Multimedia Authoring Tools

1. Multimedia Systems Chapter Two 2. Multimedia Authoring and Tools 2.1What is Multimedia Authoring? Authoring is the process of creating multimedia applications. An authoring system is a program which has pre-programmed elements for the development of interactive multimedia presentations. Multimedia Authoring Tools provide tools for making a complete multimedia presentation where users usually have a lot of communicating controls. Multimedia presentations can be created using: - simple presentation packages such as PowerPoint powerful RAD tools such as Delphi, .Net, JBuilder; True Authoring environments, which lie somewhere in between in terms of technical complexity. Why should you use an authoring system? Can speed up programming i.e. content development and delivery Time gains i.e. accelerated prototyping The content creation (graphics, text, video, audio, animation) is not affected by choice of authoring system Authoring Vs Programming Authoring Assembly of multimedia High level graphical interface Design Some high-level scripting e.g., Lingo, ActionScript Table 1 Authoring vs. Programming Characteristics of Authoring Tools integrate text, graphics, video, and audio to create a single multimedia presentation Programming Involves low level assembly of Multimedia Construction and control of Multimedia Involves real languages like C, and Java Control interactivity by the use of menus, buttons, hotspots, hot objects etc. publish as a presentation or a self-running executable; on CD/DVD, Intranet, WWW Be extended through the use of pre-built or externally supplied components, plug-ins Features of authoring tools The multimedia project you are developing has its own underlying structure and purpose. When selecting tools for your project you need to consider that purpose. Some of the features that you have to take into consideration when selecting authoring tools are: 1)Editing Feature: The elements of multimedia – image, animation, text, digital audio and MIDI music and video clips – need to be created, edited and converted to standard file formats and the specialized applications provide these capabilities. Editing tools for these elements, particularly text and still images are often included in your authoring system. 2)Organizing feature: the organization of media in your project involves navigation diagrams, or flow charts, etc. Some authoring tools provide a visual flowcharting facility. Such features help you for organizing the project. Eg. IconAuthor, and AuthorWare use flowcharting and navigation diagram method to organize media. Kumkumo K. DIRE DAWA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY Department of Computer Science

2. Multimedia Systems 3)Programming feature: some programming approaches are: - i)Visual programming: this is programming using cues, icons, and objects. It is done using drag and drop. To include sound in your project, drag and drop it in stage. the simplest and easiest authoring process. ii) Programming with scripting language: Some authoring tool provide very high-level scripting language and interpreted scripting environment. This helps for navigation control and enabling user input. 4) Interactivity feature: interactivity offers to the end user of the project to control the content and flow of information. 5) sometimes difficult because performance varies with different computers. In such cases you need to use authoring tools own scripting language to specify time and sequence on system. multimedia projects should be compatible with different platform like Macintosh, Windows, etc. This enables the designer to use any platform to design the project or deliver it to any platform. 6) Playback feature: Testing enables you to debug the system and find out how the user Performance-tuning features: accomplishing synchronization of multimedia is interacts with it. Not waste time in assembling and testing the project 7)Delivery feature: delivering your project needs building runtime version of the project using authoring tools. Why run time version (executable format): It does not require the full authoring software to play. It does not allow users to access or change the content, structure, and programming of the project. Distribute-->run-time version 8) Internet playability: web is significant delivery medium for multimedia. Authoring tools typically provide facility so that output can be delivered in HTML or DHTML format. 9) how to use it. Is it easy to use? 2.2Some Useful Editing and Authoring Tools Authoring tools provide an integrated environment for binding together the different elements Ease of learning: is it easy to learn? The designer should not waste much time learning of a Multimedia production. Multimedia Editing Tools Multimedia editing tools are categorized into the following parts. 1)Music sequencing and notation Kumkumo K. DIRE DAWA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY Department of Computer Science

3. Multimedia Systems 2)Digital audio editing tools 3)Graphics and Image Editing tools 4)Video Editing tool Kumkumo K. DIRE DAWA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY Department of Computer Science

4. Multimedia Systems 5)Animation Editing Tools Kumkumo K. DIRE DAWA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY Department of Computer Science

5. Multimedia Systems 2.3Multimedia Authoring paradigms Authoring is the process of creating multimedia applications. Most authoring programs useone of several authoring metaphors, also known as authoring paradigms: metaphors foreasier understanding of the methodology employed to create multimedia applications. Some common authoring metaphors are as follows: 1)Scripting language metaphor The idea here is to use a special language to enable interactivity (buttons, mouse, etc.) and allow conditionals, jumps, loops, functions/macros, and so on. An example is the OpenScript language in Asymetrix Learning Systems' Toolbook program. OpenScript looks like a standard object- oriented, event-driven programming language. For example, a small Toolbook program is shown below. --load an MPEG file extFileName of NediaPlayer "theMpegPath"= "c: \windows\media\home33 . mpg "; -- play extPlayCount of NediaPlayer "theMpegPath" = 1; -- put the MediaPlayer in frames mode (not time mode) extDisplayMode of NediaPlayer 2)Slide show metaphor Slide shows are by default a linear presentation. Although tools exist to perform jumps in slide shows, few experts use them. Example programs are PowerPoint or ImageQ. 3)Hierarchical metaphor Here, user-controllable elements are organized into a tree structure. Such a metaphor is often used in menu-driven applications. 4)Iconic/flow-control metaphor Graphical icons are available in a toolbox, and authoring proceeds by creating a flowchart with icons attached. The standard example of such a metaphor is Authorware, by Macromedia. Figure 2.1 shows an example flowchart. As well as simple flowchart elements, such as an IF statement, a CASE statement, and so on, we can group elements using a Map (i.e., a subroutine) icon. With little effort, simple animation is also possible. 5)Frame’s metaphor As in the iconic/flow-control metaphor, graphical icons are again available in a toolbox, and authoring proceeds by creating a flowchart with icons attached. However, rather than representing the actual flow of the program, links between icons are more conceptual. Therefore, "frames" of icon designs represent more abstraction than in the simpler iconic/flow-control metaphor. The flowchart consists of "modules" composed of "frames". Frames are constructed from objects, such as text, graphics, audio, animations, and video, all of which can respond to events. 6) Card/scripting metaphor This metaphor uses a simple index-card structure to produce multimedia productions. Since links are available, this is an easy route to producing applications that use hypertext or hypermedia. The original of this metaphor was HyperCard by Apple. "theMpegPath" = 1; -- if want to start and end at specific frames: extSelectionStart of MediaPlayer "theNpegPath" 103i extSelectionEnd of MediaPlayer "theHpegPath" = 1997; -- start playback get extPlay () of MediaPlayer n theNpegPath"; Kumkumo K. DIRE DAWA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY Department of Computer Science

6. Multimedia Systems 7)Cast/score/scripting metaphor In this metaphor, time is shown horizontally in a type of spreadsheet fashion, where rows, or tracks, represent instantiations of characters in a multimedia production. Since these tracks control synchronous behavior, this metaphor somewhat parallels a music score. Multimedia elements are drawn from a "cast" of characters, and "scripts" are basically event procedures or procedures triggered by timer events. Usually, you can write your own scripts. In a sense, this is similar to the conventional use of the term "scripting language" - one that is concise and invokes lower-level abstractions, since that is just what one's own scripts do. Director, by Macromedia, is the chief example of this metaphor. Director uses the Lingo scripting language, an object-oriented, event-driven language. Kumkumo K. DIRE DAWA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY Department of Computer Science