introduction-to-multimedia_handout.pdf

Republic of the Philippines Mountain Province State Polytechnic College Bontoc, Mountain Province CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION TO MULTIMEDIA ITP215 - Multimedia Systems and Technologies 1 Course Instructor: Sheila A. Desierto Author: Jackilou P. Malot...

Republic of the Philippines Mountain Province State Polytechnic College Bontoc, Mountain Province CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION TO MULTIMEDIA ITP215 - Multimedia Systems and Technologies 1 Course Instructor: Sheila A. Desierto Author: Jackilou P. Malot [email protected] Information Technology Department 1st Semester, AY 2024 - 2025  Chapter 1: Introduction to Multimedia INTRODUCTION Multimedia is not new to us. It plays a vital role in any presentation in different areas such as business, medicine, entertainment, home, public places, in education and so on. We used this through text, graphics/images, audio, video and animation which serves as the five elements of multimedia. We have enjoyed multimedia presentation since childhood through films, televisions, videotape and videodisc. These have all involved analog media. What makes recent developments new is that we can now deal with various media in a digital format. The digital format allows manipulation and sharing of data in ways that analog cannot. For example, layout artist can integrate digital images into a word document. They can record and edit sounds to be link with those images or text. Users can program the computer to search for files randomly to store files digitally. They can edit these files, removing unnecessary parts, transforming them, or adding special effects without expensive post-production. With the fast innovation in the field of multimedia technologies, upcoming elements will be introduced which will give a more exciting and high-end features that we can utilize in any presentation in the near future. This chapter contains three lessons. The first lesson presents what multimedia is, its usage, application, features, elements and stages of multimedia application development. The second lesson is about the multimedia hardware requirements. And the last lesson focuses on the Multimedia Software tools. LEARNING OUTCOMES At the end of the chapter, you should be able to: 1. identify and discuss the elements, hardware requirements, and software tools of multimedia; and 2. recognize the use of multimedia elements, hardware requirements, and software tools in multimedia sample/s. LESSON 1: Basics of Multimedia Objectives: At the end of the lesson, you should be able to: 1. describe multimedia and various environments in which it might be useful; 2. list the multimedia elements; and 3. describe the stages of multimedia applications development. What is Multimedia? Multimedia comes from two terms: Multi and media. Multi means many; as media pertains to the tools used for communications. Hence, multimedia means the utilization of multiple media to communicate with the user. Multimedia refers to the use of electronic media to store or deliver information to user or clientele for business, education, medicine, broadcasting, Figure 1: Multimedia/Digital Media Source: www.Pixabay.com entertainment, and others. 1  Chapter 1: Introduction to Multimedia Why Use Multimedia? Multimedia offers a powerful means of connection. It can keep an audience interest, speaker’s or the teachers can deliver the subject matter with confidence and enthusiasm, establish personal contact, and you can be able to express your ideas, and feelings/emotions. Further, with the use of different media, you can be able to produce a dynamic and interactive presentation. To sum it up, a multimedia is a combination of text, graphics/images, video and animation delivered to you by computer-based technology or other electronic means. Three Major Types of Multimedia 1. Hypermedia. When you provide a structure of linked elements through which the user can navigate. 2. Interactive multimedia. It will only be called interactive multimedia when the user has control and can manipulate the elements of multimedia. 3. Linear multimedia. When user can just relax or sit back and watch the presentation from the start to end. It means user has limited access or control to the presentation. Features of Multimedia Multimedia is commonly used in designing and developing a website. Many websites or even presentations are equipped with multimedia elements of animation effects, video after effects, sound effects, etc. Figure 2 shows various functions of multimedia that made it popular. 1. Interactivity Each multimedia applications involve interactivity with users. When answering a quiz online that is already interactivity. When you visit any website and click on any button or links, you have done a brief interactivity. This is because users have total control over the applications. 