EXPLAIN PROCEDURES FOR DEVELOPING MULTIMEDIA CONTENT

What is a Multimedia (Content) Presentation?

 A multimedia presentation is a type of presentation that uses several different forms of
digital communication, such as video, interactive slides, audio clips, music and more, to
get the message across.
 In short, multimedia presentations go beyond the use of text and images. Including digital
media like animation, video, audio, or interactive features like forms, popups and more
can help enrich your presentations both visually and content-wise.
 While you can create basic multimedia presentations with Microsoft PowerPoint, there
are much more innovative and modern tools out there to help you create even better
presentations, like Visme (apps software).
 Developing multimedia content involves a series of steps to ensure a cohesive and
engaging final product

How to Create a Multimedia Presentation in 5 Steps

Creating a multimedia presentation isn’t difficult, you just need the right tools. In fact, it’s as
easy as the six steps.

Step #1: Define the purpose of your multimedia presentation / Planning.

 Before you can start creating a multimedia presentation, you need to know exactly what
you will be presenting about and why.
 Just make sure to have all the information you need to present in an orderly fashion so
it’s easier when it’s time to create.

Step #2: Outline the content with visualization ideas.

 Now that you have everything planned out and all your content is ready to be put
into a slide deck, it's time to create an outline.
 While creating the outline, think of ways that you can improve the story using
different mediums.
For example:
 Explainer videos - Explain a product, service, concept, or process in a clear and concise
manner.
 Video clips - Short segments of video content, typically ranging from a few seconds to a
few minutes in duration
 Surveys - Structured method of collecting data and opinions from a group of individuals
to gain insights into various topics
 Animated GIFs - Graphics Interchange Format) are a popular and widely used file format
for displaying short animations or sequences of images
 Popups - Graphical user interface (GUI) elements that appear on top of the main content of a
webpage or application
 Interactivity between slides
 Color-coded maps
  Loom videos-Storage of video per each parts/tape eg Screen Recording, Webcam
Recording
 Sound effects
 Background music

Step #3: Select a presentation template and add your content.

 Now, log into your Visme dashboard or any apps and find a presentation template that
will be perfect for your project. There are lots of choices, from pre-designed
presentations to customizable slide libraries in different styles.
 In the case of a multimedia presentation, we recommend you go with one of the slide
libraries. Slide libraries can also be referred to as presentation themes.
 Each theme comes with a large slide library with hundreds of different options. You can
mix-and-match slides to create your own, unique multimedia presentation.
 We suggest you add all the blank slides you need by following the outline you made in
the previous step. Then, input the general content, images, backgrounds and design
assets.
 Next, add your logo, brand colors, fonts and branded imagery. When you have a Visme
Brand Kit, that step can’t be any easier. The fonts are already set up in your editor as are
the colors.
 Use Dynamic Field to ensure your important data is consistent and updated across all
your slides and projects. Once you place your information in the custom field, it will
automatically appear on other slides containing the value.
 Alternatively, create your presentation from scratch by starting with a blank canvas.
Visme also offers content blocks and element groups to help you create a good
presentation.

Step #4: Add multimedia content.

 At this stage, your presentation probably looks good-looking, but static. Let’s make it
interactive by adding unique multimedia presentation tools.
 Start adding multimedia content to the slides that need it. Follow your outline and
visualization idea notes.
 You don’t need to add a different type of media on each slide — that’s overwhelming.
Aim for two or three types of media spread throughout the presentation to keep a balance.
Step #5: Review, download and share.

When you’ve added all your content, both regular and multimedia, it’s time to revise. Click on
the “present” button on the top-right of your editor and take a look at your presentation as if you
were a viewer.

As you go through every slide, take notes if you spot anything that looks off or unfinished. Then,
go back and edit those slides until the presentation is just right.

Multimedia presentations can be presented or shared in several ways. For interactive

presentations that include clicking or filling in forms, give your audience the best experience by:

 Embedding the presentation into a website

 Sharing the presentation with a live link
 Downloading the presentation as an HTML5 file
Prepare Plan for Multimedia Content Development
Planning process
A multimedia development team consists of many different skill oriented people, who include
a producer, educational consultant, media consultant, media designers, media specialists,
webmaster etc. However, the whole team works for a single objective that is creation of an
effective multimedia application.

Therefore, one of the major issues for Multimedia production is to plan an application. A
multimedia project should be planned through following stepwise process:

1. Develop the Multimedia programmer/application concept.

2. Outline your programmer.
3. Develop a flowchart.
4. Develop programmer storyboard.
5. Plan the user interface.
6. Consider copyright issue.
7. Plan the production of text, graphics, animation, audio, and
8. Prepare the project budget and time schedule.
9. Project Budgeting:
10. Hardware Issues:
11. Authoring Software Selection:

This planning process is also presented in figure given below.

