WHAT IS MULTIMEDIA？

   
　　MULTIMEDIA is an eerie wail as two cat’ s eyes appear on a dark screen．It’s a small window of video laid onto a map of India，showing an old man recalling his dusty journey to meet a rajah there[1]．It’s a catalog of fancy cars with a guide to help you buy one．It’s a real-time video conference with colleagues in Paris，London，and Hong Kong on your office computer．At home，it’s an algebra or geography lesson for a fifth-grader．At the arcade，it’s goggle-faced kids flying fighter planes in sweaty virtual reality．
    Multimedia is any combination of text，graphic art，sound，animation，and video delivered to you by computer or other electronic means．It is richly presented sensation．When you weave together the sensual elements of multimedia-dazzling pictures and animations，engaging sounds，compelling video clips，and raw textual information-you can electrify the thought and action centers of people’s minds[2]．When you give them interactive control of the process，they can be enchanted．Multimedia excites eyes，ears，fingertips，and，most importantly，the head．
    If you are new to multimedia and are facing a major investment in hardware，software，and the time to learn each new tool，take a gradual approach to these challenges[3]．Begin by studying each element of multimedia and learning one or more tools for creating and editing that element．Get to know how to use text and fonts，how to make and edit colorful graphic images and animate them into movies，and how to record and edit digital sound．Read the computer trade periodicals that contain the most up-to-date information．Your skills will be most valuable if you develop a broad foundation of knowledge about each of the basic elements of multimedia．
    Producing a multimedia project or a Web site requires more than creative skill and high technology．You need organizing and business talent as well．For example，issues of ownership and copyright will be attached to some elements that you wish to use：text from books，scanned images from magazines，audio and video clips．These require permission and often payment of a fee to the owner. Indeed，the management and production infrastructure of a multimedia project may be as intense and complicated as the technology and creative skills you bring to bear in rendering it [4]．
    Multimedia is，as described above，woven combinations of text，graphic art，sound，animation，and video elements[5]．When you allow an end user—the viewer of a multimedia project—to control what and when the elements are delivered， it is interactive multimedia．When you provide a structure of linked elements through which the user can navigate，interactive multimedia becomes hypermedia．
We define multimedia as anything that requires more than two trips to the car[6]．
    Although the definition of multimedia is a simple one，making it work can be complicated．Not only do you need to understand how to make each multimedia element stand up and dance[7]，but you also need to know how to use multimedia computer tools and technologies to weave them together．The people who weave multimedia into meaningful tapestries are multimedia developers[8]．
    The software vehicle，the messages，and the content presented on a computer or television screen together constitute a multimedia project．Of the project will be shipped or sold to consumers or end users，typically in a box or sleeve，with or without instructions，it is a multimedia title．Your project may also be a page or site on the World Wide Web，where you can weave the elements of multimedia into HTML（Hypertext Markup Language）or DHTML（Dynamic Hypertext Markup Language）documents．
    A multimedia project needs not be interactive to be called multimedia：users can sit back and watch it just as they do a movie or the television．In such cases a project is linear，starting at a beginning and running through to an end．When users are given navigational control and can wander through the content as will，multimedia becomes nonlinear and interactive，and is a powerful personal gateway to information．
    Determining how a user will interact with and navigate through the content of a project requires great attention to the message，the scripting or storyboarding，the artwork，and the programming．You can break an entire project with a badly designed interface．You can also break a project with inadequate or inaclearcase/" target="_blank" >ccurate content．
    Multimedia elements are typically sewn together into a project using authoring tools．These software tools are designed to manage individual multimedia elements and provide user interaction．In addition to providing a method for users to interact with the project，most authoring tools also offer facilities for creating and editing text and images，and they have extensions to drive videodisc players，videotape players and other relevant hardware peripherals．Sounds and movies are usually created with editing tools dedicated to these media，and then the elements are imported into the authoring system for playback．The sum of what gets played back and how it is presented to the viewer is the graphical user interface，or GUI（pronounced“gooey”）．The hardware and software that govern the limits of what can happen are the multimedia platform or environment．

NOTES

[1]　指鼠标所点之处多媒体视频小窗口的播放。
[2]　when引导一个时间状语从句，两个破折号“——”间用逗号连接了几个并列成分，是elements的同位语；you can...为主句。
[3]　if引导一个条件状语从句。
[4]　as. . . as，像…… 一样的……，you bring to. ..为定语从句修饰skills。
[5]　woven是weave的过去分词，在这表示“编排”。
[6]　more than two trips to the car意思是不止一种路线或方法。
[7]　这里stand-up意思是指“有效”，dance的意思是指“动作”。
[8]　tapestry原意为：织锦、漂亮的挂毯，在这表示“丰富多彩的多媒体项目”。

