Multimedia

Principles

Chapter 15

MM Application
Development
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Software Life Cycle
ƒ A software development process comprises of a set of steps that
involves certain methods, tools and procedures.

ƒ These steps are referred to as the life cycle model. The life cycle
starts from the conceptualization and ends on retirement of the
particular product.

ƒ The general software life cycle model involves the following

steps: Feasibility study, Requirement analysis, Project planning
and management, Designing, Implementation, Integration,
Delivery and maintenance.

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ADDIE Model
ƒ For CBT application development a popular life cycle model
which is followed is known as the ADDIE model. ADDIE is short
for Analysis Design Development Implementation Evaluation.

ƒ During the analysis phase a requirements analysis is carried out

whereby the goals and objectives of the CBT is laid out. The
target audience is specified along with the prior set of skill and
knowledge required for comprehending the subject matter.

ƒ During the design phase the story, the script and the storyboard
is prepared. Source material collection is also done upto an
appreciable extent.
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ADDIE Model
ƒ During the development phase the project is split into parts and
each part is allotted to a development team. Each team is
managed by a group leader and may consist of content writers,
visual designers, programmers etc.

ƒ During the implementation phase the developed material is

distributed to a section of the target audience.

ƒ During the evaluation phase the target audience evaluates the

material and provides feedbacks and comments based on which
the material is further improved by the developers.

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Conceptualization
ƒ The first and foremost task is to decide on a subject matter. For
multimedia presentations the topic should be chosen such that it can be
described adequately using various other media apart from text.

ƒ Some of the topics suitable for presenting using multiple media types
include those dealing with tourist attractions/adventure sports,
cartoons/stories for children, puzzles/games, ecology/animal kingdom,
news/magazines, training packages on various subjects like art, music,
dance as well as technical subjects.

ƒ Interactivity can be used in explaining things which require drill and

practice. This may include explaining how a specific feature of a
software works by asking the user to perform certain tasks and
evaluating the results.

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Conceptualization
ƒ After deciding upon the topic, its scope needs to be fixed too. For
doing that, the target audience needs to be specified.

ƒ The target audience determines how much of the topic should be

addressed in the presentation and in what way it needs to be
presented.

ƒ If the target audience is new to the subject, the presentation

should treat the matter from scratch.

ƒ If the target audience is already aware of the subject, then the

introductions can be left out and the presentation can go into the
depths of the matter.
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Conceptualization
ƒ Side by side, the objectives of the presentation also needs to be
decided upon.

ƒ This implies specifying how much the target audience is

expected to get out of the presentation.

ƒ In case of instructional materials and training packages, this can

be specified in terms of knowledge or skill sets that the user is
expected to develop after going through the CBT.

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Content Collection
ƒ After deciding on the target audience and scope, source
materials for the presentation need to be gathered.

ƒ This includes textual content from books, magazines, websites,

technical papers, CD-ROMs etc. from which the main content will
be built. It also includes the other media like images, graphics,
sound clips, video clips etc. which can be collected from related
sources.

ƒ Of course one has to keep in mind the issues like copyright and
patent before putting collected material into a commercial
multimedia presentation.
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Story
ƒ The story is written by the content writer. This is basically to
provide a rough idea of what will go inside the presentation.

ƒ It is simply an essay-like description of the subject matter. It may

not be very well structured at this stage and the writer just writes
whatever comes to the mind regarding the topic at hand.

ƒ The main emphasis is to lay down the core subject matter on

which the presentation will be based, keeping in mind the scope
and target audience decided previously.

ƒ The textual content may be divided into logical partitions like

chapters, sections, lessons etc
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Flowline
ƒ A flowline depicts the flow of interactivity within a multimedia
presentation.

ƒ It shows at a glance how different modules and pages of the

presentation are linked to each other and how a user can
navigate to different parts of the presentation starting from a
particular point within it.

ƒ The flowchart is in the form of a network diagram with each

module represented as a node.

