Introduction to

Multimedia

Topic : 1
Introduction Multimedia :
Definition Elements and Types
What is Multimedia?
 What is Multimedia?

• Derived from the word “Multi” and “Media”

– Multi
• Many, Multiple,
– Media
• Tools that is used to represent or do a certain
things, delivery medium, a form of mass
communication – newspaper, magazine / tv.
• Distribution tool & information presentation –
text, graphic, voice, images, music and etc.
 Definition of Multimedia

• Multimedia is a combination of text, graphic,

sound, animation, and video that is
delivered interactively to the user by
electronic or digitally manipulate d means.
G R A P H IC
TEXT

VIDEO
AUDIO

ANIMATION
 Elements of Multimedia
GR AP H IC
TEXT

TEXT VIDEO
AUDIO

ANIMATION

⚫ A broad term for something that contains words to express

something.
⚫ Text is the most basic element of multimedia.
⚫ A good choice of words could help convey the intended message to
the users (keywords).
⚫ Used in contents, menus, navigational buttons
 Elements of Multimedia
GR AP H IC
TEXT

TEXT VIDEO
AUDIO

ANIMATION

⚫ Example
 Elements of Multimedia
GR AP H IC
TEXT

GRAPHIC
VIDEO
AUDIO

ANIMATION

⚫ Two-dimensional figure or illustration

⚫ Could be produced manually (by drawing, painting, carving,
etc.) or by computer graphics technology.
⚫ Used in multimedia to show more clearly what a particular
information is all about (diagrams, picture).
 Elements of Multimedia
GR AP H IC
TEXT

GRAPHIC
VIDEO
AUDIO

ANIMATION

⚫ Example
 Elements of Multimedia
GR AP H IC
TEXT

AUDIO
VID E O
AUDIO

ANIMATION

⚫ Produced by vibration, as perceived by the sense of

hearing.
⚫ In multimedia, audio could come in the form of
speech, sound effects and also music score.
 Elements of Multimedia
GR AP H IC
TEXT

AUDIO
VIDEO
AUDIO

ANIMATION

⚫ Example
 Elements of Multimedia
GR AP H IC
TEXT

ANIMATION
VIDEO
AUDIO

ANIMATION

⚫ The illusion of motion created by the consecutive display of

images of static elements.
⚫ In multimedia, animation is used to further enhance /
enriched the experience of the user to further understand
the information conveyed to them.
 Elements of Multimedia
GR AP H IC
TEXT

ANIMATION
VIDEO
AUDIO

ANIMATION

⚫ Example
 Elements of Multimedia
GR AP H IC
TEXT

VIDEO
VIDEO
AUDIO

ANIMATION

⚫ Is the technology of capturing, recording, processing,

transmitting, and reconstructing moving pictures.
⚫ Video is more towards photo realistic image sequence / live
recording as in comparison to animation.
⚫ Video also takes a lot of storage space. So plan carefully
before you are going to use it.
 Interactive Multimedia

• When the user is given the option of

controlling the elements.

Hyper Media
⚫ A combination of hypertext, graphics, audio,
video, (linked elements) and interactivity
culminating in a complete, non-linear
computer-based experience.
 Example
• Interactive Multimedia
 Linear VS Non-Linear

LINEAR
• A Multimedia Project is identified as Linear when:
– It is not interactive
– User have no control over the content that is being showed to
them.
• Example:
– A movie
– A non-interactive lecture / demo show
 Example
• Hyper Media
Main Page

1. Video link

2. Image link
3. Audio Link
 Linear VS Non-Linear
NON-LINEAR
• A Multimedia Project is identified as Non-Linear
when:
– It is interactive
– Users have control over the content that is being showed to
them.
– Users are given navigational control
• Example:
– Games
– Courseware
– Interactive CD
Text
 Text in History
• Text came into use about 6,000 years ago
 Using Text in Multimedia
Type terminology
•Typeface
Arial
Courier
Times
•Fonts
•Points
•Styles
•Leading
•Kerning
 Fonts and Faces
• A typeface is a family of graphic characters that
includes many type sizes and styles (such as Times, Arial,
Helvetica)

• A font is a collection of characters of a single size

and style belonging to a typeface family (such as bold,
italic)