1. Defining the Goal:

The Goal of a multimedia application is defined by the scope of work, which is a written
description of the proposed multimedia project. The scope of work clarifies your ideas and
goals regarding the proposed project. It also helps the development team members to visualize
the basic objectives of the programmer.

2. Outlining:
Once the goal and the objectives of the programmer are clear, the next step is to create
Outline of the project. An interactive multimedia presentation may not necessary be Linear
presentation like a slide show or a video programme. It has the capacity of Branching. The
outline of a programme represents branching in a Multimedia Programme. The content specialist
does the outlining. Developing an outline for an interactive multimedia project is almost the
same as that of developing an outline for a chapter of the book. However, the outlining of
Multimedia structure is translated into branches or points of decision on the screen. Even the
main outlining headings may become options available to the user in the main menu of the
Multimedia presentation program with sub-heading becoming the Sub-Menu entries.
 3. Develop a flowchart:
The logic flow chart is an important component of an Interactive Multimedia Programme. A
logic flow chart is a graphical road map of the proposed application. The Authoring team
takes the help of this flowchart to produce the final multimedia Application. The complexity
of these flow charts is dependent on the applications being developed. The flowcharts, which
illustrate games, are among the most complex flowcharts.

4. Program storyboard:
The storyboard is a graphical representation of the proposed multimedia project. The
storyboard is an extension of ideas presented in the programme script. It is presented with a
series of templates used for various purposes. These templates are very useful information
and help the developer to keep a production log or history of the work. They also help in
keeping track of the production design and help in identifying the design parameters for the
application development.

5. Planning for creation of multimedia building blocks:

The development of multimedia building blocks is an extensive process and requires a number
of production steps. In the planning phase of it, the basic script or content of this element is
defined. The content specialist may be requested to provide such information. Availability of
already available resources should also be indicated at this level.

6. Copyright Issue and Its Management:

While designing multimedia application, copyright issue plays a crucial role because of two
fundamental reasons.
 Multimedia involves use of multiple media each of that media element may be
protected under the copyright laws.
 Original multimedia works are also protected by copyrights.

The Copyright laws protect the works like Printed or Electronic text forms, computer software,
Musical works, Dramatic works Dances and mime works, Pictorial, graphics, and sculptural
works, Motion picture etc. Therefore, it is important that during the planning phase you sort the
copyright issues relating to getting permissions of using copyright material from its owner.

7. Defining the Production Time Schedule:

A Timeline, defining the activities needed the person responsible for each activity and the
start/end time of each activity should be developed. This establishes the standard with which
to compare progress, ascertain deviations from plan and take timely corrective action.

8. Devising a Technical Plan:

A technical plan addresses the needs of the production and the needs of the end user. It
defines how an end user will experience the project and accordingly lays down the system
requirement conditions like screen requirement, CD-ROM speed, memory requirement
and hard disk requirement.
 9. Project Budgeting:
Once the project timeline or schedule is ready, the next step is to prepare the project budget. This
is essential as time and money are not infinite resources.
 Planning the Structure: It involves the following steps:
 Defining the goals and objectives of the proposed multimedia title
 Describing the content of the title
 Developing the application script
 Translating the application script into an outline
 Translating the outline into a logic flow chart
 Developing the storyboard for each screen

10. Hardware Issues:

For any multimedia production it is imperative to consider and finalize the "tools" and equipment
necessary to develop and play back the application. Hardware issues include deciding, securing
the fastest CPU and RAM and largest monitors that is affordable, sufficient disk storage for all
working files and records, file sharing for collaborative work via networks or e-mail and
establishing a file back-up system.

11. Authoring Software Selection:

Selection of appropriate authoring software depends on team expertise, funds required to acquire
new software and to train the manpower and what the demands of the new title being developed
are. Two most widely used authoring applications today are Macromedia Director and
Macromedia Author ware.

Establish cost for multimedia content development

Depending on the size and scope of your company’s goals:
 Inventory of existing site content
 Content and resource planning
 Social media efforts
 Competitor performance
 Website optimization
 Analytics tracking
 And more…

The most important thing to keep in mind is: What are your campaign goals? By understanding
your goals first and foremost, you can better understand the scope and potential cost of a
campaign. There are many content marketing goals that might apply to your business:
 Build brand awareness
 Grow traffic to your website
 Increase leads
 Boost online sales
Research is a critical starting point for any content marketing strategy. Without it, you’ll be
unable to accurately measure benchmarks, marketing KPIs, and healthy expectations as you
implement the strategy.

