Rochester Institute of Technology
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Theses
Thesis/Dissertation Collections
5-23-1992
PresentationMaker graphic design archive module
3.2
Jane Settergren
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Recommended Citation
Rochester Institute
of
Technology
A Thesis
Submitted
to theFaculty
ofThe
College
ofFine
andApplied Arts
in
Candidacy
for
theDegree
ofMASTER
OF
FINE
ARTS
PresentationMaker
Graphic
Design Archive Module 3.2
Approvals
Advisor: Professor James Ver Hague
Date:
Associate Advisor: Professor
R.
Roger Remington
Date:
Associate Advisor: Professor Mark Collien
Date:
Special Asst. to the Dean for Graduate Affairs: Professor Philip Bornarth
Date:
Acting Dean, College of Fine and Applied Arts: Dr. Peter Giopulos
Date:
f£
(1
(1
z
I,
Jane Ann Settergren
hereby grant
permission to the Wallace Memorial Library of RIT,
to reproduce my thesis in whole or in part.
Acknowledgments
I
wishto thank
my
husband,
Paul R.
Settergren,
andmy
Professors,
Jim Ver
Hague,
Roger
Remington,
andMark
Collien,
for
theirassistance andsupport on
this
project.I
alsowishto
thankProfessor
Contents
1.
Project Proposal
1
2. Review
ofLiterature
Interactivity
9
Hypermedia
10
Multimedia
11Methodologies
15
Multimedia Software
15
Multimedia Hardware
19
Presentation
Graphics
21
Evaluating
Systems
23
Audio
24
Understanding
Sound
26
Synthesized Sound
28
MIDI Interface
29
Video
30
Animation
34
Working
withImages
36
3.
Journal39
4. Evaluationand
Summary
81Appendices:
A:
Time Schedules
B: Flow Charts
C: Palette Development
D:
PresentationMakerScreens
E:
PreparationofPICT Files
F:
Thesis Show Materials
G: Scripts
Chapter
1:
Project Proposal
1.
Title:
PresentationMaker
Graphic Design Archive Module
3.2
2.
Client
andAddress:
Thesis Committee:
Faculty
Client:
Address:
Professor Jim Ver
Hague
Professor
Roger Remington
Professor
Mark
Collien
Professor Barbara Hodik
Rochester
Institute
ofTechnology
College
ofFine
andApplied Arts
1
Lomb Drive
Rochester,
NY 14623
3.
Designer:
Jane Ann Settergren
5435
Thomas
Rd.
Canandaigua,
NY 14425
4.
Thesis Statement:
My
MFA
Thesis
projectis
todesign
and program aninteractive
presentation makertobe
usedby
instructors
in preparing
materialtobe
presentedin
a classroomsetting.Zl
5.
Context
ofthe Thesis:
This
project stemsfrom
two separate sources.In
theSpring
of1991,
1
was
introduced
tocomputerprograms(Macintosh)
thatwere capable ofcreating
presentationsfrom
existing materialstored onCD-ROM andlaserdisc.
The
original conceptfor
this thesiswasto designan interactive mediaprogramthatusedthisstored material and couldbe
usedby
classroominstructors.
Also,
atthatsametime period,I
was askedtowork ontheGraphic
Design Archive Project
atRochesterInstitute
ofTechnology
asmy Master
ofFine Arts
thesis project.Given my
experiencein
interactive mediadesign
(Certificate from American Video
Institute),
my desire
tofurther
exploreand expandthedimensions
of such programmingalong
withGraphic Design
Archive
Project's
expresseddesire for further interactive development
andcapability,
I
agreed.My
interest
anddesire in interactive
multimedia specificallydesigned
to combineimages
andtextresulting in
a usable presentationfor
classroom teachersbecame
thebasis for my
thesisproject.In
additionto thatI
wouldtry
toadd themore specificdimensions desired in
thisparticularprojectrelating
to theGraphic
Design Archive.
6.
Projected Assumptions
abouttheUser:
The intended
useris
theclassroominstructor
whohas
thedesire
to create an on-screen presentation.Many
willhave had
experiencewith computers andbe
computerliterate. However
they
may
notbe
experienced withtheMacintosh
platform or withHyperCard
software.There
aretutorials that teach those skillsand concepts;
it is
notwithintherealm of this thesis toprovidethat training.PresentationMaker is
aHyperCard
program, and needsversion2. 1 in
order torun.HyperCard 2.0
cannotproperly
support allthescriptsfor
thevarious windows.If
the userwishestoaddcolorpicturesto thepresentation,
other software(eg.
PhotoShop)
andhardware
(color
scanner)may
be
neededto preparetheimages.
Subject
matter expertise and organizationfor
each presentation willbe
providedby
the user.Projected
machineenvironment:Macintosh II
computerwith minimumof5 MB RAM
and3
1/2"1.4MB Internal
Drives
andhard
drive
Apple
colorhigh
resolutionRGB
13"monitor with resolution of
640X480
pixelsLaserdisc
playerand monitor(optional)
LaserWriter
Printer
7.
Situation
Analysis:
Images
draw
attention,illustrate
ideas,
and can provideexplanation.Combining
textwithimages
can speak even moreeloquently
thantheimage
alone.Computers
have
thecapability
toincorporate
images
and texteasily.This
providesthestarting
pointfor
a presentationthatwould notonly
combineimages
andtext,
but
could alsoinclude
audio, video, and animation clips.This
combining
ofvarious mediahas popularly been
termed "multimedia."A
seriesofimages
couldbe
created,combined withtext andanappropriatebackground
tocreatetheaudio-visual segments of a presentation.When
combinedwithinteractivity,
thepowerandpossibilities created
for
future
use areintriguing.
Presently
thereexists avast collection ofimages from
theGraphic
Design Archive
storedin analog format
on a videodisc.Along
withtheseimages,
several moduleshave been developed
toaccesstheseimages in
avariety
of ways.Taking
advantageoftheaccessing
capabilities andcombining
theseimages
withtextin
a usableformat
presentsa challenge.If it is
possibletodo this,
theimages
couldbe
moreavailabletoinstructors in
theirteaching
orfor
theirusein
presentations.8.
Goal:
The intention
ofthis thesisis
todevelop
atoolfor instructors
that wouldassistthemin
thecreationofa presentationin
which aseries ofimages
couldbe
used,such asfrom
theGraphic Design Archive
(GDA)
videodisc.
9.
Objectives
andConsiderations:
a.toallowtheusertocreateavisually
interesting
andinformative
presentation using the
GDA
archivalimages
onthevideodisc.b.
toconstruct an applicationthatis simultaneously functional (program
does
whatit is intended
todo),
highly
interactive (user
makesthechoices thatdetermine
the outcomes) andeasy
touse(eg.
menu choices).c.to permit
flexibility
for
theuserin
thearrangement oftheimages
and theentering
oftextfiles for
titlesandhandout information.
d.
toworkharmoniously
withthearchive project, using thebest
and most appropriatetoolsfor
theexisting
project.e.to maximizethe
imagery
onthevideodisc,presenting
theimages in
a visuallyinteresting
andaestheticallystimulating
manner.f.
todesign
an effectiveinterface
toolfor
the userthatinvites
useasthe purposes oftheparts areclearand obviousto the user.g.to utilizea
"multi-media"
h.
toapply
the ten general principles ofHuman Interface Design
asfound
in Annie's HyperCard Stack Design Guidelines.