• Font sizes are in points 1 point = 1/72 inch

(measured from top to bottom of descenders in capital letter)
• X-height is the height of the lower case letter x
Factors affecting legibility of text
– Size.
– Background and foreground color.
– Style.
– Leading (pronounced “ledding”).
 Styles
• Examples of styles are boldface and italic
Italic

Bold

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

called kerning
 Fonts and Faces
• PostScript, TrueType and Master fonts can
be altered
• Bitmapped fonts cannot be altered
• The computer draws or rasterizes a letter
on the screen with pixels or dots.
• Typography is the process of arranging
typefaces, adjusting line and character
spacing to make text arrangement more
attractive
 Font Editing and Design Tools
• Allow you to create your own fonts
– ResEdit for MAC
– Fontographer (from Macromedia) caan be used to
create Postscript, TrueType and bitmapped fonts
for MAC, PB, SUN includes a freehand drawing
tool
– 3D programs, such as COOL 3D and HotTEXT,
create special effects
– See text for descriptions
 Using Text in Multimedia
The basic element of multimedia is the text. However, the
text should be kept minimum to avoid overcrowding
unless the application contains a lot of reference
material. From design point of view, text should fill less
than half the screen.
There are following ways in which a text can be used in
multimedia:
• in text messaging
• in advertisements
• in a website
• in films such as titles and credits
• as subtitles in a film or documentary that provide a
translation
 What essential hardware and
software is required for Multimedia
development and delivery?
 MULTIMEDIA HARDWARE
REQUIREMENTS
• CPU
Central Processing Unit (CPU) is an essential part in any computer. It is
considered as the brain of computer, where processing and
synchronization of all activities takes place. The efficiency of a
computer is judged by the speed of the CPU in processing of data.
Monitor
The monitor is used to see the computer output. Generally, it displays
25 rows and 80 columns of text. The text or graphics in a monitor is
created as a result of an arrangement of tiny dots, called pixels.
Resolution is the amount of details the monitor can render. Resolution
is defined in terms of horizontal and vertical pixel (picture elements)
displayed on the screen.
• Video Grabbing Card
We need to convert the analog video signal to digital signal for
processing in a computer. Normal computer will not be able to do it
alone. It requires special equipment called video grabbing card and
software to this conversion process. This card translates the analog
signal it receives from conventional sources such as a VCR or a video
camera, and converts them into digital format.
• Sound Card
Computer can be used to compose your own music, it can also be
used for recognition of speech and synthesis. It can even read back the
entire document for you. But before all this happens, we need to
convert the conventional sound signal to computer understandable
digital signals. This is done using a special component added to the
system called sound card.
• CD-Rom
CD-ROM is a magnetic disk of 4.7 inches
diameter and it can contain data up to 680
Megabytes. It has become a standard by itself
basically for its massive storage capacity, faster
data transfer rate. To access CD-ROM a very
special d1rive is required and it is known as CD-
ROM drive.
 MULTIMEDIA SOFTWARE
REQUIREMENTS
• Adobe CS4
Adobe CS4 is a collection of graphic design, video editing, and
web development applications made by Adobe Systems many
of which are the industry standard that includes
• Adobe Dreamweaver
Although a hybrid WYSIWYG and code-based web design and
development application, Dreamweaver’s WYSIWYG mode
can hide the HTML code details of pages from the user,
making it possible for non-coders to create web pages and
sites.WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) web
development software that allows users to create websites
with out using Html, everything can be done visually.
• Adobe Fireworks
A graphics package that allows users to create
bitmap and vector graphics editor with features
such as: slices, the ability to add hotspots etc.)
for rapidly creating website prototypes and
application interfaces.
• Microsoft Frontpage
As a WYSIWYG editor, FrontPage is designed to
hide the details of pages’ HTML code from the
user, making it possible for novices to easily
create web pages and sites.
• Photoshop Pro
Adobe Photoshop, or simply Photoshop, is a graphics
editing program developed and published by Adobe
Systems. It is the current market leader for
commercial bitmap and image manipulation software,
and is the flagship product of Adobe Systems. It has been
described as “an industry standard for graphics
professionals”
• Microsoft Powerpoint
Powerpoint Presentations are generally made up of slides
may contain text, graphics, movies, and other objects,
which may be arranged freely on the slide.
• Adobe Flash Player
Adobe Flash (formerly Macromedia Flash) is
a multimedia platform that is popular for
adding animation and interactivity to web pages.
Originally acquired by Macromedia, Flash was introduced
in 1996, and is currently developed and distributed
by Adobe Systems.
Flash is commonly used to create
animation, advertisements, and various web page Flash
components, to integrate video into web pages, and more
recently, to develop rich Internet applications.
 MULTIMEDIA