2. Navigation This feature is one of the most important features in the development of multimedia. It is closely linked to interactivity. The correct use of navigation tools enables the users to control the sequence of concepts that you wish to present. The navigation tools like hyperlinks, buttons, icons and pull-down menus (eg. menu with sub- menu if you have visited some websites) enables the user to explore and navigate from one web page to another. See figure 3 below for the example. 2  Chapter 1: Introduction to Multimedia 3. Hyperlink Films and books are linear forms of multimedia applications. It has a beginning, intermediate and ending stage. Though linear method is usually used, it is not necessary the best way of learning. We can “jump” to another chapter or topic if we have a knowledge already on the subject matter. Thus, it is totally reasonable that computer applications allow users to jump from one section to another. 4. Easy to understand, and easy to use One of the main reasons why multimedia applications are favored by many is because of its ease of use. As stated on the other features that it is easy to navigate, and it is interactive. Applications of Multimedia There are several areas where we can use multimedia including education, business, medicine, entertainment, public places, engineering and at home. Let’s take a look on the usage of multimedia in several areas; 1) Multimedia in Education School needs multimedia. It helps improve teaching strategies making students more focused and interested in the subject matter. To make teaching effective, teacher can make a productive and dynamic presentation applying the elements of multimedia. Also, multimedia in education is useful in recording or delivering lectures, demonstrating step-by-step process on how to use a certain application, and on bringing in distant expert speaker. Source: www.pngfuel.com Figure 4: Training and Learning 3  Chapter 1: Introduction to Multimedia 2) Multimedia in Business Multimedia is used in advertising, marketing, product demonstration, presentations, databases, and network communications especially that we are on the age of e-commerce. Source: www.fundoodata.com Figure 5: Marketing/Advertising Some businesses use multimedia tools such as CD-ROMs, DVDs or online tutorials for training or educating staff about things the employer want them to learn. Multimedia is one of the best ways to provide training to workers in a company. 3) Multimedia in Medicine Multimedia brought changes in the field of medicine. Doctors or Surgeons nowadays can have their training on virtual surgery. They can use multimedia in radiology, pathology, cardiology, patient record information services from medical libraries and education of hospital staff. Figure 6: Virtual Surgery 4) Multimedia in Entertainment Multimedia is used in entertainment industry to apply after or special effects in movies, radio broadcast, games and animations. In movies, a good example in applying after effects and animation were Avatar and Jurassic Park. Multimedia games are popular software programs that are available online as well as on DVDs and CD-ROMs. These games allow uses to fly aeroplanes, drive cars, do wrestling,etc. 4  Chapter 1: Introduction to Multimedia Figure 7: Applying after effects Source: https://cdn1.thr.com 5) Multimedia in Public Places Nowadays, private and public company are putting up kiosks. It can be installed in stations, hotels, shopping malls, etc at a stand-alone terminals to provide information and navigate directions to customers or clients. Such installation reduce demand on traditional information booths and personnel, add value, and they can work around the clock, even in the middle of the night, when live help is off-duty. (a) (b) Figure 8: Kiosks in Public Places Source: (a) www.pngfuel.com (b) http://vector3d.net 6) Multimedia at Home Today, home consumers of multimedia either own a computer with an attached CD- ROM drive or a set-top player that hooks up to the television. Many homes had already installed game machines connected to TV. Multimedia games are popular among children which are available on CD or online. With availability of gaming software programs, virtual gaming has become a reality today. (a) (b) Figure 9: Home Multimedia Source: (a) www.airport-technology.com (b) https://encrypted-tbno.gstatic.com 5  Chapter 1: Introduction to Multimedia 7) Virtual Reality At the convergence of technology and creative invention in multimedia is virtual reality, or VR. Googles, helments, special gloves, and bizarree human interfaces attempt to place you “inside” a lifelike experience. VR requires terrific computing horsepower to be realistic. In VR, your cyberspace is made up of many thousands of geometric objects plotted in three- dimensional space: the more objects and the more points that describe the objects, the higher the resolution and the more realistic your view. VR is an extension of multimedia - it uses the basic multimedia elements of imagery, sound, and animation. Because it requires instrumented feedback from a wired-up person, VR is perhaps interactive multimedia at its fullest extension. Figure 10: Man wearing VR goggles and holding controller, Samsung Galaxy S8 Samsung Gear VR Virtual reality headset Immersion, VR headset Source: www.pngfuel.com Elements of Multimedia The following elements of multimedia has their own role in the creation of dynamic and effective presentation. These elements interacts with each other in a digital environment. You need to have a better understanding on these elements if you wish to create or develop a multimedia presentation. Don’t worry, we are going to study each element to fully understand its usage. Figure 11: Elements of Multimedia 6  Chapter 1: Introduction to Multimedia 1. Text It is considered as the basic elements and safest way of conveying messages in multimedia which consists of characters, symbols, numbers, etc. It serves as a reinforcement for information contained in other media items. Text can be use in heading/title, bullet/list, paragraph, scrolling text, navigation, and text as graphics. Proper use of text and words in multimedia presentation will help the content developer to communicate the idea and message to the user on an electronic media. 2. Graphics Graphics is important part of multimedia because us human we are fun of images. Images like photographs, drawings, clip arts, illustrations or non-text elements are example of graphics. Information communicated through images is easier to remember and understand. Graphics can be interactive like buttons. Clickable that leads the viewer to another element like video or audio. 3. Video Video can convey information or message more accurately to viewers than text. Video in a digital format becomes powerful because we can capture, edit it and play back on existing computer systems and integrate it into a wide variety of applications. 4. Audio Audio files and streams play an important role in some multimedia systems. Audio or sound is the most effective way to capture the attention of the users. It enhances multimedia applications with music, sound effects, and speech. Note: Sound is the terminology used in the analog form, and the digitized form of sound is called as audio. 5. Animation Animation is a series of images put together to give effect of movement. 2D and 3D digital animation is used. In multimedia, any static presentation becomes lively when animation effects are incorporated. It can illustrate how things work in an entertaining ways. Stages of Multimedia Application Development A multimedia program should go through various multimedia production stages. Following these stages of development are essential to a high-quality, successful outcome, delivered on time to your customer. The software development process are as follows: 1. Planning Planning is considered the crucial part of the multimedia development. It includes brain storming and team work in order to come up with a plan on how to present or how the project will appear and on how to successfully deliver the desired information. Strategic planning includes the following questions: 1. What do you require or the requirements for the project? 7  Chapter 1: Introduction to Multimedia 2. How long will each task take? 3. Who is going to do the work? 4. How much is the production cost? 2. Script writing After the planning stage, the people in charge will write a script then it will be edited for consistency, readability and grammar. 3. Story Boarding A multimedia project includes audio, video, image, text for voice-overs and on-screen titles. Story board panel for the scene includes the sketch of visual elements, the voice-overs or the title text and production notes. This stage guides the team in developing the project. 4. Designing In this phase the team will work on the interface. On how will the project looks and feels. Using the story board, they will create a design, navigation, graphics and give direction to photographers and videographers regarding angle that needs to be shots. 5. Editing The most complex stage of the multimedia development. The people in charge will scrutinize the time consistency, story line, and specifications. This stage usually includes internal review iterations. 6. Production The final stage. To ensure that the project has the desired impact on the target audience, the team will engage in user testing as part of production. The user audience will use the piece while the team will observe to see if the project meets the desired marks. After the testing phase, further adjustments will be made. Once the team meets the clients’ requirements the project will then be out for distribution or presentation. LESSON 2: Multimedia Hardware Objectives: At the end of the lesson, you should be able to: 1. identify the difference of the different multimedia hardware; and 2. enumerate hardware specifications needed in multimedia development; LET’S TALK ABOUT IT For you to produce a multimedia project, you must have a high-end computer designed for multimedia applications. You will need a fast computer with tons of speed and storage in order to have a smooth flow of your project development otherwise you will not meet the desired timeline. Aside from that, knowledge about the computer hardware is essential to enable us to work confidently with multimedia elements. See Figure 13 for the categories of these Multimedia Hardware. 