1.
The
use of aclear metaphor with appropriatevisual and audioeffects can allow userstowork witha set ofexisting expectations andapply
those to the newsituation.2.
Users
needtobe
abletodirectly
manipulatetheir environment,andthey
needvisualandaudiofeedback.
3.
It
is
much easierto"see-and-point"
asopposedto "
remember-and-type "
.
4.
There
needstobe
consistencywithinthe following: thegraphiclook
thearrangement andgrouping of
buttons
visual and audio
feedback
cardlayout
background for
cardswith similarfunctions
thestackstructure
5.
WYSIWYG
or(What
youseeis
whatyouget)The layout
ofthestack should notbe
a puzzletotheuser.6.
The
usermusthave
controlofthe actions, notthecomputer.The
computerdoes
the work,but
theusermustbe
thedirector
ofit.
7. Appropriate feedback
anddialog
allowtheusertoknow
what
is going
on,if
a choiceis inappropriate
at agiventime,
etc.Feedback
can allowtheusertolearn
from his/her
mistakes.8. Because
usersgenerally
make mistakes,forgiveness for
them mustbe
built into
theprogram.9. A
perceivedstability
allowstheusertofeel
comfortable and morein
controlthana programthatseemstochange atrandom.10.
Aesthetic
integrity
willenhancetheeffectiveness ofthe program.10.
Processes
andStrategies:
a.
Collect
information
1. Research
topicin
library,
using
textsand periodicals2.
Interview
users.2.1
understand problems2.2 discover
needs3. Understand existing
project.b. Analysis
of userneedsc.
Define
project requirementsd. Task
analysis1.
Break
complextasksinto
parts2. Define
structure3.
Set
sequence oftasks4.
Flowchart
anddiagram
probleme.
Create
prototypef.
Software
development
1.
Programming
2.
Solicit
user'sinput
on continualbasis
3.
Develop
evaluationdevices
g.
Final
stages:1.
Stringent testing
with userand others2.
Eliminate bugs
3. Refine designs
11.
Time/Implementation:Week
Date
Tasks
16
Dec
2
Clarify
projectideas
Time Line
15
Dec 9
Begin Flowchart
Continue Research
14
Dec 16
Finish Research
Work
onOverall Layout
13
Jan
6
First Draft
ofChapters 1
&
2
Work
onimporting
Text
12
Jan 13
Chap.1 &2 Revisions
Gather
data &
images (Agha
& Golden)
1 1
Jan 20
Write up
ofJournal
todate
Work
onimporting
images (b/w
bitmaps)
10
Jan 27
Revisions
tooveralllayout, flowchart,
etc.Work
onimporting
colorimages
9
Feb 3
Continue Revisions
Work
on output methods8
Feb 10
Write
upofJournal
todate
Work
onintroduction
andhelp
7
Feb 17
First
majortesting
Revisions
6
Mar 9
Continue
Revisions
Write up
ofJournal
todate
5
Mar 16
2nd
majortesting
Begin
otherwritten parts ofthesis4
Mar 23
Revisions
toprogramContinue
writing
3
Mar 30
Final
Evaluations
andRecommendations
Draft
ofFinal Documentation
2
Apr 6
Last
revisions and createfinal
documentation
12.
Available
Resources:
Macintosh
llfx
computer with8mb
RAM
Videodisc
and monitorfor
GDA
disk
LaserWriter
for hard copy
outputProject
targeted for
completionby
April 13th.
13. Dissemination:
A
student stationis
presently
available attheIMS
Center for
student use withtheGDA
project.It is
projectedthat perhapsin
thefuture
another such stationmay be
availablefor faculty.
14. Evaluation
Plan:
Chapter
2: Review
of
Literature
Interactivity
allowsthe
userstoshapetheirownexperiences,generally
Interactivity
manipulating 3
variables:Frequency
-How
often
the
usercanhave input
oris
allowedto make choices?Range
-How many
constraints are made on choices?Are
thechoicesarefinite
orinfinite?
Personess
-Does
the userparticipate
directly
orindirectly? Is
the userthe
actor or putin
anobserver role?Reference: "Interactive Media
andHyperCard"from Minds in Motion. Spring 1989.Technological
advances are sometimesviewedasdecays in
living
standards ratherthan advances,with criticspointing
outthatthereis
increasing
centralization and controlofsociety
and encouragement of passivity.A brighter
viewpointstowardincreased
opportunitiesfor
individual
choice.Actually
thetechnology
itself
guarantees neither,ratherboth
capabilities areinherent
in
thetool,
andits
use willbe determined
by
theuser.Creation
ofinteractive
worksis
somewhat unprecedentedin
arthistory
and will needits
audiencetolearn
new conceptual andtechnicalskills.The
artistmust create
for
thewide rangeofchoices ofthe audience,and musthave knowledge
ofthepsychology
oftheaudience and nature ofthe context,(p.
173)
In
moretraditionalprogramming
environments programs areself-running
giving
theuserchoicesat specifictimes.Once
started, theprogram moves througha seriesof preprogram-med steps.In
thisway,sucha programis
similarto a movie,abook,
or a musical piecethathas
acertainorder,andis,
in
a sense,linear.
In
aninteractive
sequence, theuserdetermines
the sequence,andthe order willbe
unique.The
program needstomake sense andbe engaging in
avariety
of orders."The distinction between
preprogrammed and user choice will undoubtedlybecome
amajoraestheticdesign issue in
the future."(p.
191)
Reference: MuIt i Media DesignwithHyperCard
by
StephenWilson,
EnglewoodCliffs,
NJ:
PrenticeHall,
1991.Large displays let
you runa multimedia productionin
front
ofalarge
audience,but
they
createanotherproblem:how do
you controlthepresentationwhile
standing far away from
yourMac? Enter
Proxima,
with a system calledCyclops.
You
can aimits
pointeratalarge
projectionscreen and useit
to point and clickjust
asif
you werehandling
a mouse.A
small videocamera mounted ontheLCD
projection panel picksup
theimage
ofthe
pointer'sLED
positions onthescreen.($1200)
Reference: "Multimediaand
Video"
While
televisionhas
an uncannyability
tograbaviewer'sattention,it
remains a passive medium.The
personal computerontheotherhand,
is
ahighly
interactive tool,
which until nowhas been pretty
much restrictedtosearching
throughvast quantitiesofdata
andtext.Thanks
to thelaser
technology,
videodiscs and compact musicdiscs have become
the cheapest methodeverdevised for storing
information.Today's
machinesoffer aspectsoftheinteractive
multimedia experience,but
none ofthemdeliver anything
closeto thevisionofthefuture:
adevice
thatcouldplay
music, movies, games,whileproviding
viewers withajoy
stickallowing
them to pursuetheirowninterests
orneeds.Reference: "The Worldon a
Screen"
by Philip
Elmer-Dewitt,
lime.,
October21,
1991,
pp.80-82.Hypermedia
Interactive
multimedia projects(sometimes
calledhypermedia)
"can
be
viewed as electronicinformation
webs on communities ofknowledge."