TOPIC 13:
Application of Multimedia
 USAGE / APPLICATION
Multimedia finds its
application in various areas
including, advertisements,
art, education,
entertainment, engineering,
medicine, mathematics,
business, scientific research
and spatial temporal
applications.
 Creative Industries
The creative industries refers to a range of
economic activities which are concerned with the
generation or exploitation of knowledge and
information.
Creative industries use multimedia for a variety
of purposes ranging from fine arts, to
entertainment, to commercial art, to journalism
to media and software services.
 Creative Services
Creative services are a subsector of the creative
industries.
Exciting presentations are used to grab and keep
attention in advertising. Business to business,
and interoffice communications.
 Entertainment and Fine Arts
Multimedia is heavily used in the entertainment
industry, especially to develop special effects in
movies and animations.
 Entertainment and Fine Arts
Multimedia games are a popular pastime and
are software programs available either as CD-
ROMs or online.
 Entertainment and Fine Arts
Multimedia applications that allow users to
actively participate instead of just sitting by as
passive recipients of information are called
Interactive Multimedia.
 Entertainment and Fine Arts
In the Arts there are multimedia artists, whose
minds are able to blend techniques using
different media that in some way incorporates
interaction with the viewer.

One of the most relevant could be Peter

Greenaway who is melding Cinema with
Opera and all sorts of digital media.
 Education
In Education, multimedia is used to produce
computer-based training courses (popularly
called CBTs) and reference books like
encyclopedia.

A CBT lets the user go through a series of

presentations, text about a particular topic, and
associated illustrations in various information
formats.
 E-learning

E-learning includes numerous types of media

that deliver text, audio, images, animation, and
streaming video, and includes technology
applications and processes such as audio or video
tape, satellite TV, CD-ROM, and computer-based
learning, as well as local intranet/extranet and
web-based learning.

E-learning can occur in or out of the classroom.

 Journalism
News reporting is not limited to traditional
media outlets.

Freelance journalists can make use of different

new media to produce multimedia pieces for
their news stories.
 Engineering

Software engineers may use multimedia in

Computer Simulations for anything from
entertainment to training.

Multimedia for software interfaces are often done

as a collaboration between creative professionals
and software engineers.
 Industry

In the Industrial sector, multimedia is used as a

way to help present information to
shareholders, superiors and coworkers.

Multimedia is also helpful for providing

employee training, advertising and selling
products all over the world via virtually
unlimited web-based technology
 Mathematical and Scientific Research

In mathematical and scientific research,

multimedia is mainly used for modeling and
simulation.

For example, a scientist can look at a molecular

model of a particular substance and manipulate
it to arrive at a new substance.
 Medicine

In Medicine, doctors can get trained by looking at

a virtual surgery or they can simulate how the
human body is affected by diseases spread by
viruses and bacteria and then develop
techniques to prevent it.
 Document Imaging

Document imaging is a technique that takes

hard copy of an image/document and converts
it into a digital format.
 Kiosk

A kiosk is a small, separated garden pavilion

open on some or all sides.
 Kiosk

An interactive kiosk is a computer

terminal featuring specialized
hardware and software designed
within a public exhibit that
provides access to information and
applications for communication,
commerce, entertainment, and
education.
 Types of Kiosks

Telekiosk
The telekiosk can be considered the technical
successor to the telephone booth, a publicly
accessible set of devices that are used for
communication.
 Types of Kiosks

Financial services kiosk

The financial services kiosk can provide the
ability for customers to perform transactions.
These are sometimes to referred to as “bank-
in-a-box”
 Types of Kiosks

Photo kiosk
An interactive kiosk which allows users to
print pictures from their digital images.
 Types of Kiosks

Internet kiosk
An Internet kiosk is a terminal that provides
public Internet access.
 Types of Kiosks
Ticketing kiosk
They are unattended outdoor automated self-
service ticketing kiosks.
The ticket halls of train stations and metro
stations have ticketing kiosks that sell transit
passes, train tickets, transit tickets, and train
passes.
Many movie theater chains have specialized
ticket machines that allow their customers to
purchase tickets and/or pick up tickets that were
purchased online.
 Types of Kiosks