How much does a strategy cost?

Digital strategies can be priced anywhere from $5,000 for a very basic strategy, to $50,000 or
more for a comprehensive strategy that might be appropriate for the Fortune 500. Once you’ve
outlined the goals you’d like content marketing to achieve, the next step is to begin developing
the actual content marketing strategy. Proper planning can mean the difference between
success and failure. Many different components are involved in a content marketing
strategy which includes, but are not limited to, items like:

 Inventory of your existing content

 Analysis of your target audience
 Setting goals and target landmarks
 Creation of a custom content plan for your business

One of the most essential pieces in this process is the content marketing editorial calendar. With
this calendar, you can schedule article topics or blog posts in advance, so you have plenty of time
to research, create, and promote your content to the relevant prospects. Even when you start to
run out of ideas, falling back on your content calendar allows you to create new content or
repurpose existing content into other unique content pieces. Creating an editorial content
calendar will allow you to pre-plan the topics that resonate with your audience into a strict
schedule that keeps the pace of content creation efficient.

WHAT IS MULTIMEDIA DESIGN?

Multimedia design is the art of integrating different media, including text, images, audio and
video to communicate with an audience. The practice is a niche in the graphics and website
design industry and used in other industries such as:
 Advertising
 Marketing
 Video games
 Movies
 Television
 Websites
 Informational content
Many businesses are moving their audience engagement and advertising to online platforms
which emphasize visual content. As a multimedia designer, you can work in any industry or
organization that wants to catch the attention of its audience with captivating content that
informs, educates and entertains
What do multimedia designers do?
The primary duty of multimedia designers is to create content that engages an audience. They
use their creativity, skills and equipment to create a wide range of content to make the most
impact on an audience. Some of that content includes:
 Informational videos
 Advertisements
 Animation
 Audio visual materials
The marketing industry relies on multimedia designers to create visually appealing marketing
campaigns that not only captivates but entices and persuades people to take action.
The video game industry depends on these professionals to make attention-grabbing graphics and
animation that deliver near real-life gaming experiences. In the television and movie industry,
multimedia designers use innovative tools and creativity to blend super story telling with
computer-generated effects. However, the specific duties of a multimedia designer can depend
on their employer and the industry where they operate.

Multimedia designer duties

Here are some duties and responsibilities of a multimedia designer:

 Brainstorming with other multimedia designers, technicians, creative directors, business

analysts and other professionals on the project requirements
 Creating mockups( full-size model of a design or device, used for product presentations
or other purposes) based on the requirements and scope of the project
 Developing multimedia content such as video games, interactive websites, educational
software, advertising content and television programs
 Performing in-depth research and gathering materials to create accurate animations and
special effects
 Using design tools, animation software and recording equipment to create audio, text,
animation and visual effects
 Creating artwork for special effects and video games
 Editing content based on the feedback of stakeholders
 Meeting regularly with stakeholders such as the art director and clients on the project
report and other critical milestones

How to Evaluate Media Content

 When it comes to evaluating the design of your website, business cards, brochures, or
pamphlets, you likely pool a crowd for feedback, right? While bad design is an obvious
brand killer, there is another enemy lurking close behind it: content.
 Your website and media content is there to ultimately convince your audience to
purchase your product or service, but how do you know if it’s really doing its job? Is your
content truly driving action or is it simply getting lost in the shuffle?
 Media content testing, also known as usability testing, is the practice of testing whether
written media content is appropriate, suitable for the target audience in question, and
 whether or not it is driving the desired action. The main objective of content testing is to
ensure the customer can understand what is being said, it is relevant to them, and they
know what to do next.
 As content is a crucial part of the sales process, it is essential for businesses to test their
content properly with a media content evaluation.

Getting Started
Content testing is one of the best ways to ensure that your media content is effective for your
audience. To get started evaluating your content and media, you must first:

 Identify your evaluation goals within these buckets:

 User requirements – What do users need to know?
 Content strategy – What do you want users to do?
 Context of the content – Does this content make sense here?
 Targeted users – Is this content speaking to the audience?
 Create your evaluation plan:
 Once the aim of testing is decided, you need to decide on the media content
evaluation methods you will use, like qualitative and quantitative user research
Looking Ahead
 The last step in usability testing is to analyze the results from your evaluation plan. By
analyzing the output/results, your organization can take the necessary steps to improve
the quality, direction, and context of the content moving forward.
 There are several advanced programs used at Fuel Cycle to help capture feedback such as
pilotly which tests TV shows, films, and ad campaigns for effectiveness, or Affective
which analyzes the emotional appeal of your content.
 The Fuel Cycle Research Cloud provides a path for organizations to combine the best
technologies and solutions for their usability testing needs. Fuel Cycle is on a mission to
provide businesses real-time customer data through online communities, panels, and
custom research solutions catered to fit the needs of their unique industry.
 Fuel Cycle believes that brands need access to the most sophisticated tools to gauge and
enhance the user experience like card sorts, user tasks, user funnel, heat maps, tree
testing, and competitive benchmarks.

