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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 What is Multimedia?

•Text
•Graphics
•Sound
•Animation
•Video

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Multimedia takes may forms
• Greeting Cards
• Conferencing
• Movies
• Photo albums
• Image catalogs

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Creating and Delivering Multimedia

Graphic User Interface - GUI

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
Producing a Multimedia Project
• Requires
a) creative skill
b) technology tools
c) organizational and business talent
d) knowledge of ownership and
copyright rules

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Where Do You Begin?
• Study each element of Multimedia
• Read trade periodicals
• Visit web sites

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
Types of Multimedia
• Interactive multimedia
• Hyperactive multimedia
• Linear multimedia

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Interactive Multimedia

• Allows the user to control

– what and
– when the elements are delivered

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Hypermedia
• Interactive Multimedia which
provides a structure of linked
elements through which the user
can navigate

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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)

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Multimedia Project
• Linear - users watch from beginning
to end
• Non-linear and interactive - users are
given navigational control and can
wonder through the content

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Delivering and Using Multimedia
• Online uses include:
– Books and Magazines
– Movies
– News and Weather
– Education
– Maps
– Entertainment

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Appropriate uses
• Business
• Schools
• Homes

• Public Places
– 1995 Al Gore - White House Challenge
to connect every classroom, clinic,
hospital to Information Superhighway
by 2000
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
Delivering and Using Multimedia
• Virtual Reality

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
 Chapter 2

Introduction to Making
Multimedia

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Stages of a Project
• Plan
Develop an idea
Identify objectives
Identify skills and resources
Develop a prototype
Estimate time and cost

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

What You Need
• Hardware
• Software
• Creativity
• Organization

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Software
• Multimedia software provides
specific instructions to the hardware
for performing tasks.
• Software tools are divided into
production tools and authoring tools.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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:

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 Chapter 3

Multimedia Skills and Training

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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?

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Multimedia Development Team
• Project Manager
• Multimedia Designer
• Interface Designer
• Writers
• Video Specialist
• Audio Specialist
• Multimedia Programmer
• Multimedia Producer for the Web

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Multimedia Designer
• A) Graphic designer – deals with
visuals
• Illustrators ( Freehand)
• Animators ( Flash)
• Image processing specialists ( Photoshop)

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Multimedia Designer
• Instructional Designers – deal with
subject matter
– Clear and proper presentation
– Knowledge of content

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Multimedia Designer
• Information Designers – deal with
contents and navigation
– Structure content
– Determine user feedback and pathways

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Writers
• Responsibilities:
– 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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Video Specialist
• Responsibilities:
– Coordinate videographers, sound
technicians, lighting designers, set
designers, script supervisors,
production assistants, actors
• Background/skills:
– Skilled with QuickTime or MS Video for
editing
– Macromedia Premiere for special effects

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Audio Specialist
• Responsibilities:
– Locating and selecting suitable music and
talent
– Scheduling recording sessions
– Digitizing, editing recorded materials
• Background/skills:
– Skilled in studio recording
– Fluency in MIDI
– Experience with sequencing software

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 Multimedia Programmer
• Responsibilities:
– Integrates multimedia elements into
“seamless” whole using programming
language or authoring system
(Authorware)
– Coding displays to controlling devices
• Background/skills:
– Multimedia languages (C++, Java, Lingo)
– HTML, VRML, XML
– Ability to quickly learn new systems

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Multimedia Producer for the Web

• Responsibilities:
– Coordinates set of pages for the web
• Background/skills:
– Knowledge of HTML, CGI scripts,
Photoshop, etc.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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)

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 Chapter 4

Text

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Text in History
• Text came into use about 6,000
years ago

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
The Power of Meaning and the
Importance of Text
•Words must be chosen carefully
•Words appear in:
Titles
Menus
Navigational aids

•Test the words you plan to use

•Keep a thesaurus handy

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Using Text in Multimedia
Type terminology
•Typeface
Arial
Courier
Times
•Fonts
•Points
•Styles
•Leading
•Kerning

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Character Metrics

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Factors affecting legibility of text
– Size.
– Background and foreground color.
– Style.
– Leading (pronounced “ledding”).

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Styles
• Examples of styles are boldface and italic
Italic

Bold

Underlined

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 Leading and Kerning
Computers can
• adjust the line spacing (called
leading)
leading
and
• the space between pairs of letters,
called kerning

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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!