ƒ The nodes are connected with each other via directional

branches which represents the direction of navigational flow.
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Flowline

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Script
ƒ This is an attempt to streamline the story and constitutes one of the
most important phases of the development work.

ƒ The content of the story is filtered and only relevant matters are kept.
The main idea behind writing the script is “how to display the content” in
contrast to the story phase where the focus was “what should be
included within the content”.

ƒ Usually in this phase the subject matter is divided into a number of

screens and for each screen the text, image, audio, interactivity,
transitions etc. are specified.

ƒ Since this phase involves finalizing content that would be actually seen
or heard within the presentation, scripting provides one of the main
criteria that determines the quality of the work.
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Script Guidelines
ƒ When writing a multimedia script you should try to be as verbose
as possible. One way to achieve this is by writing in the active
voice. Active voice is more direct and usually shorter than a
passive construction.

ƒ Scripts are usually divided into chapters and lessons. Chapters

should cover large concepts.

ƒ Lessons should cover smaller concepts such as individual

menus or each step in a process.

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Script Guidelines
ƒ Text based information is used where the user receives the
information by reading and there is little or no accompanying
audio or video.

ƒ Text is the chief means of conveying information just as it is

within a book or newspaper.

ƒ When writing scripts for audio information like voice-overs,

remember that your words are now intended for the ear, not the
eye. Conversational writing needs to sound natural not stylish or
artificial.

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Script Guidelines
ƒ The best way to test these scripts is to read them aloud and see
if they sound OK. Because the narrator is an actual person you
may include terms like “we” or “our”.

ƒ When writing a script that is to be read aloud by a narrator, write

everything as you would say them not as you would read them.
For example instead of writing “.5 in” write “point-five inch”; the
narrator could have said “half-inch” as well.

ƒ nteractivity should be provided in cases where the user can

change parameters to produce some objects within the
presentation e.g. a wave by specifying the amplitude and
frequency,

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Script Guidelines
ƒ Provide interaction opportunities at least every three or four
screens or alternatively about one per minute

ƒ Split the content into segments and include questions with

feedback, reviews and summaries for each segment. Blending
instructions with practice reduces boredom

ƒ Ask as many questions as possible without interrupting the

continuity of the instructional flow. Questions help to sustain
student attention by keeping them involved in the learning
process.

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Script Guidelines
ƒ Ask a question after but not immediately following a related
content. Sometimes a gap between a question and its related
content facilitate learning by forcing the learner to mentally
search for and review necessary information rather than to
memorize what they had learnt.

ƒ In an ICW material learner control refers to the degree to which

learners are allowed to take charge of the instruction and their
learning environments.

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Script Guidelines
ƒ Learner control should be provided when lengthy instructional
matter must be completed by the student in no particular order,
and students are familiar with a topic and have significant
previous knowledge of the content.

ƒ Learner control should be restricted when the materials have a

specific pre-requisite order e.g. in a training package on car
driving it should be ensured that the student cannot skip the
chapter on braking.

ƒ Feedback informs the user about the accuracy of his responses.

Feedback can be used to address possible student
misconceptions or lack of knowledge.

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Storyboard
ƒ The storyboard depicts the layout of each and every screen or frame of
the presentation has to be decided upon.

ƒ This includes issues like where the text and images should to be placed,
what should be their dimensions and appearances such as font, color
and style, what should be the background music or voice over etc.

ƒ The storyboard is usually presented in a graphical form with each

screen presented by a rectangular outline containing the distribution of
the media elements like text, image, video etc.

ƒ Each screen should be labeled sequentially and the elements within it

should be represented as icons with appropriate labels.

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Storyboard

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Storyboard Guidelines
ƒ Do not jam the screen with too much information. Cluttered
screens reduce comprehension as the students may be
confused as to which items to concentrate on.

ƒ When presenting large amount of information split it into

segments and use icon buttons or multiple overlapping windows.

ƒ Present key information at central locations i.e. away from the

border. Present navigational buttons near the borders of the
screen.

