - of which 30 % is remembered
• 3.5 % by smell
• 1.5 % by touch and taste.
... where 50 % of what is both seen and heard is remembered
... further 80 % of what is seen, heard and done, is remembered
That is, multiple, media, and interactive should be a good thing
A Multimedia system has four basic characteristics:
a) Multimedia systems must be computer controlled.
b) Multimedia systems are integrated.
c) The information they handle must be represented digitally.
d) The interface to the final presentation of media is usually interactive.
Desirable Features for a Multimedia System
a) Very High Processing Power — needed to deal with large data
processing and real time delivery of media. Special hardware
commonplace.
b) Multimedia Capable File System — needed to deliver real-time media
— e.g. Video/Audio Streaming.
c) Special Hardware/Software needed – e.g. RAID technology.
d) Data Representations — File Formats that support multimedia should
be easy to handle yet allow for compression/decompression in real-
time.
e) Efficient and High I/O — input and output to the file subsystem needs
to be efficient and fast. Needs to allow for real-time recording as well
as playback of data. e.g. Direct to Disk recording systems.
f) Special Operating System — to allow access to file system and
process data efficiently and quickly. Needs to support direct transfers
to disk, real-time scheduling, fast interrupt processing, I/O streaming
etc.
g) Storage and Memory — large storage units (of the order of hundreds
of Tb if not more) and large memory (several Gb or more). Large
Caches also required and high speed buses for efficient management.
h) Network Support — Client-server systems common as distributed
systems.
i) Software Tools — user friendly tools needed to handle media, design
and develop applications, deliver media.

Components of a Multimedia System

Components (Hardware and Software) required for a multimedia
system:
a) Capture devices — Video Camera, Video Recorder, Audio
Microphone, Keyboards, mice, graphics tablets, 3D input devices,
tactile sensors, VR devices. Digitising Hardware
b) Storage Devices — Hard disks, CD-ROMs, DVD-ROM, etc
c) Communication Networks — Local Networks, Intranets, Internet,
Multimedia or other special high speed networks.
d) Computer Systems — Multimedia Desktop machines, Workstations,
MPEG/VIDEO/DSP Hardware
e) Display Devices — CD-quality speakers, HDTV,SVGA, Hi-Res
monitors, Colour printers etc.

Categories of Multimedia
Multimedia may be broadly divided into linear and non-linear
categories.
Linear active content progresses without any navigation control for the
viewer such as a cinema presentation.
Nonlinear content offers user interactivity to control progress as used
with a computer game or used in self-paced computer based training.
Non-linear content is also known as hypermedia content.
Multimedia presentations can be live or recorded.
A recorded presentation may allow interactivity via a navigation
system.
A live multimedia presentation may allow interactivity via interaction
with the presenter or performer.

Applications of Multimedia
 Creative industries-Creative industries use
multimedia for a variety of purposes ranging from fine
arts, to entertainment, to commercial art, to
journalism, to media and software services provided for
any of the industries listed below.
 Commercial-Much of the electronic old and new media
utilized by commercial artists is multimedia. Exciting
presentations are used to grab and keep attention in
advertising. Industrial, business to business, and
interoffice communications are often developed by
creative services firms for advanced multimedia
presentations beyond simple slide shows to sell ideas
or liven-up training.
 Entertainment and Fine Arts-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.
 Education-In Education, multimedia is used to produce
computer-based training courses (popularly called
CBTs) and reference books like encyclopedias 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 an informal term used to describe
combining education with entertainment, especially
multimedia entertainment.
 Engineering-Software engineers may use multimedia
in Computer Simulations for anything from
entertainment to training such as military or industrial
training.
 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 technologies.
 Mathematical and Scientific Research-In
Mathematical and Scientific Research, multimedia is
mainly used for modeling and simulation. For example,
a scientist can look at a molecular model of a particular
 substance and manipulate it to arrive at a new
substance.
 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.
 Multimedia in Public Places-In hotels, railway
stations, shopping malls, museums, and grocery stores,
multimedia will become available at stand-alone
terminals or kiosks to provide information and help.
Such installation reduce demand on traditional
information booths and personnel, add value, and they
can work around the clock, even in the middle of the
night, when live help is off duty.