8  Chapter 1: Introduction to Multimedia Figure 13: Categories of Multimedia Hardware System Device ⚫ Processor Processor is the most important part of your machine because it is the brain of your computer. When you are rendering your finished project, it is the processor that is doing the legwork. You need to have a powerful and efficient CPU to cope with the intensive rendering Figure 13: Processor otherwise you will consume hours or days. In this case, there is a need for high capacity processor as most multimedia software today are more oriented towards graphics and video that requires a powerful high speed processor. At least a quad core that operates at 2GHz. One that is capable of running a 64-bit operating system too. ⚫ Graphics card (GPU) 9  Chapter 1: Introduction to Multimedia A good GPU will enable your machine to perform modeling, mapping, and animation work in 3D spaces smoothly and with more stability. Make sure to check which brand your chosen software prefers, often incompatibilities will lead to crashes and disabled features. You should have at least 4GB or RAM too. Memory and Storage devices A storage device is a hardware that is capable of holding information. Without storage device, you will not be able to save any information and would be considered as a dumb terminal. Below are some examples of a storage devices. ⚫ RAM (Random Access Memory) Allows you to perform multiple task. You should have a 4GB for old version of multimedia software and for the new ones you should have a 8GB RAM. ⚫ Hard disk Before, large storage mediums were not required. However, after the introduction of multimedia technology, the demand for large storage mediums increased. This was caused by file sizes that contained multimedia information such as graphics, audio and video that could reach hundreds of megabytes. To minimize out of space problem, you should Figure 15: Hard disk have at least 160 OS and for the 1TB is a must. Other storage devices are compact disc, flash drive, floppy diskette and tape cassette. Keep in mind that although these drives do send and receive information, they are not ! considered an input or output device. ! Caution Output devices These devices converts information that can be read by machines in a form that can be read by humans. Similarly, like input devices, output devices also play an important role in the development of multimedia presentations. Output devices that are frequently used with your multimedia computers are as follows: ⚫ Audio devices Speakers 10  Chapter 1: Introduction to Multimedia Speaker is device that provides sound outputs. It is driven by a sound cards. Most sound cards support the SoundBlaster standard developed by Creative Labs and Figure 16: (a) Sound Card (b) Speakers the General MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) standard for sound reproduction. Computer desktop uses speakers that requires own power source and have built-in amplifiers. ⚫ Monitors - used for display. Figure 17: Monitor Source: https://hips.hearstapps.com Important features of a monitor that needs to be consider is its size and clarity. Monitor size is determined by the diagonal length of the display area. Usually, monitors come in many sizes. For example, 14, 15, 17 and 21 inches. The bigger the size of the monitor, the more expensive it is. However, a larger size is capable of displaying more information at any one time. The clarity of the monitor is determined by its resolution which is measured in pixels. Pixel is the dot or picture element that forms the image on a monitor. The resolution also indicates the density of the pixel on the monitor screen. Generally speaking, the higher the density of the pixels or the larger the number of pixels, the better the quality and clarity of the image being displayed. ⚫ Video devices With a video digitizing board installed in a computer, we can display a television picture on your monitor. Some boards include a frame-grabber feature for capturing the image and turning it in to a color bitmap, which can be saved as a PICT or TIFF file and then used as part of a graphic or a background in your project. ⚫ Projectors 11  Chapter 1: Introduction to Multimedia (a) CRT Projector (b) LCD Projector Figure 18: CRT and LCD Projector Source: (a) https://i0.wp.com (b) www.projectorreviews.com CRT projectors have been around for