KEYWORDS

electrify　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 电子化，电气化
up-to-date　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　最新的
hypermedia　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　超媒体
sensual elements　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　传感元素
HTML（hypertext markup language）　　　　　　　　　　 超文本标记语言
DHTML（dynamic hypertext markup language）　　　　　　动态超文本标记语言
GUI（graphical user interface）　　　　　　　　　　　　图形用户界面

翻译：
什么是多媒体
   
　　多媒体就像黑色屏幕上令人恐怖的一对猫眼，它是置于印度地图上播放一位老人回忆他风尘仆仆与酋长相会的视频小窗口；它是引导你购买一部靓车的指南；它是你在办公室电脑上与巴黎、伦敦、香港的同行们一起进行的实时视频会议；在家中它是五年级学生的代数和地理课堂。在街边的游戏机上，它是紧张虚拟现实游戏中驾驶战斗机双眼怒睁的少年。
    多媒体是用计算机和其他电子手段带来的文字、图像、声音、动画和视频的综合。它是感情丰富的呈现。当你将亮丽的图片和动画、动人的音乐和引人入胜的视频片段、原始的文字信息等多媒体情感元素编排在一起时，就可以使人们的思维和行为中枢触电。如果再对整个过程提供交互式控制的话，那就如同施了魔法一般。多媒体刺激着人们的视觉、听觉和触觉。而最重要的则是激励了人们的思维。
    如果你是一个初学者，并打算在硬件、软件和时间方面大量投入以便掌握每一种新的工具的话，最好采取循序渐进的学习方法。首先从多媒体的各个元素学起，并学习一个或多个生成和编辑该元素的工具，了解如何使用文本和字体，如何制作和编辑色彩丰富的图形图像并将它们做成动画，以及如何记录和编辑数字声音，并阅读包含最新信息的计算机期刊。如果广泛地建立了有关各种多媒体基本要素的知识基础，凭着技能你将会创造最大的价值。
    开发一个多媒体项目或网站不仅仅需要高超的技艺和技术，还需要组织和运营才能。比如，要使用的某些元素可能会涉及所有权和版权问题，如书中的文字、从杂志上扫描的图像、视频和音频片段。这些都需要获得许可，通常要向版权人付费。的确，一个多媒体项目的管理和生产设备与创建和渲染它所用的技术和技艺一样重要和复杂。
    正如前面所讲的，多媒体就是将文字、图像、声音、动画和视频元素编排在一起的技术。当允许最终用户（多媒体项目的使用者）控制播放什么和什么时间播放时，那它就成为交互式多媒体。当你提供一种可由用户操纵的元素链接结构时，交互式多媒体就变成了超媒体。
    可以把多媒体定义成需要用多种途径来实现的任何事。
    尽管多媒体的定义不复杂，但要实现它却绝非易事。不仅需要了解如何使每一个多媒体元素动起来，而且需要知道如何使用多媒体计算机工具和技术将它们编排起来。将多媒体编排成丰富多彩的节目的人就是多媒体开发人员。
    软件载体、资讯和呈现在计算机和电视屏幕上的内容共同构成了多媒体项目。多媒体项目的最终产品将运送并出售给用户，通常装在一个带或不带使用说明书的盒子或封套里，这就是一个多媒体产品。你的项目也可以是万维网的一个页面或网站，在万维网上，可以将多媒体元素编排成HTML（超文本标记语言）或DHTML（动态超文本标记语言）文档。
    多媒体项目并非都是互动的：用户也可以坐在那儿进行观看，就如同看电影和电视一样。在这种情况下，节目是线性的，从头开始直至结尾。当用户能对内容进行操控和随意浏览时，多媒体就变成非线性和交互式的，并且变成强大的个人信息通道。
    要想确定用户如何与项目的内容进行交互和操控就需要对内容、脚本或情节串联、美工和编排给予极大的关注。一个设计糟糕的界面会破坏整个项目；不恰当和不准确的内容也会对项目造成影响。
    多媒体的元素通常使用制作工具编排。这些软件工具被设计用来管理各个多媒体元素并给用户提供交互方式。除了为用户提供与项目进行交互的方法之外，大多数制作工具也提供文字和图像的生成和编辑手段，同时还可扩展到驱动影碟机、录像机和其他相关硬件外设。声音和电影通常由针对这些媒体的编辑工具来生成，然后将这些元素导入制作系统进行播放能播放什么以及能给观众带来什么则取决于图形用户界面（GUI，发音为“gooey”）。决定这一切的硬件和软件就是多媒体平台或环境。

原文转自：http://www.ltesting.net