DVD Vending kiosk

where a user can buy a DVD, secured by
credit/debit card.
 Types of Kiosks

Visitor management and security kiosk

A visitor management and security kiosk can
facilitate the visitor check in process at
businesses, schools, and other controlled access
environments.
 Types of Kiosks

Building directory and way finding kiosk

Many shopping malls, hospitals, airports and
other large public buildings use interactive
kiosks to allow visitors to navigate in buildings.
Applications of Multimedia
 Business

Multimedia is used for advertising and selling

products on the Internet. Some businesses use
multimedia tools such as CD-ROMs, DVDs or online
tutorials for training or educating staff members
about things the employer want them to learn or
know. Staff members can learn at their own speed
and at a specific time suitable to them as well as
the company. It also saves money of the employers
as now they don’t have to pay extra expenses on
training or education of their human resources.
Multimedia is one of the best ways to provide
short-term training to the workers in a company.
 Research and Medicine

Multimedia is increasingly used in research in the

fields of science, medicine and mathematics.
It is mostly used for modelling and simulation. For
instance, a scientist can look at a molecular model
of a particular substance and work on it to arrive at
a new substance. In Medicine, doctors acquire
training by watching a virtual surgery or they can
simulate how the human body is affected by
diseases spread by germs and then develop
techniques to prevent it.
 Public Access Notes

Public Access is an area of application where

several multimedia applications will be available
very soon. One of the application is the tourist
information system, where a travel enthusiast
will be shown glimpse of the place he would like
to visit. With the help of multimedia various
source providing applications could be created.
 Entertainment

• Multimedia is used to create special effects in

films, TV serials, radio shows, games and
animations.
• Multimedia games are popular software
programs that available online as well as on DVDs
and
• CD-ROMs. Use of special technologies such as
virtual reality turn these games into real life
• experiences. These games allow uses to fly
aeroplanes, drive cars, do wrestling, etc.
 Industry

In the Industrial sector, multimedia is used to

present information to all people related to the
industry such as stakeholders, shareholders,
senior level managers and co-workers.
Multimedia
is also helpful in advertising and selling products
all over the world over internet.
.
 Commercial

Creative presentations are used to grab the

attention of the masses in advertising. Industrial,
business to business and interoffice
Communications are mostly developed by firms
providing creative services. They work on advanced
multimedia presentations rather than simple slide
shows to sell ideas or make training programs more
interesting.
 Education

Multimedia is used as a source of information in the

field of education. Pupils can research on various
topics such as solar system or information
technology using different multimedia
presentations. To make teaching more interesting
and fun for pupils, teachers can make multimedia
presentations of chapters. Visual images,
animation, diagrams, etc., have more effect on
pupils. Various computer-based training (CBT)
courses are also available online for study.
 Multimedia in Public Places

In railway stations, hotels, museums, grocery

stores and shopping malls multimedia will
become available at stand-alone terminals to
provide information and help. Such installation
reduce demand on traditional information
booths and personnel, add value, and they can
work around the clock, even in the middle of the
night, when live help is off-duty
 Engineering

Software engineers may use multimedia in

computer simulations for anything from
entertainment to training such as military or
industrial training. Multimedia for software
interfaces are often done as collaboration
between creative professionals and software
engineers.
Image
File extensions: .BMP, .DIB
Raster Graphic
Pictures found on the Web and photos you import from your digital camera are
raster graphics. They are made up of grid of pixels, commonly referred to as a
bitmap. The larger the image, the more disk space the image file will take up. For
example, a 640 x 480 image requires information to be stored for 307,200 pixels,
while a 3072 x 2048 image (from a 6.3 Megapixel digital camera) needs to store
information for a whopping 6,291,456 pixels.

File extensions: .BMP, .TIF, .GIF, .JPG

 Image File Formats
BMP

• Short for "Bitmap." It can be pronounced as "bump," "B-M-P," or simply

a "bitmap image."
• The BMP format is a commonly used raster graphic format for saving
image files.
• It was introduced on the Windows platform, but is now recognized by
many programs on both Macs and PCs.
• The BMP format stores color data for each pixel in the image without
any compression. For example, a 10x10 pixel BMP image will include
color data for 100 pixels.
• This method of storing image information allows for crisp, high-quality
graphics, but also produces large file sizes.
• The JPEG and GIF formats are also bitmaps, but use image compression
algorithms that can significantly decrease their file size. For this reason,
JPEG and GIF images are used on the Web, while BMP images are often
used for printable images.
• File Extension: .BMP
 JPEG

• Stands for "Joint Photographic Experts Group."