Multimedia Building Blocks

Any multimedia application consists any or all of the
following components:
1. Text: Text and symbols are very important for
communication in any medium. With the recent explosion
of the Internet and World Wide Web, text has become
more the important than ever. Web is HTML (Hyper text
Markup language) originally designed to display simple
text documents on computer screens, with occasional
graphic images thrown in as illustrations.
2. Audio: Sound is perhaps the most element of
multimedia. It can provide the listening pleasure of
music, the startling accent of special effects or the
ambience of a mood-setting background.
3. Images: Images whether represented analog or digital
plays a vital role in a multimedia. It is expressed in the
form of still picture, painting or a photograph taken
through a digital camera.
4. Animation: Animation is the rapid display of a
sequence of images of 2-D artwork or model positions in
order to create an illusion of movement. It is an optical
illusion of motion due to the phenomenon of persistence
of vision, and can be created and demonstrated in a
number of ways.
5. Video: Digital video has supplanted analog video as
the method of choice for making video for multimedia
use. Video in multimedia are used to portray real time
moving pictures in a multimedia project.

Benefits of Multimedia
There are many benefits claimed and (often over-claimed) for
multimedia:
Powerful Presentation Medium
Multimedia offers a very powerful presentation medium that can be
extremely effective. Compared to 35mm slide and overhead
presentations, a multimedia presentation can make a presentation come
alive. Many presentation software packages offer the addition of audio
and video clips to the usual “slide show” of graphics and text material.
Interactivity ensures the user is involved and that the presentation is
self-paced. The delivery of multimedia can be achieved through devices
that cost a few hundred pounds and can be used for a variety of
presentations.

Retention
It has been established by the British Audio Visual Society, amongst
others, that we remember:
 10% of what we see;
 20% of what we hear;
 50% of what we see and hear;
 and 80% of what we see, hear and do.
It is the interactive element that provides vital ‘doing’ ingredient where
multimedia scores over film and video presentations.
Consistency
Unlike live presentations, multimedia is delivered with a constant
quality which will be as high as its design quality. For example,
teachers and trainers can ensure that all students receive the same level
and quality of information; multimedia programmes that incorporate
testing facilities can ensure that everyone has mastered key content and
concepts; marketeers can provide consistently accurate and current
production information including, for example, price and availability.
Personalized
Trainees, students, shoppers – in the learning centre, classroom, or
shopping mall-can learn or obtain information at their own pace and in
a way that matches each user’s unique abilities and needs. Trainees can
skip the parts they know, to focus on parts that they don’t; shoppers can
easily access the information they need, and disregard that which is
irrelevant.
Convenience
Information or instructions can be obtained at a convenient time and
place to meet a variety of needs. The shop floor or office worker can
use the same multimedia system as a reference or training tool without
ever leaving their place of work.
Persistency
Multimedia systems never tire. The high street shopper or trainee can
never ask too many questions and they don’t have to wait for an answer.
Also, interactive dialogue and immediate feedback provide a highly
effective means of reinforcing critical concepts and information content.
Multimedia systems provide non-judgemental, non-threatening dialogue
and immediate feedback.
Safety
Multimedia can be used to simulate real life experiences and
consequently provide these in a safe environment. Students can learn
about chemical reactions without mixing dangerous chemicals together,
oil workers can learn how to deal with potentially deadly hazards that
occur on an oil platform, and pilots can learn the basics of flight.
Motivation
Multimedia which exploits sight and should in an interactive
environment, can be extremely motivating. In addition, the messages
and information can be personalised.