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
 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

landscape
portrait

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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>)

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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)

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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)

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Computers and Text
Allow text to be drawn at any size without
“jaggies”, by anti-aliasing the edges of the
characters

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Unicode
• Numbers
• Mathematical symbols
• Punctuation
• Arrows, blocks and drawing shapes
• Technical symbols

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Font Editing and Design Tools
– Fontographer (from Macromedia)

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Editing and Design Tools

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Hypermedia and Hypertext
• Hyper media provides a structure of links
• Hypertext words are linked to other
elements
• Hypertext is usually searchable by
software robots

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Hypermedia Structures
 Hypermedia elements are called
nodes
 Nodes are connected using links
 A linked point is called an anchor

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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….

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 Chapter 5

Sound

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Overview
• Introduction to sound.
• Multimedia system sound.
• Digital audio.
• MIDI audio.
• Audio file formats.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Overview
• MIDI versus digital audio.
• Adding sound to multimedia project.
• Professional sound.
• Production tips.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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)

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
 Multimedia System Sounds
• Most computers have sounds ready
to use

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Multimedia System Sounds
• Mac and Windows have built in
sound recorders

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Multimedia System Sounds
• 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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

MIDI Audio
• MIDI is a series of musical
instructions

Click to play
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

MIDI vs. Digital Audio
• 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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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”
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Digital Audio
• Digital audio is a representation
of the original sound
• Sampling rate is measured in
kilohertz (kHz)

Click to play
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
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
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
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).

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Preparing Digital Audio
• Balance file size versus
quality
• Set recording levels
• Edit the recording

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
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.
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
MIDI vs. Digital Audio
• 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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

MIDI vs. Digital Audio
• 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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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)
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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”
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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)

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 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
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
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)
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
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!

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 Chapter 6

IMAGES

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Overview
• Creation of multimedia images.
• Creation of still images.
• Colors and palettes in multimedia.
• Image file types used in multimedia.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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)

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 Making Still Images
• Stills are drawn in one of two
ways and are usually compressed
 Bitmaps
 Vector-drawn graphics

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Bitmaps
Bitmaps are an image format suited for
creation of:
– Photo-realistic images.
– Complex drawings.
– Images that require fine detail.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Bitmaps

Available binary Combinations for Describing a Color

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Bitmaps
Bitmaps can be inserted by:
– Using clip art galleries.
– Using bitmap software.
– Capturing and editing images.
– Scanning images.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Bitmap Example
• Clipart

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 Bitmaps
• Clipart
• Bitmap Software

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Bitmaps
• Clipart
• Bitmap software
• Capturing
• Scanning

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Vector Drawings
• Vector graphics are defined using
formulas
– RECT 0,0,200,200,RED,BLUE

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
 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
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
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
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

3-D Drawing
• 3-D software usually offers:
Directional lighting
Motion
Different perspectives

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

3-D Drawing
• 3-D creation tools include:
Ray Dream Designer
Caligari True Space 2
Specular Infini-D
form*Z

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

3-D Drawing

3-D objects
combine
various shapes

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Modeling 3-D objects

Shapes can be
extruded…

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Modeling 3-D objects

…or lathed

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Modeling 3-D objects
• 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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Modeling 3-D objects
• 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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 Modeling 3-D objects

Gourand
Flat
shading
shading

Ray Phong
tracing shading

A scene can use different types of shading

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
 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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 Color
• Computerized color
Computers combine red, green, and blue (RGB) light
Bit depth determines the number of possible colors

1-bit 4-bit 8-bit 24-bit

2 colors 256 colors 16,777,216 colors
16 colors
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 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)

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Color Wheel

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Color Models - Additive

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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)

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Color Models - Subtractive

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 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
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
Color Models - HSB

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 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)

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Color Models
Varying Brightness

Varying Saturation

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Color Harmony
• Certain combinations of colors tend
to be pleasing. They arise from the
color harmony schemes:
– Monochromatic
– Complementary
– Analogous
– Triadic

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Color Harmony

Primary Colors Secondary colors Tertiary Colors

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Color Harmony Schemes
• 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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Color Harmony Schemes
Monochromatic Examples

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Monochromatic Example

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Color Harmony Schemes
• 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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Complementary Example

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Color Harmony Schemes
Analogous

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Color Schemes - Triadic

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 Chapter 7

Animation

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

The Power of Animation
• Animation grabs attention
• Transitions are simple forms
of animation
Wipe

Zoom

Dissolve

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Principles of animation
• How Animation Works
 Persistence of vision
 Still images are flashed in sequence
 Frame rate measures the speed of
change

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 Principles of Animation
• 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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Principles of Animation
• Cel Animation
 Keyframes identify the start and end of
action
 The process of filling in the action is
called tweening

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Principles of Animation
• Computer Animation
 Kinematics is the study of motion of
jointed structures

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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
Principles of Animation
 Morphing is the process of
transitioning from one image to
another

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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)