• JPEG is a popular image file format. It is commonly
used by digital cameras to store photos since it
supports 224 or 16,777,216 colors.
• The format also supports varying levels
of compression, which makes it ideal for web graphics.
• The 16 million possible colors in a JPEG image are
produced by using 8 bits for each color (red, green, and
blue) in the RGB color space. This provides 28 or 256
values for each of the three colors, which combined
allow for 256 x 256 x 256 or 16,777,216 colors.
• Three values of 0 produce pure black, while three
values of 255 create pure white.
• The JPEG compression algorithm may reduce
the file size of a bitmap (BMP) image by ten
times with almost no degradation in quality.
• Still, the compression algorithm is lossy,
meaning some image quality is lost during the
compression process.
• The reason to have .jpg after .jpeg exists is that
for MS-DOS and FAT-16 file systems there is a
very limiting restriction on directories and
filenames: 8 characters with 3 characters for the
extension. Thus .jpeg is also seen as .jpg .
 Disadvantages of the JPEG Format
• While the JPEG format is great for storing digital photos,
it does have some drawbacks.
• the lossy compression can cause an issue called
"artifacting," in which parts of the image become
noticeably blocky.
• For saving small images and images with a lot of text,
the GIF format is often a better alternative.
• JPEG images also don't support transparency. Therefore,
the JPEG format is a poor choice for saving non-
rectangular images, especially if they will be published on
webpages with different background colors.
• The PNG format, which supports transparent pixels is
more ideal for these types of images.
• File extensions: .JPG, .JPEG, .JFIF, .JPX, .JP2
 GIF

• Stands for "Graphics Interchange Format."

• Unlike the JPEG image format, GIFs
uses lossless compression that does not
degrade the quality of the image.
However, GIFs store image data using
indexed color, meaning a standard GIF
image can include a maximum of 256
colors.
 PNG
• Stands for “Portable Network Graphic”.
• is a compressed raster graphic format. It is commonly
used on the Web and is also a popular choice
for application graphics.
• PNG images use lossless compression like GIF files, so
they do not have any blurring or other artifacts that
may appear in JPEG images. The PNG format also
supports 24-bit color like the JPEG format, so a PNG
image may include over 16 million colors. This is a
significant difference between GIF and PNG, since GIF
images can include a maximum of 256 colors.
 TIF
• Stands for “Tagged Image File Format.“
• It is a graphics file format created in the 1980s
to be the standard image format across
multiple computer platforms. The TIFF format
can handle color depths ranging from 1-bit to
24-bit.
 vector graphics
vector graphics are comprised of paths, which are defined by a start and end point,
along with other points, curves, and angles along the way. A path can be a line, a
square, a triangle, or a curvy shape. These paths can be used to create simple
drawings or complex diagrams. Paths are even used to define the characters of
specific typefaces.
Because vector-based images are not made up of a specific number of dots, they
can be scaled to a larger size and not lose any image quality.

Common types of vector graphics include Adobe Illustrator, Macromedia Freehand,

and EPS files. Many Flash animations also use vector graphics, since they scale
better and typically take up less space than bitmap images.

File extensions: .AI, .EPS, .SVG, .DRW

 Colour Depth

• Describes the amount of storage per pixel

• Also indicates the number of colours available
• Higher colour depths require greater
compression
 Colour Depth…….contd
• These colour values have to be finite numbers,
and the range of colours that can be stored is
known as the colour depth. The range is
described either by the number of colours that
can be distinguished, or more commonly by the
number of bits used to store the colour value.
Thus, a pure black and white image (i.e. no greys)
would be described as a 1-bit or 2-colour image,
since every pixel is either black (0) or white (1).
Common colour depths include 8-bit (256
colours) and 24-bit (16 million colours).
 Colour Depth…….contd
When a bitmap image is constructed, the colour of each point
or pixel in the image is coded into a numeric value. This value
represents the colour of the pixel, its hue and intensity.
When the image is displayed on the screen, these values are
transformed into intensities of red, green and blue for the
electron guns inside the monitor, which then create the
picture on the phosphor lining of the picture tube.
In fact, the screen itself is mapped out in the computer’s
memory, stored as a bitmap from which the computer
hardware drives the monitor.