ƒ The background and letters should have contrasting colors.

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Storyboard Guidelines
ƒ Motion video should be used to depict moving items where it is relatively
easy to get real-world snapshots of it e.g. landing sequence of an
aircraft, assembling a computer etc.

ƒ Present all information in three shot sequences (long, medium and close
up) to establish an important matter. Long shots should be used to
establish frames of reference while close-ups should be used for
showing details

ƒ Keep the main object of interest well-lit and reduce background

distractions like unnecessary movements.

ƒ Use audio and video to complement each other. Contradicting pieces of

audio and video should not be used at the same time.

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Storyboard Guidelines
ƒ Animation sequences should be used where it is difficult to
obtain video shots e.g. internal workings of an IC engine.

ƒ Animation is also to be used where taking video shots may be

un-practicable or impossible but where depicting motion is
necessary e.g. motion in atomic scales or planetary scales.

ƒ Animation sequences may be used where depicting

exaggeration is necessary. People often remember exaggerated
information and can be motivated by it.

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Storyboard Guidelines
ƒ Limit the amount of text on screen. It is more difficult and takes longer
(about 30% more) to read text on a screen than on print.

ƒ Position text appropriately. Regular text should be left-justified while

headings may be centered and in capitals. Bold style can be used for
main headings while italics for sub-headings.

ƒ Convert sentences containing a large number of item names into lists.

ƒ Use blinking only for getting attention. Never blink text to read.

ƒ The colors used for text should be to increase the clarity.

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Storyboard Guidelines
ƒ Audio is usually used to narrate something or a background
music.

ƒ Audio and text should complement each other. Amount of text

should be minimal on screen while the rest of the explanation
should preferably be done using audio.

ƒ Use style and tone appropriate to the students’ ability, knowledge

and vocabulary.

ƒ Narration should be done by narrators having good voice and

pronunciation. Alternate male and female voices to provide
variety.
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Implementation
ƒ The hardware includes mainly the devices for digitization.
Images are digitized using scanners and digital cameras which
can be hooked on to the computer.

ƒ Digitization of sound requires the sound card, while input and

output of audio requires the microphone and the speakers
respectively.

ƒ Digitizing video content requires the video capture card and an

external VCP/VCR to be hooked up to it. Live footage by a movie
camera can also be used by connecting the camera directly with
the computer.
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Implementation
ƒ There are two kinds of software usually used – the editing tools
and the authoring tools.

ƒ The editing tools are used to edit and manipulate the media, and
requires separate software for each kind of media.

ƒ For images this includes changing the size, color, orientation

etc., removing parts from an image and joining multiple images
into composite wholes, adding special effects through filters like
emboss or blur.

ƒ Examples of image processors for professional work are Adobe

Photoshop and CorelDraw.
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Implementation
ƒ For audio content, this would include audio manipulation like
normalizing the volume, filtering the noise content, cropping
portions of the audio content or joining multiple audio clips into a
composite whole, mixing two or more sounds, adding special
effects like echo or chorus etc.

ƒ Examples of audio processors include Sound Forge XP and

CoolEdit.

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Implementation
ƒ For video content this would including trimming and joining video clips,
changing the audio content of the clips, changing speed and opacity,
overlaying image and text content, adding special effects like blur,
adding transitions between separate clips etc.

ƒ Examples of video processors include Adobe Premiere and Insight.

ƒ For animation content, software like Flash and Studio 3D MAX enable
the developer to create 2D and 3D animation sequences.

ƒ This includes modeling the objects, adding surface texture, placing the
lights and camera and animating the objects through the use of
keyframes and tweening.

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Implementation
ƒ The second class of software are the authoring software. These
software help to make an integrated presentation out of all the
edited media.

ƒ These software normally have two modes of operation : the

developer mode and the player mode.

ƒ In the developer mode, the team of developers imports all the

edited media into the authoring framework and arranges them to
make the layout of each and every screen.