quite a while- they are the original “big- screen” televisions. They use three separate projection tubes and lenses (red, green, and blue), and three color channels of light must “converge” accurately on the screen. Setup, focusing, and aligning are important to getting a clear and crisp picture. CRT projectors are compatible with the output of most computers as well as televisions. LCD panels are portable devices that fit in a briefcase. The panel is placed on the glass surface of a standard overhead projector available in most schools, conference rooms, and meeting halls. While they overhead projectors does the projection work, the panel is connected to the computer and provides the image, in thousands of colors and, with active-matrix technology, at speeds that allow full-motion video and animation. Because LCD panels are small, they are popular for on-the-road presentations, often connected to a laptop computer and using a locally available overhead projector. Input devices Input device is any peripheral used to control signals to an information processing system such as a computer or other information appliance. Some of the input devices are as follows. Figure 19: Input devices Source: https://miro.medium.com 12  Chapter 1: Introduction to Multimedia Communication devices Modem stands for modulation-demodulation. Modulation is the process of converting digital signals to analog. On the other hand, demodulation is the process of converting analog signals to digital. Modems allow microcomputers (digital) to communicate with each other via telephone lines. Modem is a hardware you need to have in order to access the Internet. Without this hardware, multimedia technology would not have been able to progress so rapidly. Figure 20: Modems and routers Source: www.howtogeek.com Aside from modem, Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN), Digital Subscribers Line (DSL), cable modem and satellite connections are other technologies that can be used for connection to the Internet. LESSON 3: Multimedia Design Software Objectives: At the end of the lesson, you should be able to: 1. discuss the usage of multimedia software applications; and 2. determine the multimedia software requirements for multimedia development. LET’S TALK ABOUT IT Using a multimedia software helps you project what’s inside a person’s imagination and then later creating it. The software in your multimedia toolkit and your ability to use it will determine the quality of your multimedia work. The basic tool set for building a multimedia project can be divided into five categories: 1. Painting and Drawing tools 2. 3-D Modeling and Animation Tools 3. Image Editing Tools 4. Sound Editing tools 5. Animation, Video, and Digital Movie tools Painting and Drawing Tools Painting and drawing tools are the most important items in your toolkit. Why? It is because, of all the multimedia elements, the graphic impact of your project will likely 13  Chapter 1: Introduction to Multimedia have the greatest influence on the end user. The graphics creates the first impression of your multimedia project. These tools are very useful in giving you the desired capability when it comes to drawing and painting. They are generally come with a graphical user interface with pull down menus for quick selection. You can also create all kinds of possible shapes and resize them. Also, these tools have the capability to color with paint and cliparts. You can use brushes of different sizes and shapes according to the need. You can also use layers to give different treatment to each element. Most importantly, these tools come with built-in plug-ins for performing different tasks. Once you are done with the drawing, it can be imported or exported in many image formats like.gif,.tif,.jpg,.bmp, etc. The following are examples of painting and drawing tools: ❖ Adobe Photoshop ❖ ArtRage Studio Pro ❖ Autodesk SketchBook ❖ Clip Studio Paint ❖ Corel Painter ❖ Escape Motions ❖ Made with Mischief ❖ PhotoDonut ❖ Pixarra Twisted Brush ❖ ZBrush 3-D Drawing Tools With the help of 3-D modeling and animation tools, the objects that appear in perception in your project can look realistic. It has become conventional to use 3-D modeling in multimedia design. These tools offer features like multiple windows to view your design in each dimension. They have menus from where you can drop shapes into your design and combine them to create complex designs. The following are examples of 3-D drawing tools: ❖ Blender ❖ SketchUp ❖ SolidWorks ❖ AutoCAD ❖ Maya ❖ 3DS Max ❖ Inventor ❖ Tinkercard Image Editing Tools While Painting and Drawing tools let you create a drawing from scratch, Image editing tools are used to edit existing bitmap images and picture. However, these tools are similar to painting and drawing tools as they can also create images from scratch. They also are capable of converting any image data type file format. Image editing tools are primarily used for reinventing and recreating the image, which make them an important tool for designing a multimedia project. 