Word: multimedia
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...same aura of inevitability has attached itself, at least in some circles, to a technology known as interactive multimedia. It is a broad term -- and one that most certainly needs a catchier moniker -- that encompasses a variety of systems for bringing information, music, voice, animation, photos and video images together on a screen in people's living rooms and workplaces. Multimedia represents the coalescence of three key communications technologies: television, personal computers and laser storage systems like the videodisc and the compact disc. These technologies are on a collision course, say multimedia enthusiasts, and when they merge, life...
...underscore those predictions, technology watchers are being treated this month to an unprecedented burst of multimedia-related activity. Last week representatives of more than 70 high-tech firms, led by Microsoft and Tandy, gathered at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City to unveil the Multimedia PC (MPC), a souped-up personal computer that can play games, video and interactive programs stored on silver discs that look like audio CDs. Prices start at $2,800 -- or about $800 more than an ordinary PC. One week earlier, former archrivals Apple and IBM revealed plans to start a joint...
...system for playing CDs on Apple and IBM-compatible personal computers. Even Nintendo has announced plans to attach a compact-disc drive to the latest version of its video-game machine. "After years of public relations hype," says David Bunnell, publisher of a start-up magazine called NewMedia, "multimedia finally is for real...
...hoopla and claims of inevitability, interactive multimedia is still far from a sure thing. None of the devices that have arrived in U.S. stores so far can be called a hit. And the multiplicity of gadgets is sure to be confusing to consumers. Every new technology has its growing pains; the early years of the computer -- and even the automobile -- were littered with setbacks, false starts and skepticism. For multimedia, the road ahead may be even bumpier...
Today there are hundreds of multimedia videodiscs and CDs for sale or in development. Most are fairly straightforward elaborations of products already available as books or on traditional computer disks. But some of them take advantage of the power of the new media to achieve extraordinary results. Among the best are a series of videodiscs from ABC News InterActive that allow users to explore subjects like the AIDS epidemic or the life of Martin Luther King Jr. by roaming though film and video clips culled from ABC's extensive library of news footage. In some cases, these clips are supplemented...