ƒ In the play mode, the developer tests how the presentation runs
and whether the user can navigate to different portions of it.
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Implementation
ƒ Examples of authoring software include Director, Authorware and
ToolBook.

ƒ Web based authoring can be done using FrontPage and

DreamWeaver which creates HTML pages to be shown using the
browser, or can be created by writing HTML, CSS and
JavaScript codes

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Authoring Metaphors
ƒ Because the authoring of multimedia presentations involve
complex and abstract tasks, the concept of authoring metaphors
is introduced in an attempt to make the work simpler and easier.

ƒ The objective of the metaphor is to guide the developer through

the authoring process in a logical manner so that nothing is left
out.

ƒ This is done by associating the process with some other concept

or idea that is well known or easily recognizable by the
developer.

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Authoring Metaphors
ƒ Slideshow metaphor - As the name indicates, this metaphor associates
the authoring task with a slide show. This is used by Microsoft
PowerPoint. Each screen of the presentation is seen as a slide object
that can be separately created, edited and arranged.

ƒ Book metaphor - In this metaphor you think of a multimedia application

as a book containing any number of pages. Each page represents a
screen shown in its own window. Each page can contain a number of
multimedia objects and have any amount of interactivity.

ƒ A page is a richer structure than a slide because one can have

interactivity within the page. This metaphor is followed by Asymmetrix
ToolBook.

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Authoring Metaphors
ƒ Window metaphor - Applications in Windows and OS/2 use the
windowing metaphor for their user interface. This is also a valid
approach for multimedia authoring.

ƒ A window is an on-screen object that the user interacts with.

Objects and controls in the window are considered to be children
of the window, and requires the windows themselves to be
arranged into a hierarchy.

ƒ Microsoft’s Visual Basic uses the window as its metaphor and its
architecture – all the features of authoring is tied to one or more
windows.
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Authoring Metaphors
ƒ The timeline metaphor uses horizontal lines to represent flow of time.
The developer is required to place the objects and controls on one or
more timelines and specify their attributes and interaction with each
other.

ƒ The timelines spread over a temporal units called frames. The media
objects are represented as rectangular blocks with widths proportional
to the amount of time they would be present in the presentation.

ƒ A playback head moves across the timelines and executes that part of
the presentation over which it moves. Navigational and other codes can
be attached to frames as well as media objects.

ƒ Macromedia’s Director authoring tool uses this kind of metaphor.

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Authoring Metaphors
ƒ The ultimate interactive application would allow the user to move from
any object in the application to any other object without restriction.

ƒ Many assembly tools use hierarchical models but these cause

restrictions in that one must move between objects via the paths in the
hierarchy.

ƒ For some kinds of application one would like to have a more free
environment that has no restrictions on where you go. An approach to
that is the network metaphor.

ƒ One authoring package that implements the network metaphor is

Network Technology Corporation’s MediaScript

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Authoring Metaphors
ƒ An authoring metaphor that is particularly suited to authoring by
non-programmers is the icon metaphor.

ƒ Here an application is built by dragging icons from an icon

palette into the application workspace and connecting them to
create the logic of the application.

ƒ This is usually done as a flowchart. Each icon can be used to

edit attributes of the object it represents.

ƒ This metaphor is used by Macromedia’s Authorware.

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Testing
ƒ After completion of the implementation procedure the next step is
to test the presentation.

ƒ The presentation is given to a section of the target audience and

feedback is collected for implementing improvements.

ƒ This may be done over an extended time period from one to

several months, and many of the comments and suggestions are
implemented by the developers by changing the presentation
code.

ƒ The longer the duration of this phase the better will be the quality
of work.
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Delivery
ƒ After completion of the testing procedure the final delivery of the
presentation is made either on a CD-ROM or copied to a Web Server to
be shown on the web.

ƒ The final delivery medium had to be kept in mind before making the
presentation as for a web presentation the media sizes have to be kept
very small otherwise the downloading times will be prohibitive.