14  Chapter 1: Introduction to Multimedia The following are examples of image editing tools: ❖ ACDSee17 ❖ ACDSee Pro 7 ❖ Adobe Photoshop CS6 ❖ Adobe Photoshop Elements 12 ❖ Adobe InDesign ❖ Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 5 ❖ Apple Aperture 3 Sound Editing Tools Sound editing tools let you hear sound as well as visualize it. You can cut/copy and paste sound and edit it with great accuracy or you can integrate sound into your multimedia project very easily by using sound editing tools. The following are examples of sound editing tools: ❖ WavePad ❖ Audacity ❖ Adobe Audition ❖ Acoutica Digital Audio Editor ❖ AVS Audio Editor ❖ Sound Forge ❖ Diamond Cut Animation, Video and Digital Movies Editing Tools Animations are graphic scenes played back sequentially and rapidly. These tools adopt and object-oriented approach to animation. These tools enable you to edit and assemble video clips captured from camera, animations and other sources. The completed clip with added transition and visual effects could be played back. The following are examples of animation/video editing tools: ❖ Adobe Premiere ❖ Corel Video Studio ❖ MotionStudio 3D ❖ Adobe Flash ❖ Nero Video 2016 ❖ Ajax Animator ❖ Blender ❖ Bryce ❖ DAZ Studio ❖ Clara.io Multimedia Authoring Tools Multimedia authoring tools provide the important framework you need for organizing and editing the elements of your multimedia project including graphics, 15  Chapter 1: Introduction to Multimedia sounds, animations, and video clips. Authoring tools are used for designing interactivity and for assembling multimedia elements into a single, cohesive project. Authoring software provides an integrated environment for binding together the content and functions of your project. Authoring systems typically include the ability to: ❖ Create, edit and import specific ❖ Assemble raw data into a playback sequence ❖ Provide a structured method or language for responding to user input Types of Authoring Tools 1. Card-or Page-based tools 2. Icon-based, event-driven tools 3. Time-based and presentation tools 4. Object-based tools 5. Web Page authoring tools Card-or Page-based Tools ❖ Using a card metaphor. ❖ Cards are developed that have different elements associated with them and are put in stacks. ❖ You can link the cards by allowing the user to click on buttons or other elements and jump to a different card in the stack. Example: Hypercard, ToolBook, HyperNext Studio, Hyper Studio, PhytonCard, Revolution Icon-based, Event-Driven tools ❖ With icon-based programs, you use symbols in a flowchart scheme. ❖ Each icon represents a particular event ❖ For example, the Wait icon stops the process until the user clicks the mouse button or presses a key or a specific amount of time passes. ❖ An advantage of icon-based programs is that you can easily see how a title is structured, that is, the flow of a program and especially the branching, ▪ Examples: Macromedia Authorware, IconAuthor Time-based and Presentation Tools ❖ Organize the elements along a time-line ❖ These tools play back the sequentially organized graphic frames at user-set speed and time ❖ These programs also allow for branching to different parts of the movie, and any amount of user control and interactivity may be built in. ❖ Good for creating animations ▪ Examples: Macromedia Director, Flash Object-based Tools ❖ Organize the elements in a hierarchical order as related “objects”, these tools make these objects perform according to properties assigned to them. 16  Chapter 1: Introduction to Multimedia ❖ Every object is modified Examples: mTropolis, AppleMedia, MediaForge Web Page Authoring Tools ❖ Allows users of all skill levels to create Web pages. ❖ Some applications software programs include Web page authoring programs. ❖ Adobe Dreamweaver allow to create web pages without learning the underlying HTML. Examples: Adobe Dreamweaver, Front page References: Ahrstedt, K. and Steinmetz, R. (2014). Multimedia Systems. Retrieved from https://books.google.com.ph/books/about/Multimedia_Systems.html?id=34U uim67mvUC&redir_esc=y Havaldar, P. and Medioni, G. (2010). Multimedia Systems: Algoriths, Standars, and Industry Practices. Retrieved from http://medialab.sjtu.edu.cn/teaching/multimedia/reference/Multimedia%20 Systems_%20Algorithms,%20Standards,%20and%20Industry%20Practices.pdf Lovely Professional University, Phagwara (2013). Multimedia Systems. Retrieved from http://piotech.wsd.wednet.edu/technounits/3presentations/1intro/multimed iaIntro.html Rahul (2014). Multimedia and its Uses/Applications. Retrieved from http://studentstudyhub.com/multimedia-uses-applications/ Vaughan, T. (2011). Multimedia: Making it Work, 8th Edition. The McGraw-Hill Companies. Retrieved from https://www.academia.edu/30686382/Multimedia_Making_It_Work_by_Tay_ Vaughan 17