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Principles of Animation
• 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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Making Animations that Work
• Use animations carefully so your
screens don‟t become too “busy”
• Animation tools
– Director
– Adobe GOLive
– GIF animators

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 Creating Animation
• Software helps create objects
such as:
 A rolling ball

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 Creating Animation
• Software helps create objects
such as:
 A rolling ball
 A bouncing ball

s=1/2gt2

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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)

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 Creating Animation
• Software helps create objects
such as:
 A rolling ball
A bouncing ball

•An animated scene

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 Chapter 8

Video

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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!
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Video Basics

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Video Basics

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Broadcast Video Standards
• NTSC
• PAL
• SECAM
• HDTV
 Six different formats
 Aspect ratio is 16:9

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Broadcast Video Standards
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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 Broadcast Video Standards
• 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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Broadcast Video Standards
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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Broadcast Video Standards
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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Broadcast Video Standards
• 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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
Broadcast Video Standards
• 4: 3 Aspect Ratio

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Broadcast Video Standards
• 16: 9 Aspect Ratio

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 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.
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
Differences Between Computer
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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Computers and Video

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Differences Between Computer
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)
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Working with Text and Titles for
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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Working with Text and Titles for
Video Productions
• Bring titles on slowly and let them
remain on the screen sufficiently
long, fade out
• Avoid “busy” screens- use additional
pages instead

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Digital Video
• Digital video architecture.
• Digital video compression.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
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
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
Video Recording and Tape
Formats
• Composite analog video.
• Component analog video.
• Composite digital.
• Component digital.
• ATSC digital TV.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Shooting and Editing Video
• 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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Shooting and Editing Video

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Shooting and Editing Video
• 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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Shooting and Editing Video
• 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...

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Optimizing Video files
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
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
Optimizing Video files
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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 Chapter 9

Multimedia Hardware
Mac vs. PC

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Overview
• Macintosh versus Windows platform.
• Networking Macintosh and Windows
computers.
• Connections.
• Memory.
• Storage devices.
• Input and output devices.
• Communication devices.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 MAC vs. PC
• Macintosh PC
• Since 1984 has • Intended for
been multimedia business
• Good built-in • System beeps and
audio tiny, tinny speaker
• DOS screen-
• Easy to learn GUI
command driven
• Since late 1980‟s
provides multimedia
capabilities

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 Windows Multimedia PCs
• 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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Windows Multimedia PCs
• 1993- Level 2 ( MPC2)
– 25 MHz, 486SX, 4MB RAM, 160 MB drive
– 2xCD-ROM, VGA/SVGA video
– 16 bit audio board,
speakers/headphones, microphone

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Windows Multimedia PCs
• 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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 Networking
• LANs- local area • WANs- wide area
networks networks
• Located within short • Used for long
distances ( such as a distances
campus, or building) • More expensive to
• Allow sharing of install and maintain
resources such as • ISPs like AOL, MSN
printers make it available and
• Ethernet for cross- affordable
platform development

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
 Networking
Client/server software enables computers to
communicate through an ISP
• MACs • PCs
• Have ethernet built • Need ethernet
in cards
• Usually run • Usually run TCP/IP
Appletalk
• Need DAVE to • Need MACLAN to
communicate with communicate with
PC MAC

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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).

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
Output Hardware
• Audio Devices
• Amplifiers and Speakers
• Monitors
• Video Devices
• Projectors
• CRT – cathode ray tube
• LCD – liquid crystal display
• Printers
– Injet
– laser

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Communication Devices
• Modems ( Hayes Compatible) v.90
• ISDN – Integrated Services Digital
Network
• DSL-Digital Subscriber Line
• Cable Modems

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 Chapter 10

Basic Software Tools

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Text Tools
•Word Processors

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 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!!!!

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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."

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Text Tools
•Word Processors
•OCR Software

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Graphics Tools
•Painting and Drawing Tools

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Graphics Tools
•Painting and Drawing Tools
•3-D Modeling Tools

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Graphics Tools
•Painting and Drawing Tools
•3-D Modeling Tools
•Image Editing Tools

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Painting and Drawing Tools
• 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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Painting and Drawing Tools
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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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….
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
 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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Audio and Video Tools
•Sound Editing Tools
•Animation and Video Tools

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Sound Objects
• Waveform Audio
• MIDI soundtracks
• Compact disc ( CD) audio
• MP3 files

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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)

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Animation, Video, and Digital
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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Animation, Video, and Digital
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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

Animation
• Frame Animation
• Vector animation
• Computational animation
• Morphing

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.)

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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…)

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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)

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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)

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

 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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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)

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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)

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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
Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC
Helpful Accessories
•Screen Capture Software
•Format Converter

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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)

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC

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.

Saurabh Gupta, AP-CSE, NIEC