ƒ For executing the presentation from a CD, the starting file is usually an
EXE file containing its own runtime engine. The media files may either
be included within the EXE file or reside in separate external files. The
EXE file is made by the authoring tool.

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Delivery
ƒ For web presentation, the starting file is usually an HTML file with
external media files.

ƒ In this case the runtime engine is resident in the client-side

browser which interprets the HTML tags and displays the content
of the presentation

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Documentation
ƒ Report writing involves documenting the entire process of the
multimedia production.

ƒ It starts from the theme of the presentation proceeds through the

proceeds through the scripting and storyboarding stage upto the
final delivery stage.

ƒ While there are no standard rules about the detailing amount, an

useful rule of the thumb would be to include all relevant details
so that another person going through your report and availing
your media files can duplicate your presentation.

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Documentation
ƒ Apart from the section already discussed a report should also
contain items like user manual, screenshots, acknowledgements
and media catalog.

ƒ A media catalog is used to list the properties of all media used in

the presentation. It is in the form of a set of tables containing
media identifiers along with their relevant characteristics like file
name, file type, size, date of creation, resolution, sampling rate ,
color depth etc.

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Documentation

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Games
ƒ A computer game essentially consists of a computer generated
artificial environment that players may interact with in order to
achieve a set of goals.

ƒ A video game is a computer game where a video display is a

primary feedback unit. However video games usually refer to
games played on the video game console instead of the personal
computer.

ƒ A video game console is a dedicated electronic device designed

for playing video games. Often the output device is a separate
television or a computer monitor.
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Games
ƒ Sony PlayStation - A video game console first produced by Sony
Computer Entertainment in the 1990s. The original PlayStation
was the first of the PlayStation series of console and hand-held
game devices, which has included successor machines including
the PlayStation 2, PlayStation Portable, and the forthcoming
PlayStation 3.

ƒ Nintendo GameCube - The GameCube was Nintendo’s fourth

video game console, of the same generation as Sony’s
PlayStation2 and Microsoft’s Xbox. It was released in Japan and
USA in 2001 and Europe in 2002. Physically shaped similar to a
geometric cube, the Nintendo GameCube uses a unique storage
medium, a proprietary format based on Matsushita's optical-disc
technology.
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Games
ƒ Microsoft Xbox - This was released by Microsoft in November
2001 using standard PC hardware. In November 2002, Microsoft
released the successful Xbox Live online gaming service,
allowing subscribers to play online Xbox games with (or against)
other subscribers all around the world and download new
content for their games to the hard drive. This online service only
works with broadband.

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Games
ƒ Game play (or gameplay) includes all player experiences during the
interaction with game systems, especially formal games. Proper use is
coupled with reference to "what the player does".

ƒ Emergent gameplay is the creative use of a game in ways

unexpected by the game designer's original intent. It commonly
appears as complex behaviors that emerge from the interaction
of simple game mechanics.

ƒ This is most common in computer games and is often prized by

game designers. Emergent play can either be totally outside the
game (machinima – making films using a game engine) or have
a direct impact on the gameplay (game currency trading –
making real money through game involvement).
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Game Genres
ƒ Fighting or beat 'em up games emphasize one-on-one combat between
two players, one whom may be computer controlled. Most versions
emphasize on martial arts e.g. Street Fighter, Street Fighter II.

ƒ First Person Shooter (FPS) emphasize shooting and combat from a

specific perspective. Most FPSs place the player behind a gun or other
weapon with the player's "hand" holding the weapon e.g. Doom, Quake.

ƒ MMOG (massively multi-player online game) are virtual worlds in which

potentially thousands of players may interact together over the Internet
e.g. Ultima Online, Final Fantasy XI.

ƒ Racing games typically place the player in the driver's seat of a high
performance vehicle and require the player to race against other drivers
or sometimes just time e.g. Roadrash, Outrun
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Game Genres
ƒ Role-playing games have the player acting in the role of a specific type
of "adventurer" who specializes in a certain set of skills (such as
combat, or casting magic spells). Players can normally control one or
more of these characters e.g. Final Fantasy, Star Wars : Knights of the
Old Republic.