(p.
8)
They
useto advantage possibilities ofvideodiscs,CD
ROM
andHypermedia
software(ex. HyperCard). An interactive
multimedia project allowsfor text,
staticpictures, graphics,videosequences, animation, simulation, music,andvoice.In
these systems, thedesign
and navigation systembecomes
asimportant
asthecontent.Also
thespeedthatusers can absorb and understandinformation
"depends
heavily
onthe presentation ofthe information."(p.9)
Reference: "The Glenn GouldProfile"
by Jerry
Durlak.Minds in Motion.Fall
1989,
pp.7-13.Computers
arebringing
morerevolutionary
changesthanmerely working
with severalmedia simultaneously.In
additionprogrammability
(allowing
usertomakechoices)canbe
built
in,
sothat theusercancustomizethe usetohis/her
own needs.This
typeofthinking
is
calledHypermedia;
hyper
meaning
nonlinearmethod ofmoving
throughabody
ofinformation,
and mediareferring
to thevariety
offormats
in
additionto text(graphics,
audio, video,and animated graphics),(p.
3)
Reference: MultiMedia DesignwithHyperCard
by
Stephen
Wilson,
Englewood
Cliffs,
NJ: PrenticeHall,
1991."Hypermedia
canbe
defined
as multimediathat
has
aninteractive
componenttoit."(p.
553) Examples
are electronicencyclopedias,
interactive
maps,andgames.Expert
systemsbuilt
aroundif-then-else
equations usehypertextural
construction.With
optical storagedevices
andinnovative
video and sound compressiontechniques,
the
90's
will usherin
a new generation ofinteractive
hypermedia
applications."Most hypermedia
applicationsship
witha global systemmap
orbrowser
to show overalllocation,
andthen mark atrailas you navigatethesystem toaid youin
finding
previously
viewed information."(p.
554)
The
softwarefor
multimediais "like
a conductordirecting
allthe
elementsofamultimedia orchestration."
The introduction
oftextmaterialsinto
electronicforms
causes problemsin
twoareas:design
ofthesurface anddesign
ofthe
interfaces.
Surface
design
wouldinclude
thetypography,
layout,
graphics,illustrations,
andthequality
ofthelanguage.
Interface
design
refersto theproblemofnavigating
through the textandis
manifested on3
levels:
theimmediate
structure ofthe text(information
providedwithin a page),the internal
structure(information
provided withintheentiredocument),
andtheexternal structure(navigational
aidsthatallowuserstomove
from
onedocument
to another.)On
thepagelevel,
icons
orsymbols, menus,and colorcoding have
allbeen
usedto aidthe user.On
thedocument
level,
whereprinted materialsclearly have
contents,indexes,
appendices,andfootnotes,
users ofelectronic materialswant
help
andlook
to theprogramto provideit.
It
seemstobe
acritical elementtounderstandhow
the user conceptualizesthesystem and material containedtherein.Initial
understanding is usually based
on metaphorsof similaraspectsin
the real world.DOS,
for
example,usesthisapproachwiththeir"tree"file
analogy.The
interface
mustbe carefully
considered.Reference: "Instructional Text: The Transition from PagetoScreen."Stephen T. Kerr. Visible Language. Autumn 1986.pp.368-392.
While HyperCard has
spawned atremendousquantity
of customprogramming
by
average users, therearefew commercially
successful products.Its primary
valueis
as a multimedia developers'tool,
andits
successhas been
expanded onby
SuperCard
(Mac)
andPlus
(Mac,
PC),
andtranslatedinto Toolbook (Windows3).
Elements
usedin
multimedia(text,
graphics, sound, voice, music, video,and soon) are all
extremely memory intensive, (p.
555)
Manipulation
of the rawfiles
wouldbe
unwieldy,so multimediaauthoring
programsreduceelementstoobjects,
(p.
556)
Object-oriented programming
(OOPs)
defines
ahierarchy
ofobject classes sothatuser-generatedactionsor events(messages)
canbe handled in
alogical
manner.OOPs
are notnew,having
arisen outofXerox PARC in
the70's.
OOPs
arehigh level
languages,
and require muchless
codetocreatethesame effectthana structuredlanguage,
asC,
Pascal, BASIC,
orothers.But
they
areslowerto executethanthestructured languages,(p.
557)
Reference: BeyondtheDesktop: ToolsandTechnologyforComputer Publishing.
by
BarrieSosinsky,
New York: BantamBooks,
pp.549- 597.The
technology
known
asinteractive
multimediaencompassesavariety
ofsystemsfor
bringing
information,
music,voice,animation, photos,and videoimages
togetherona screen.This
representstheconvergenceof threekey
communicationstechnologies:television,
personal computers,and
laser
storagesystems,like
thevideodiscandthecompactdisc.
Just
like
thebeginning
ofothertechnologies,
the road atfirst is
bumpy,
andlittered
withfalse
starts, setbacks,
andskepticism.Reference: "The
World
on aScreen"
by Philip
Elmer-Dewitt,
Time. October
21,
1991,
pp.80-82.Hypermedia
cont.
Multimedia
Is
multimedia abattle
between
the printed wordand"flashy
visuals"
and
COnt.
"sound bites"?
It
seemstohave
potentialfor both
goodandbad;
in
addition
it
canbe technically
complexandalso quite expensive.As
aneducationaltoolit
has
tremendouspotential.Students
are oftenencouraged
to
maketheirown documentariesbased
onvideodiscimages.
This
raisesanimportant
question whatarestudentsbeing
expectedto
learn
here
-are
they
learning
aboutthesubjectmatter, orhow
tocreate adocumentary.
The
toolsof creating, editing, andproducing
thisbecome
more of afocal
pointthanthe
actual subjectmatterthat thestudent
is
supposedtobe
focusing
upon.What is
multimedia?It generally
meansusing
anauthoring
program tocreateand playbacka production.
It
alsogenerally takesa quantityofhardware (a Mac
computer,avideo camera orVCR,
aCD
Rom
player,tomention a
few)
aswell as numeroussoftware packagesto create allthe pieces.The
mostexciting
and significantpart of multimediais
theinteractivity
thatis
possible.A
videodisc player works wellin
thisarea asit has
randomaccess,
containing 54000 frames
and almostimmediate
accesstoany
ofthem.Frames
canbe
playedmoving
orasstills,and also audiocanbe
partofthe track.Reference:
"Getting
StartedwithMultimedia"
by
JimHeid,
MacWorld.May
1991,
pp.225-232.Multimedia is
adocument
thataddresses morethanone sense at atime,
ex. agreeting
cardthatplays atune,
orgetting
cashfrom
anATM
machine,or use ofa
kiosk
at a store.Interactive
terminalsare so acceptedand
have
received so muchattentionthatthey
have
attracted mostoftheheavyweights
ofthecomputerindustry:
IBM,
Apple,
Commodore,
Intel,
Sony, Phillips,
andmany
others,(p.
549)
Computer
projectsin
multimediahave
focused
on:Training
and educationSound
and video productionPresentations, designs,
and simulationsArt
and entertainment
-Advertising
"Computers
areuniquely
suitedto mix sight and soundto
createliving
documents."(p.