As companies and business catch on to the power of multimedia, and

the cost of installing multimedia capability decreases, more applications
will be developed, both in-house and by third parties, to allow
businesses to run more smoothly and efficiently.
In business terms, many applications of multimedia have been justified
by saving time and money whilst improving performance.
Developing multimedia applications requires considerable investment.
The development of professional quality multimedia courseware and
cost from 20,000 to 100,000 to produce commercially. The actual cost
will depend on the medium chosen, the quality of the design and the
quality of the material.
As in any project, the timescale will have an effect on quality as well as
cost. Tight deadlines will require a larger team and more management
time.
Costs of Multimedia
There are a wide range of costs associated with the development of
multimedia applications. These include:
Design and Development – The development of multimedia materials
involves the use of skilled instructional designers, video producers
graphic artists, subject matter experts, project managers and software
developers.
Pressing – There are also costs incurred in processing the materials on
to compact disk. Economies of scale apply.
Delivery platform – The cost of delivery equipment will depend on the
standards and quality selected (for example MPEG1 or MPEG2).
However, base level multimedia PCs are not much more expensive than
non-multimedia PCs.
Royalties – Where third party material is to be incorporated into the
material copyright issues will need to be addressed and provision made
for royalty payments.
Cost Comparison
A comparison of the costs and benefits of multimedia needs to be made
against alternative forms of presentation.
As an example, a comparison will be made between a conventional
instructor-led, course and a multimedia-based course.
In comparing the respective costs of conventional presentations and
multimedia presentations, four components can be identified:
 the cost of developing the conventional presentation;
 the cost of delivering the conventional presentation;
 the cost of developing the multimedia presentation;
 the cost of delivering the multimedia presentation.
Development costs
There are a number of clearly identified cost components:
The development costs are essentially the value of people’s time in
developing the presentation. For a large conventional training course
this may involve:
 a project manager;
 an instructional designer;
 a graphic designer;
 subject matter experts.
For a multimedia course, additional skills would be required. These
include:
 an interactive designer;
 a programmer;
 a video specialist;
 a sound specialist;
 an editor;
 a writer;
 Technical support.
These specialist skills are often highly valued in the market place and
salaries for designers with multimedia skills are often higher as a result.
A ratio of as much as 200 hours preparation to one hour of courseware
is not unusual. This reflects the careful preparation that is required to
ensure that all potential interactions can anticipated in the design. By
contrast, the compilation of a conventional course can take between five
and twenty hours preparation to produce a one hour course (depending
on how familiar the developers are with the subject matter).
Delivery costs
The costs of the trainee’s time should take account of both the salary
and the direct on-costs of employment – there may also be the
opportunity cost of the employees not being able to carry out their
normal duties.
 The cost of the instructor – again taking account of direct on-costs as
well as salary;
 Travel and facilities costs – the cost of travel (and perhaps travel
time) should be estimated together with any room charges and costs for
food and refreshments;
 Materials’ costs such as visual materials, trainee’s notes and
workbooks;
 Trainee costs are usually less as the self paced nature of a multimedia
course means that trainees proceed at their own pace and can skip the
topics that they know. Overall this has been shown to cut the average
time to compete a multimedia based course by 30% less time than a
conventional course.
 A multimedia course can be self contained and thus incur no
instructor’s charges – although in practice the availability of a tutor to
provide support has often prove beneficial.
 Material casts need to include the cost of pressing a CD but may be
reduced as less paper based materials may be needed.
An additional cost for multimedia course is equipment cost. Each
trainee will require a multimedia PC. Although this equipment may
already be available it is sensible to charge a notional rental for each PC
used.
In general, the cost of developing a multimedia course will be higher
than developing a conventional course but the delivery costs of a
multimedia course are usually less than a conventional course. The total
cost (development and delivery) of a conventional course will exceed
those of a multimedia course once a certain number of trainees have
been reached – this point is known as the break-even point