ƒ Simulation games aim to simulate a specific real-life activity (such as

flying an airplane) as realistically as practically possible, taking into
account physics and other real-world limitations e.g. Wing Commander,
Freespace.

ƒ Sports games emulate the playing of traditional physical sports such as

baseball, soccer, football, boxing, golf, basketball, ice hockey, tennis,
bowling, rugby, etc. e.g. Championship Manager, Arch Rivals

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Game Genres
ƒ Strategy games focus on careful planning and skillful resource
management in order to achieve victory, and are therefore classified as
"thinking games" e.g Ground Control, Sudden Strike.

ƒ Educational games as the name implies, attempt to teach the user using
the game as a vehicle. Most of these target young user from the ages of
about 3 years to mid-teens e.g. Fowl Words, Code War

ƒ Music games are typically arcade games that challenge the player to
follow sequences of movement or develop specific rhythms e.g. Dance
Dance Revolution.

ƒ Puzzle games require the player to solve logic puzzles or even navigate
complex locations such as mazes. This genre frequently crosses over
with adventure and educational games e.g. Lemmings, Minesweeper.
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Game Development
ƒ Game development is the process by which a game is produced. Today
this term almost exclusively refers to the development of computer or
video games.

ƒ Development of computer and video games is undertaken by a

developer, which may be a single person or a business.

ƒ A typical present-day development team usually includes:

• At least one game designer
• Artists
• Programmers
• Level designers
• Sound engineers (composers, and for sound effects)
• Testers
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Game Development
ƒ The main stages of game development involve :

ƒ Pre-production - Before full-scale production can begin, the

game designer must produce the game design, a detailed
document describing the concept and gameplay.

ƒ Production - During mainstream production, a great deal of work

is accomplished. Programmers churn out volumes of source
code, artists develop game assets such as sprites or, more often
today, 3D models of game elements. Sound engineers develop
sound effects and composers develop music for the game.

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Game Development
ƒ Maintenance - Most console games are 100% complete when shipped
and cannot be changed. This is usually acceptable since all consoles
have nearly identical hardware and, therefore, fewer instances of
hardware conflicts.

ƒ PC games, on the other hand, can have numerous conflicts with

hardware and configurations. Developers try to account for the most
prevalent configurations, but cannot anticipate all systems that their
game may be tried on.

ƒ A game artist is responsible for all of the aspects of game development

that calls for visual art. In modern computer and video games, game
artists create 2D art used as textures or 3D models and animations.
They often design the look of the character through concept art and
render them to be integrated into the game
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Game Development
ƒ Game design is the process of designing the content,
background and rules of a game. A document which describes a
game's design used during development may also be called a
design document.

ƒ The key concepts of game design are : Most games have a

theme of some sort, and it is often the starting point of the
design. Gameplay is what the player does during the game.
Gameplay is at the heart of the design process and is usually
extensively tested and refined. Presentation is the how the game
and its theme are realised, the look and feel of the game.

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Game Development
ƒ A game controller is an input device used to control a video
game. A controller is typically connected to a video game
console or a personal computer.

ƒ A game controller can be a keyboard, mouse, gamepad, joystick,

paddle, or any other device designed for gaming that can receive
input.

ƒ Special purpose devices, such as steering wheels for driving

games and light guns for shooting games, may also exist for a
platform.

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Game Development
ƒ In computing, a game engine is the core software component of a video
game. It typically handles rendering and other necessary technology,
but might also handle additional tasks such as game AI, collision
detection between game objects, etc.

ƒ Game programming is a subset of game development. It deals with

programming computer, console or arcade games. Though often
engaged in by professional game programmers, many novices may
program games as a hobby.

ƒ Today, because it is object oriented and compiles to binary (the native

language of the target platform), the most popular game development
language is C++. However, Java and C are also popular.

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