550) This
technology
is
excellentfor
simulationsandhas
been
usedto trainairlinepilots.Becoming
moresensory
inclusive
and realisticweapproach virtualreality
experiences."Virtual reality
resultswhen several of
the
senses are mixedto
createanextremely
realistic simulation."(p.
551)
Multimedia presently
receivestremendous
pressbecause it is
a newfrontier
in communications;
it is
perceived as either apassing
fad
ora"watershed
technology
thatwillbe
asrevolutionary
asdesktop
publishing
was."(p.
551) Predictions
are madeofPCs controlling
televisions andsound,
replacing
allthe separateentertainmentdevices
in homes today.
However,
multimediais
a"moving
target"the
fast changing
capabilitiesofthecomputerand newtechniques
andMultimedia
technologies
arebeing
introduced
at afast
pace.cont
There
aretwoconceptsthatmakecomputer multimedia projectsunique asinformation
mediums:"interactivity
and nonlinearaccess."(p.
551)
A
computer program canbe
written sothat the
usercontrolstheselectionof anaction or event.Studies have already
establishedthevalue ofinvolving
several ofthesensesin
communication.Recall is
enhancedwhen more senses areinvolved,
asin the
saying
people remember20%
ofwhatthey
hear,
40%
ofwhatthey
see,and60%
ofwhatthey
eat(interact
with),(p.
552)
A
compound approach allowsfor
more avenuesfor
thepresentation ofmaterialwhich makesthemeasiertolearn
andunderstand, and thereforemore memorable."Using
a multipath approachis
thebest
and mostcommonway
tolearn
and retain information."(p.
552)
Reference: Bevond
theDesktop:
ToolsandTechnology
for Computer Publishing,by
BarrieSosinsky,
NewYork: Bantam
Books,
pp.549- 597.Multimedia includes
mediathatallow ustoinput
and combine art, animations, graphics,video-scannedimages,
sound andtextinto
multi-sensory displays.
Reference: "Interactive
Media
and HyperCard"from Minds in Motion.Spring
1989Though
thecostofthese programsis
high,
multimedia programs arelikely
tobe enthusiastically
receivedin America's
schools.Some
arguethatwe needthis typeoftechnology
to teach a generationof children raisedonSesame Street
andMTV;
thatwe needtomakeeducationappropriateto the timeswelive in.
Others
are not sosure.While
multimedia candefinitely
prove usefulin
visualizing
abstract conceptsin
scienceand math, thefear is
thatmultimedia
is
basically
toentertain atthecostofthinking.Multimedia
can turn the traditionaleducation experienceinto something
morelike
TV,
a world where wordsareunnecessary.At
thepresentinteractive
multimediais
a powerfultoolwhosebest
uses remainonthehorizon.
Reference: "The Worldon a
Screen"
by Philip
Elmer-Dewitt,
Time. October21,
1991,
pp.80-82.The
term multimediahas been
usedtodescribe everything
from
colossal extravaganzasto tradeshow slide presentations andis
notexactly
new.What is
newis
the pricetag:hardware
and software arenow reasonablein
cost,andthe textandimage editing
programs require"no
special expertise to master."Industry
pioneerslike
MacroMind,
Paracomp,
Pixar
andAdobe
Systems
areallin
thebattle for
a piece ofthe pie.The
resultshave
been
impressive,
promising to
takevideo productioninto
the mainstream.Multimedia
Other issues
relateto
theuse ofarchival images.Understandably
archivescont are reluctanttograntuseto
images for
thisuseas
they
wouldbe
copiedoverand over again.
Multimedia
today
occupiesashifting ground wherethetechnologicalinnovations
andcompetingformats have
combinedto make anunpredictable outcome
for
thefuture. Electronic
scanners,digitalcameras,andother
futuristic hardware
arein
thehands
ofa newbreed
ofdesigners,
whereideas
arevisual andcommunicated graphicallyand effectively.Reference:
"Breaking
intoPictures"from HOW,
by
KenCoupland,
July/August1991,
VolVI,
No.5,
pp.62-69.Products boast
ofbeing
multimedia orhyper-something,
withoutalot
ofcomprehension
among
thegeneral publicabout whatis
being
talked about.In
this article, "'multimedia authoringenvironment'
means
softwarethatallows youto
integrate
sound,text,
graphics, andanimationor video
into
auser-controlledproduct."
(p.
195)
A
presentationcouldinclude
animatedcharts, musicfrom
aCD
ROM
player,andvideo clips ofdemonstrationsfrom
avideodisc playerwiththe userchoosing
whattoview.Reference: "MultiMedia Design
Tools"
by
NickWest.MacWorld. November1991,
pp. 194-201.With
theMac,
thecapability for
producing multimedia presentationsis
clearly
available,however,
thesoftware neededtofully
andseamlessly
integrate
video ontheMac has
appearedonly in bits
and pieces.Many
ofthecomplaints
surrounding
multimedia stemfrom
unrealisticexpectations.
Multimedia
applications,especially
theinteractive
ones,can'tyetbe
based
on alarge
body
of experiencefrom
books,
specialists, andtraining
aboutinteractive
multimedia.Few Macintosh dealers
areknowledgeable
aboutvideo.Similarly
few
videodealers,
professionalorotherwise,arefamiliar
with computers.Presently
thereis
not alot
ofhelp
available, anddevelopers
arepretty
much ontheirowntofind
information.
Reference: "MultimediaandVideo"
by
Lon McQuillin. Macllser.Feb.
1991,
pp. 4-32 in Buyer's Guide Supplement.Bill
Gates,
35
yr.old chairmanofMicrosoft
Corp,
whodeveloped
thebasic
softwarefor
theIBM
PC
may be
the most powerful personin
thePC
business. Microsoft
Windows
softwarewhichmakes allPCs
aseasy to
use asApple's Macintosh
has
become
theindustry's best-seller. Gates
wasin NYC
tohelp
launch
theMultimedia PC
Marketing
Council,
agroup
ofcompaniesdedicated
tomarketing
computersthatcan runvideo, sound and compactdiscs
simultaneously.According
toGates,
thebig
problem
in
multimediahas been getting
contentinto
digital form
sothatit
canbe
usable.People
whohave
theexpertisedo
nothave
thefunding
orknowledge
todo
this.Reference:
"Gates'Vision:
Putting
archivestouse"
Our
culturehas failed
todeal
withunderstanding
theimpact
ofthe newtechnologies
on society.Because
understanding
thesedynamics
is
sucha crucial elementin
designing,
it is
amazing
thatthere
has
been
such a completefailure
toaddressthese
issues.
"If
a quantitative changein
some systemenvironmentchanges past a certainthreshold,
yougetanimmediate
qualitative changevery
much a qualitative change.You
changethescaleofan airplane andsuddenly it
won'tfly
things
ofthatsort."quoted
from
Doug
Engelbart
1987
(p.
24)
Reference: "The Augmentation System
Framework"from
InteractiveMultimedia.
by
SueannAmbron
&Kristina
Hooper,
Microsoft
Press,
1988.There
are2
common approachestocreating
multimediapresentations.One is
to use anauthoring
system asits
base. An authoring
system(HyperCard,
SuperCard,
Plus,
orAuthorware)
is
ideal
for specifying
relationshipsamong
segmentsoruser-controlled events.The
other approachis
touse an animation package asthestarting
point.Creating
animation can stretchthecapability
ofthecomputertoits
limit,
and several programsmay
have
tobe
usedtogetthedesired
result.Where
theauthoring
packages nowsupportanimation,animation programs nowinclude
authoring
capabilities,(p.