The Multimedia Industry

The industry ranges from multinational companies, some of which are
subsidiaries of information technology companies, to small businesses
and sole traders. The industry can be split into publishes and producers
although there are companies that are both publishers and developers.
Publishers
The publisher is responsible for the pressing, packaging, marketing,
selling and distribution of the multimedia product, typically a CD-ROM.
The publisher should know the market place and be able to push sales
through the appropriate channels.
Multimedia publishers include traditional book publishers moving into
new media, principally CD-ROM. Publishing in new media is a risky
business and quite a few companies have had their commercial fingers
burned. There is a significant risk in multimedia publishing as profit
margins are tight and prices are decreasing. Publishers are unlikely to
make money out of their first product. However the exploding number
of multimedia PCs and demand for products to play on them should
provide major opportunities in the medium term once the market place is
sorted out.
There are two main distribution methods, either through an affiliate label
or a national distributor.
The affiliate labels are ‘middle men’ able to place products with major
retail chains as well as national distributors. This approach was
originated in the record industry (where it provides opportunities for
small bands) and it is now being applied to the software industry for
small software publishers.
National distributors are used by larger publishers who have substantial
marketing budgets. National distribution contracts are usually
negotiated annually. National distributors will receive products from the
larger publishers directly, as well as through affiliate labels. Some
national distributors will specialise in certain markets such as education.
The price of multimedia products is falling rapidly as it moves into mass
market sectors other than specialist publishing. Multimedia products
will soon be regarded more as books and videos rather than as computer
software. Although CD-ROMs are sold direct and through catalogues,
bookshops are likely to become the dominant channel. In many ways
the market is similar to the entertainment industry (even for more serious
titles like multimedia encyclopaedias) and timing of new releases is as
important as it is for the film industry.
Developers
A developer may be thought of as a highly creative software producer
with little interest in, or willingness to take on the responsibilities for,
bringing a multimedia product to market. The particular strengths of
developers are programming techniques and creative vision rather than
marketing. A developer will often enter into an agreement with a
publisher to whom he is responsible to deliver the finished master of the
multimedia application. The developer will receive a royalty for sales,
typically 10%. This process is similar to an author writing a book for a
publisher.
Alternatively a developer may be commissioned to develop a
multimedia application by a specific customer for its own use.
A new arrangement is emerging called ‘co-publishing’, which is used in
independent film production. Two firms enter into a contract and the
multimedia product uses both companies’ names. One partner takes the
publishing risks and the other is responsible for development. The
proceeds of the sales are usually split in favour of the publishing
company, recognizing that establishing sales of new media products is
more difficult than more established media such as video and film.
Developers range from:
 video companies that have moved into multimedia in some cases via
Interactive video;
 ‘traditional’ Computer Based Training companies that have ventured
into multimedia;
 new start-up companies that have gone straight into multimedia.
Some companies have taken a ‘new media’ approach and offer
additional services such as web site development and other Internet
related services.
Roles in Multimedia Development
Core Team
Different companies will approach the development task in different
ways but all will need to bring together a range of talented people from a
variety of disciplines. A multimedia company may have a core team of
people who work together for all projects, usually a number of
programmers, at least one graphic artist, a multimedia designer and a
project manager. This team will be extended with specialists for
particular tasks, such as video editing, who often work regularly for the
company on a contract basis for specific projects with specialist
requirements or larger budgets. The use of freelanced staff is very
common practice in the multimedia industry as it provides flexibility for
the companies and shares what are often scarce resources around the
industry.
Of course a multimedia professional can build up experience across a
range of skills and one person may be capable of performing more than
one role. For example, a project manager may be also a video producer,
a designer may also act as graphic artist. However, there is a danger that
the non-specialist trying to do everything may result in mediocre
applications. Professionalism is more likely to be achieved through
specialisation. Multi-skilled teams will be more effective than teams of
multi-skilled people.
Project Manager
The project manager is responsible for the overall development and
implementation of the project as well as resolving day to day issues.
More formally a project manager is responsible for the specification
planning and control of time, cost, quality and resource issues to
complete a project on time and within budget. In addition the project
manager needs to motivate the team and give direction.
Designer
One of the key skills for multimedia is interactive design. A multimedia
designer covers a broad range of responsibilities but the main ones are to
create a structure for the content, determine the design elements required
to support the structure and determine the appropriate media for the
various components of the content. In addition the designer needs to
devise navigation through the application and devise an effective
interface.
Programmer
A multimedia programmer ultimately integrates all of the multimedia
elements of the project into a seamless product while using an authoring
system or programming language. Multimedia programming ranges
from coding simple displays of multimedia elements to controlling
peripheral devices such as laser disc players. Often a programmer will
have to achieve complex timing and transitions. Successful multimedia
programmers combine these disciplines with creative flair.
Extended Team
Video specialist
Video specialists are used to shoot and edit moving video sequences.
Although shooting with a camcorder may be sufficient, high quality
multimedia products will draw a range of video specialisms from
concept to final edit. Video producers will be relied on for a
professional shoot, organising camera and sound crew and important
details such as lighting and camera angles. Video specialist will also
need to be thoroughly familiar with the tools and techniques used for
computer based digital editing.
Sound specialist
A good sound specialist can make a multimedia application come alive
by designing and producing music, voice-over narrations, and sound
effects. Sound specialists may also be responsible for organising
recording sessions. They also need expertise in the digitising and
editing of recorded material into computer files to create original music
and record narration.
Other Specialists
Editor
Editorial skills include commissioning text, writing captions and
developing linkage files. They may also oversee the locating of
photographers, film clips and audio resources.
Graphic Artist
Graphic artists create images and may also produce animations. Graphic
artists can create a distinctive look and style that adds to the
attractiveness of the product. Although some artwork may be created
with traditional tools most graphic artists will use drawing and paint
tools to create images.
Writer
Writers script voice-overs and narrations, write dialogue and may also
write text for screen (this is also called writing content). They often get
information from subject matter experts and synthesise it to provide
clear and concise communications. Script writers can also create
characters and develop storylines.
Technical support
Technical support staff may be used to digitise images, sounds and
movies and deal with specific issues relating to the hardware and
software.