52) So
theline between authoring
and animation whichstarted outblurry
has
become
evenmoreso.Modeling
softwaretagsalong
with animationbecause it
makesanimationlook
so real.(p.
53)
Reference:
"Authoring, Modeling,
andAnimation"by
LonMcQuillin,
MacUser.
Feb.
1991,
pp.52-68in Buyer'sGuide Supplement.
There
are5
representative approachesto multimediasoftware:Multimedia
macro recorders: all screenactivity is
recordedinto
afile
thatcanbe
playedback
for
future
use,alsoallowing
soundtobe
added andsequenced.This is
greatfor
training
applications,but limited in
scope.Examples
areMediaTracks
andScreenRecorderfrom Farallon Computing.
Hypermedia
programs:Hypermedia authoring
applications,such asHyperCard,
SuperCard,
Authorware,
Ask*Me
2000, Guide, Plus,
orToolbook,
allowfor
visual effects, sound,andintelligent
data
manipulation.Their
main strengthis
theunderlying
programming
language,
but
animationis
limited.
They
workbest for
electronicpublishing
applications,(p.
562)
Animation
software:Animator, FilmMaker,
MacroMind
Director,
andAuthorware
allowfor
classicframe
or2-D
animation.They
are greatfor
simple sequences,flying
logos,
and corporateidentity
advertising.Assembly
orintegration
software:These
programstakeelements createdby
other programs and sequencetheminto full
multimedia presentations.Examples
areMacroMind
Director, MediaMaker,
andAsk*Me 2000. (p.
562)
Modeling
andrendering
programs:Programs
thatcreate3-D
models thatcanbe
renderedand animated arebeing
usedtodo
limited
animation workand alsousedasprototyping
stationsfor larger
computers.Examples include
DynaPerspective,
StrataVision
3d, RenderMan,
Super
3D,
andSwivel
3D. (p.
563)
Reference: BeyondtheDesktop: Toolsand
Technology
for Computer Publishing.by
BarrieSosinsky,
New York: BantamBooks,
pp.549- 597.Methodologies
Multimedia
Multimedia
Software
cont.
In August
of1987 Apple's
HyperCardwasintroduced andit is
stillthemost
widely
used program.This
programwas providedfor
everyMac
owner, andHyperTalk
emergedasthemodelfor
multimedia scripting.The
first
challengers ofHyperCardwereSpinnakerPlus
($495)
andAldus
SuperCard ($299),
both
imitating
HyperCard's interface.These
three programshave become
theworkhorses ofmultimediadue
towide availability,low
cost,aclearmetaphor,andare idealfor
creatingsimpleprojectsquickly.
Anything
morecomplexthan cardflipping
requires using the scriptinglanguages,
which,oncelearned,
are powerfultools.XCMDs
allowcontrol ofexternaldevices,
suchasvideodiscsandCD ROM
players. HyperCard's popularitycomes notonlyfrom
being
bundled
withtheMac,
but
alsothe easeofits
usehas
madeit
a recognizedtooland"spawned proliferatinglinks
toother multimediaauthoring
tools."
(p.
196) Unfortunately,
the newversion
has
not madethe use of colorany
easierfor
HyperCard users,unlike
Plus
andSuperCard.
Reference: "MultiMedia Design
Tools"
by
Nir.kWest.MacWorld. November1991,
pp.194-201.HyperCard
is
thefirst
ofa newgeneration of environments of programmingoptimizedfor easy scripting
by
non-specialistsandsimultaneouswork with
text,
image,
andsound,(p
xiii)It
is known for
thecreation ofhighly
interactive
multimedia programssupporting
creation ofmultiplebranching,
free-search
environments.It
has
commandsthatalloweasy linkage
oftext,
image,
and sound and alsobuilt-in
commandsand structurestoallowthe programto monitorthe user's actions withthe mouseandkeyboard in
orderfor
theprogramto respond,(p.
4)
Its programming
language, HyperTalk,
is very
closeto regularEnglish,
(p.
6)
andin
addition,it
makesuseof metaphorsthatlink
its
language
elementstoordinary
objectssuchasbuttons
and cards,(p.
7)
Core innovations
ofHyperCard
areits
use of aneveryday programming
language,
its
use of modularobjects, theeaseofincorporating
multimedia,aswellas
its
capabilitiesto providefor
interactivity. (390)
"There
is
agrowing
realizationthatdifferent kinds
ofinformation
canbe
conveyedby
image
and soundthatare noteasily
communicatedby
text,
and
consequently
thereis
a pushtoexpandeveryday
communication media."(392)
In
aHyperCard
environment,images
and soundbecome
aseasy
to manipulateastext.Building
into
presentationsthepossibility
ofinteractivity
oftheuserallowsthe programto readthechanging desires
and associations oftheviewer.This
meansdesigners
needtoconsider theiraudience morecarefully
thanever.(P.
389-392)
New
features
were aimed atHypertalk
programmers: the powerful newscripteditorthe
built-in
debugger
thenew
Hypertalk
commandsConsider customizing
yourhome
stacktoopen various palettes andtools atstartup
by
adding
the commands to thescriptlisted
below.
The
Palette
Maker in
the toolsstack allows youtocreate customized palettes.Commands
for
Home Stack
added
for
custom windowdisplay
on 13" monitorshowcard window at
8,
46
showpattern windowat520,
-8showtoolwindowat
520,
136
palette"navigator",
"520,280" showscroll windowat0,
357
showmessage at
102,
388
end of added statements
Reference:
"Insights
onHyperCard2"by
George
Beekman,
MacWorld. September1991,
pp.297-300.Spinnaker Plus
($495) has
full
colorfeatures
and scripts canbe
attachedtoany
object(incl.
graphics),but
it does
notallowmorethanonestacktobe
openat atime.You
can choose oneof elevendifferent
palettesorcreateyourown.
Because
oftheintegral
use ofcolor,it
runs moreslowly
thanblack
andwhiteHyperCard,
but
aboutthesame speedasHyperCard using
colorelements.SuperCard,
($299)
the most elaborate ofthisstyleofauthoring
program,has its basic limitation in
theneedfor
anauthoring
module(SuperEdit)
and a run-time module
(SuperCard).
Moving
between
the twocanbe
anannoyance,and
in
addition,SuperCard
is
theslowestofthe three.SuperCard
supportsPICS
animationfiles
andhas its
ownacceleratedanimation
format,
calledSTEP. Of any HyperCard-style
program,it has
the most extensive setoftoolsfor
building
projects.For
complexprojectsin
colorandcontrol overmultiple windows,
SuperCard is
a goodchoice.Authorware Professional
($8000;
$995
for
educationalinstitutions)
is
geared
for
theeducational andtraining
market.Authorware
providesstrong
features for tracking
students'
progress withsuperb
features
for
studenttesting.In
addition, purchase ofthe programincludes
a session at atraining
center andextensive on-linesupport.Authorware
uses anicon-based flowchart
metaphorcalledtheflow
line.
The
spacewherethe programis
designed doubles
as aneasy-to-follow map, perhaps"the
most sophisticatedvisualaidonthemarket."
(p.
197) It
has built in
controlsfor
externaldevices
andis moderately easy
tolearn
andextremely
powerful.The
cost makesit
prohibitive.Multimedia
Software
cont.
Course
Builder
($1495)
resemblesAuthorwarein its
emphasis on educational uses, thecontrol overtracking
andresponding tostudentinput. The
main metaphorhere is
thecoursemap
createdby
choosingfrom
variousstates(graphics,
video, etc.) andconnects with routes onthe map.This
metaphordoes
notalways organize neatly.Because Course
Builder
avoids ascripting language (all
choicesareavailablein
dialog
boxes),
it
is
sometimeslimiting.In
additionit does
notintegrate
videoand animation smoothly.Director
($995)
containstoolsfor creating high
endanimationsand presentations withvaryingdegrees
ofinteractivity
from
thesimpleto complex.It
containstwomodules:theOverview
module allows usersto sequence multimedia objects created elsewhere with transitions anddelays in between. The Studio is built
onafilm
metaphor,andis difficult
tolearn.
However the results canbe
dazzling
andthe effortis
worthit.
The
programprovidesrelatively easy
creations ofanimations,moving
up
to24
objects at atime.This
program usesLingo
asits scripting language
(similar
toHyperTalk).
Scripts
canbe
attachedtoany
object orframe.
Reference: "MultiMedia DesignTools"
by
Nick West.MacWorld. November1991,
pp. 194-201.Interactive
MacroMind documents
canbe
createdwithouthigh
costsof multimediascripting,story
boarding,
productionand post-production processes.Creative
control,quickturnaround,
and cost-effectiveness canbe
expected.The
most popularinteractive
applicationis
theinstructional
presentation or orientation.Moving
graphs, animatedgraphics, sounds, and music can turn adull
briefing
into
anexperiencethatpeople rememberand enjoy.Learning
is
always morefun
when you caninteract
freely
withtheinstructor,
andthe goal ofinteractivity
is
toallowthatinteraction
tohappen.
Simulations, demonstrations,
and visualizations are attheirmost effectivewhenthevieweror presenterhas
controlovertheinformation
flow.
Reference: "MacroMind
Director:
Interactivity
Manual"by MacroMind,
Inc.,
April
1990,
pp. 4-5.Linx
provides severalinteresting
presentationtoolswithtoolsfor
archiving.
Also it
allowspreviously
produced multimedia materialsto
be
linked,
instead
ofpouring
allthe resourcesinto
one gigantic program.This is especially helpful in
thecase where materialsneedto
be
updatedfrequently.
In
additionLinx
can controlup
tosix monitorssimultaneously
andcan spliteach ofthese monitorsinto
ninezones, each zonedisplaying
a separate graphicoranimation.There
are some rough edgeshere
though.
All the
applicationsfiles
mustbe
placed onthe
desk top; many
paintprogramswipe outthe
link;
andThe
increasing
popularity
ofmultimedia canbe
measuredby
themany
programsthat
contain multimedia elementsbut
are notfull-fledged
authoring
tools:OWL
International's
Guide 2.0
($295)
atextspecialistOpcode
Systems'Max
($399.95)
MIDI
controlfor
musiciansFarallon's MediaTracks
($295)
designed for
computertraining
Paracomp's FilmMaker
($695)
specialized animationtoolMacroMinds MediaMaker
($695)
tools
for converting
multimediapresentationstovideotape.
Whitney
Educational
Services'VideoDiscWriter
($389)
aHyperCard
addon,
helps
create programswithVideoDiscs
HyperPro's VideoAuthor
($385)
organizes videodisc segmentsReference: "MultiMedia Design
Tools"by
Nick West.
MacWorld. November1991,
pp.194-201.
"The
kinds
ofmultimedia projectsthatyou can undertake arelargely
predictedby
thecapabilitiesofthecomputerequipment.Not
surprisingly,therefore,
manufacturers stressdifferent
approaches(p.
568)
tomultimediathatpainttheircomputers
in
afavorable
light.
The
three majorPC
platformsfor
multimedia aretheMacintosh,
IBM
PC,
andCommodore
Amiga."(p.
569)
"Multimedia is very
equipmentintensive,
andmajordifferences
are apparentwhen weexaminethehigh-performance
graphicsnecessary for
animation,
high-quality
audio,andvideo.Some
ofthesedifferences
are radicaland underpinnedby
thedesign philosophy
of each manufacturer."(p.
569)
"Apple
regards multimedia as a natural extension ofdesktop
publishing
and refersto
it
asdesktop
media,including
in
thatdefinition
the entertainment,training
andpresentationmarkets."
Also
theauthoring
softwareis
a particular strength oftheMac. "HyperCard
is
thefirst
step
onthe roadtowhat
John
Scully
(Apple's
CEO)
calls'the Knowledge
Navigator.'The Navigator
conceptenvisions a portablecomputer with amultimedia
database
incorporating
artificialintelligence. Agents built into
the softwarewould search
for,
store,andfilter
information,
using
pastworkas a
guideline."
(p.
569)
Other
advantagesoftheMac
areits
high-quality
colordisplay
andoutput, supports8-channel
stereowithMIDI
capabilities,(p.
570)
"Although IBM
PCs have strong processing
powerand good new videostandards. . .,
it
is
theleast
capablemultimedia personalcomputer right out ofthebox. However
it has
thebest
third-party
add-onsupport andis
the
biggest
segment ofthemultimedia market.Windows
andOS/2
offerbetter memory
management,multitasking, standardfile
formats,
anddevice
supportand are moreactively supporting
multimediadevelopers
than
MS-DOS.
However,
multimedia onthePC is
amore complicated and expensivepropositionthan on other personal computersdue
toalesser
degree
ofstandardization."
(p.
570)
The PC has in it
onechannelfor
sound, other
boards
canbe
added;softwarelags
behind
theMac,
and animation programslook
primitive,(p.
571)
Multimedia
The
Amiga,
introduced in
1985,
pioneereddesktop
video,withits
successHardware
largely
attributabletoits
impact
onthedesktop
video market."In
addition
. *"
to the
multitasking operating
system,theAmiga
ships with a set ofconT-coprocessorchips
specifically designed
to speedup
graphics, video, and I/O."(p.
571)
The
platformis blessed
with good low-costequipment, matureauthoring
software, and vigorousthird-party
market.Amiga
wasdesigned
with most multimedia support rightin
the hardware.Only
theareaonthescreenthatchangesis
updatedincreasing
screen performance.This
systemis designed
toswitch betweeninterlaced,
noninterlaced,and overscan video modes,(p.
572)
Its
cost, operating system andsophistication makeit
thechoice ofmany
video professionals.(p.
573)
Reference:
BeyondtheDesktop: ToolsandTechnology for ComputerPublishing.
by
BarrieSosinsky,
New York: BantamBooks,
pp.549- 597.IBM has
unveiledits
first
platformspecifically designed for
multimedia, thePS/2 Ultimedia Model M57 SLC. Priced
beginning
at$6000,
it
has
built-in
multimediafeatures
including
aCD-ROM drive
that'salsocompatiblewith
CD
audio,speakerandheadphones,
and high-resolutionXGA
graphics.This
operatesonany
ofthreeoperating
systems -DOS
5.0,
Microsoft
Windows 3.0
withMultimedia
Extensions,
andOS/2
version2.0
(to be
availablethisMarch 92). All
threeoftheseoperating
systems plus ademo
comeon aCD-ROM disc
packagedwiththeM57.
A
number ofproducts arebeing
designed
tobe
released atthesametime:Columbus:
Encounter,
Discovery
andBeyond;
andThe
Illuminated
Books
andManuscripts.
Reference:
"Columbus,
New
Products,
FillIBM
Sails"by
Jim Strothman
in Computer Pictures.Oct.-Nov. 1991,
pp.64-65.Multimedia has
cometothePC
withtheintroduction
ofMultimedia
Windows.
Besides
a286 10-MHz
system withVGA graphics, 2MB
RAM,
a30 MB hard drive
and a1
.44MB3-1/2 in
floppy
drive,
you'll also need aCD-ROM
playerwith150K/sec
transfer rate.Microsoft has lined
up
some ofthebiggest
namesin
softwaretohelp
completethehardware
systemsfor buyers. In
additiontoMultimedia
Windows,
thereis
ToolBook,
Authorware
Professional, Guide, IconAuthor, MediaBase,
andWindowcraft;
allauthoring
programsthatallownonprogrammers to create multimedia presentations.Will
it
succeed?Slowly
atfirst,
but
asthe
prices comedown,
expectto
seealot
moredone
onthePC in
multimedia.Reference:
"MakeWay
for
Multimedia"While
multimediatechnology
is ideal
for
presentation,
presentations are often giventogroupstoolarge
tocluster around anSE's
monitor.The
threemost common
displays for group
presentationsarelarge-screen
CRT
monitors,
videoprojectors,
andLCD
overhead-projection panels.Direct-View
Monitors.
The largest
monitorscurrently
available arethe37-inch
units,generally
priced around$6,000;
these
comewithRGB
inputs,
have
multiplescan rates,and provide alarge
crisp display. Their
size and weight(100
lbs)
makethemsuitablefor
part of a permanentdisplay.
Video Projectors.
These
comein
severalforms.
One
ofthe mostestablishedtypesusesthreeprojectiontubes
driven
by
specializedCRT
screens encased
in
mirrored enclosures.These
usethesametechnology
as mosthome
projectionsystems,
but
arefront-projection designs instead
ofrear-projection.
Barco, Electrohome, Panasonic,
andSony
are examples.The
othertype
is
theGE
light-valve
projector,which usesa projectionbulb
to produce abrightness
level
sufficientfor large images
and usein
theaters orauditoriums.LCD
Overhead
Projector Panels.
Relatively
new,colorhas been
introduced,
andthesaleofthesehas
exploded.Capable
ofproducing 17
hues,
it
can matchtheMac
screen'scolors,but
nottheintensity
and runs about$6000.
Reference:
"Multimedia andVideo"by
LonMcQuillin,
MacUser. Feb.1991,
pp. 4-32in Buyer's GuideSupplement.
Graphic
Design
is
a professionthathas
been emerging
overthelast 60
years;it is
acombination ofthedisciplines
ofphotography,printing
andtypography,
art,andadvertising,(p.
xi)Presentation
Graphics
Reference:
Nine Pioneers in American Graphic Design,by
R. Roger Remington andBarbara J.
Hodik,
Cambridge: MITPress,
1989.Color in
presentations notonly
makethemmoreimpressive,
but
also more understandable.Color delineates
theelements moresharply
than the obscure and clutteredhatch
patternsorblack
and white.Color
effectively increases
theinformation
density
andclarity
oftheimages,
orin
otherwords,it lets
yousay
morewithless.
Packages
today
for
presentationgraphicsareextremely
powerful,but
increased
artistic powerdoesn't
necessarilymeanincreased
artistictalent.Making
presentations unique requiresattention-getting
images,
andfor
the nonartist, that'swhereclip
art comesin. Another way
toget eyecatching images
is
to scanthem.Presently
a24-bit
scanner with300 dpi
resolutionis
availablefor less
then$3000.
Reference: "Power Presentations: A
New,
ColorfulEra"by
Rock Miller in
Magazine.May
14,
1991,
(Vol.10,
No.9),
pp. 101-104,192.It is
awellknown
fact
thataudiences caneasily become bored.
Being
a successful presentermeansbeing
ableto edit,structure andillustrate
Presentation
Because
larger
typefaceshave
greater visualimpact,
messages mustbe
Graphics
editedtoafew
very
meaningful wordsthatconvey
themeaning.*
Consistency
is
avirtue,but
sois
knowing
whentobreak
therules. x"
Progressive
builds
cancreate a pseudo-animated effect.Charts
canconvey
multipleconceptsin
awell-donedrawing,
andmany
presentation programshave
limited
spread sheetcapabilitiesbuilt in.
Reference:
"PresentationGraphics"by
Luisa Simonein
PC
Magazine,
May
14,
1991,
(Vol.10,
No.9),
pp. 107-192.Advice
oncreating
stacks:1
.Know
your audience.2.
Develop
clearand simpleorganization.3. Beyond
consistentbutton
placementandunderstandableicons,
stay
onestep
ahead of usersby
guiding
andanticipating user actions.4.
"Just
aswithbooks
and magazines,thegraphicdesign
ofhypermedia
is
a powerfulfactor in
its ability
tocommunicate.The look
ofastack orproject
defines its
personality,helps
stateits
purpose, anddirects
the usertoimportant
information."(p.
127)
5.
Skillfully
integrate
text,
graphics, sound,andanimation.Reference: "The SecretoftheSuperStacks"
by
LizaWeiman,
MacWorld. April1991,
pp. 124-129.Following
areseveraltipsfor
presentersto
keep
in
mind.1
.Keep
the mediain
mind asthepresentationis
designed.
An
overheadtransparency
requires adifferent
setofdesign
andlayout
rulesthanan on-screen slideshow.
2. The
purposeofthepresentationis
toeffectively
reinforcethespeaker's message,nottomakethingslook
pretty.3. Use
special effectstoyour advantage.They
should pointto the message and reinforceit,
notdetract from
it.
4.
Consider using layers
orbuilds
toadd a sense of motion andinterest,
and also
focus
theaudience's attention.5.
Use
colorsofhigh
contrast anddifferent intensities
for
best
results.6. Irregular
graphics aremoreinteresting
andexciting; squares, circlescan
be
more calming.Reference:
"Presentations"by
Keith
Thompson
in
PC Publishing
andPresentations. Aug-Sept.
1991,
pp.24-26.
Using
typeon-screeninvolves
special considerations.1.
For
on-screenpresentations,
use atypemanagerutility, then youdon't
have
toworry
thata26
point sizewilllook
bad.
2.
Keep
text
on slidestoa minimum.Use
a maximum of6 lines
of6-7
words each.
For
moretext thanthat,
use another slide.3. Larger
typeis
more noticeablethan smallertype.4.
Use bold
typefaces instead
ofunderlining (a holdover from days
whentypewriters
couldn'tdo bold).
5. Avoid
italics
asthe
smalllines
tend
togetlost
when projected.Shadowed,
outline andfancy
fonts
shouldbe
avoided.6.
Avoid
the useof allCAPS
asthey
areharder
to read.7.
Limit
the number offonts
per slide(usually
a sans seriffor headlines
and a seriffor
the text).Reference:
"Presentations"by
Keith
Thompson
in PC
Publishing
andArtists
arebeginning
toexplorethe
possibilitiesof worksweaving
sound,images
andtext
into
new multimediatapestries.HyperCard
caninteractively
control externaldevices
suchasvideodiscs,MIDI
soundsynthesizers,
andkinetic
environments.Examples include
"We
Make
Memories"by
Abbe
Don (a
family
scrapbookapproach),
"HyperPoems"by
William
Dickey
(nonlinear poetry &
imagery),
"Eat"by
Michael
Naimark
(an
installation
aboutconsumption),
"The
Manhole"by
Robyn & Rand
Miller
(interactive
fantasy
world),"Deep
Contact"by
Lynn Hershman
&
Sara Roberts
(a
mystery),"Xherone
1.3"(an
idiosyncratic
sequencerofimage &
sound),&
"Father
Why"by
Stephen
Wilson (controls
speech,music
&
lights). (p.
7-16)
Reference: MultiMedia
DesignwithHyperCardby
Stephen
Wilson,
Englewood
Cliffs,
NJ:Prentice
Hall,
1991.Custom Interactive Videodisk
PRICE
$$'s
and Hrs.
(P. 597)
Relative Costs
versus
effectiveness
of various
multimedia
projects.
EFFECTIVENESS(in VOVs/min)
Evaluating
Systems
A
simple rulefor evaluating
thequality
ofa particular computer orauthoring
systemis
toexaminethebest
gamescurrently
available.Games
tax thelimits
ofsoftwarein
thequality
ofgraphics, sound,and animationthatthey
use."Games
arewrittento getthebiggest
bang
for
thebuck,
and areamong
the most successful software programsonthemarkettoday."
(p.
567)
Some
gamestolearn
from include
Colony,
writtenby
David Alan
Smith,
a researcherin
virtualreality
programming, asanexercisetodetermine
what
is
possibleon apersonal computer,Bomber,
aHyperCard
game;also
Manhole,
andCosmic
Osmo,
both
publishedby
Activision,
areHyperCard
stacks,(p.
568)
Audio
The
importance
of soundwas recognizedby
thecreatorsofthefirst
Mac.Sound
canbe
addedtoMac
multimedia applications moreeasily
andless
expensively
than video, animation,orany
otherenhancement.Stereo
sound ports come standard witheveryMac
excepttheLC. Sound
input ports and microphones comestandard withtheLC
andllsi,
andthirdparty
productsallow soundtobe
incorporatedto
theotherMacs.
Having
so muchsound
capability
standard ontheMac
encouragesmore soundproductsto
be developed, (p.
38)
Most
computerprogramshave
notmadeuse of soundeffectively to
date,
andthe questionarises,is it
necessary.
Once
soundwas addedto movies,how many
silentfilms
arenow
being
made?The
once exclusive music-studiosound can nowbe
included in
multimedia,(p.
48)
In
additionto generatingsoundstheMac has
become the musician'sinstrument
ofchoicefor
controllingMIDI
(musical-instrument-digitalinterface)
devices.
In
fact it has become
suchastandard"that
even mammothSynclavier,
aleading
synthesizer vendorfor
the pros,abandoned
its
proprietaryinterface for
thatoftheMac. (p.
8)
Its
industry
standard protocol givesMac
"the
ability toconductvirtualsymphony orchestras."(p.
9)
"MIDI
devices
such askeyboards
communicate withtheMac
via aMIDI
interface
connectedtotheMac's
serial port(s). AdditionalMIDI
devices
such as samplers,expansion-unitsynthesizers,and effects processors canbe driven
via aMIDI
loop-throughchain.The Mac
canbe
equipped with aNUBus
synthesizerand adigital-signal processorthatlets it
recorddigital
audiodirectly
ontohard disks. With
theMacRecorder,
thesound canbe
recorded on standardMacs,
and self-powered speakersgivetheMac
a more powerful sound.Audio recording
requires prodigiousdisk
capacities,
leading
to the needfor large hard
disks,
opticaldrives,
and44-megabyte cartridge
drives for
transporting
files. CD-ROM
drives
canbe
usedtolead
samplerdata
files
from CD-ROM discs
anddigital
audiofrom
CD
libraries."(p.
38)
Keyboard
Sampler
Expansion-unit synthesizer
Hard drive
tttmmmmm
Optical drive
Effects
processorMac
withNuBus
synthesizer&
digita' signal processorA
Complete Mac
Audio
andMIDI System
fcimimmrirr
Removable
magneticcartridge
drive
ma
CD-ROM drive
MIDI
(musical-instrument-digital interface) is
atypeoflocal-area-network
Audio
protocolfor
sound,providing
communication pathsamong
instruments,
cont.
synthesizers,
computers,and playbackequipment,(see
diagram
prev)MIDI
is
made possiblewhen synthesizersbecame
digitally
controllabledevices.
Actually
a synthesizeris
adedicated
computerwitha pianokeyboard
instead
of an alphanumerickeyboard,
and sometimesit has both.
It is
now possibletodo anything
thatusedto require arecording
studio,from
overdubbing
tofilm
scoring
athome
witheverything linked
toaMac
throughaMIDI
interface
thatcostsless
than$100.
MIDI
specificationsprovide
for
up
to16
channels of communicationamong MIDI
devices,
which can
be
increased
with otherinterfaces.
"Sampling
is
thedigitization
of
analog
music sourcesby
sampling
thesource atfrequent
enoughintervals
to(hopefully)
fool
thehuman
ear."(p.
40)
Atypical
rate ofsampling
theanalog
signal wouldbe 44,000
orsotimesa second.This
takes alot
of computerpower.The
MacRecorder is probably
the mostfamiliar
soundapplicationtoMac
users.Sound
caneasily be digitized from
a number ofsources andincorporated
into
an application or stack.This is probably
the"source
of allthose
funny
soundsyou'venodoubt heard coming from
yourhacker
friends'machines."
But
tostop
thereis
toselltheMacRecorder
short; theMacRecorder
has
enough sophisticationto make
it
valuablein
professional productionsaswell.
HyperCard,
SuperCard,
andMacroMind Director
can allplay back
sound resources,suchasthosecreatedwithMacRecorder.
For higher
sound recreation, two methods areavailable.Audiomedia
(a
Digidesign
board)
canplay back files from
withinHyperCard,
SuperCard,
orMacroMind
Director,
using Sound
Access,
andXCMD/XFCN providedwithAudiomedia. Audiomedia
parallelsthe MacRecorderbut
producesasubstantially higher level
of sound quality.($995)
MIDI
playbackfrom
within
HyperCard,
SuperCard,
orMacroMind Director
is
possible withMIDIplay
from
Opcode ($60)
orHyperMusic from Passport.
($80)
(p.
44)
Digital
audio places greatdemands
ondisk
space.When
you useSound