Deliver the Content (Presentation)

 When you’re on the internet watching videos, perusing pictures, listening to music, or
reading blogs, do you ever stop to wonder exactly how that content made it from the
original creator to your computer screen? After all, content doesn’t just magically appear,
right?
 Content delivery describes the process of delivering media over a medium such as the
internet or broadcast channels. Content delivery also consists what form the content
takes. Today, the best mode of delivery often depends on what kind of audience will be
consuming the content.
What is Data Compression?
Data compression is the process of encoding (involves the use of a code to change original data
into a form that can be used by an external process), restructuring or otherwise modifying data in
order to reduce its size. Fundamentally, it involves re-encoding information using fewer bits
than the original representation.
Compression is done by a program that uses functions or an algorithm to effectively discover
how to reduce the size of the data. For example, an algorithm might represent a string of bits
with a smaller string of bits by using a ‘reference dictionary’ for conversion between them.
For data transmission, compression can be run on the content or on the entire transmission.
When information is sent or received via the internet, larger files, either on their own or with
others, or as part of an archive file, may be transmitted in one of many compressed formats, like
ZIP, RAR, 7z, or MP3.

Need for Data Compression

Modern computers can store increasingly large numbers of files, but file size still matters. The
smaller our files are, the more files we can store.
We use compression algorithms to reduce the amount of space needed to represent a file.

There are two types of compression: lossless and lossy.

1. Lossless compression algorithms reduce the size of files without losing
any information in the file, which means that we can reconstruct the
original data from the compressed file.
2. Lossy compression algorithms reduce the size of files by discarding the
less important information in a file, which can significantly reduce file
size but also affect file quality.

What are lossless and lossy compression?

 Lossless and lossy file compression describe whether all original data can be recovered
when the file is uncompressed.
  With lossless compression, every bit of data originally in a file remains after it
is uncompressed, and all the information is restored. Lossy compression reduces a file by
permanently eliminating certain information, especially redundant information.
 When the file is uncompressed, some of the original information is not there, although the
user may not notice it.

What is file compression?

Digital files such as image files are often "compressed" to reduce their size and/or to change
various attributes, such as:

 file type
 dimensions
 resolution
 bit depth
 Compression reduces the size of a file, often without appreciable loss of information. It
can be either lossless or lossy.
 A smaller-sized compressed file can be restored to its larger form -- in its entirety or with
some data loss, depending on the compression type by decompression.

Lossless compression vs. lossy compression

 Lossless compression restores and rebuilds file data in its original form after the file is
decompressed. For example, when a picture's file size is compressed, its quality remains
the same.
 The file can be decompressed to its original quality without any loss of data. This
compression method is also known as reversible compression.
 With this method, although file sizes are reduced, the reduction is less compared to
reduction using lossy compression.
 In lossy compression, the data in a file is removed and not restored to its original form
after decompression. Specifically, data is permanently removed, which is why this
method is also known as irreversible compression.
 This data loss is not usually noticeable. However, the more a file is compressed, the more
degradation occurs, and the loss eventually becomes visible.
 Lossy compression reduces file size much more than the file size achieved after lossless
compression.

Applications of lossless and lossy compression

Lossless compression is mainly used to compress:

 images
 sound
 text
It is generally the technique of choice for detailed product images, photography showcases, text
files and spreadsheet files, where the loss of picture quality, words or data (e.g., financial data)
could pose a problem.
The Graphics Interchange File (GIF), an image format used on the internet, is generally
compressed using lossless compression. RAW, BMP and PNG are also lossless image formats.

Lossy compression is mainly used to compress:

 images
 audio
 video

This technique is preferred for audio and video files where some amount of information loss is
acceptable since it's unlikely to be detected by most users. The JPEG image file, commonly used
for photographs and other complex still images on the web with no transparency, is generally
compressed using lossy compression.

Using JPEG compression, the creator can decide how much loss to introduce, and how much of a
trade-off is acceptable between file size and image quality.

Lossy compression is also suitable for websites featuring JPEG files and fast loading times since
the compression ratio can be adjusted while maintaining the right balance.
Algorithms used in lossless and lossy compression
Different kinds of algorithms are used to reduce file sizes in lossless and lossy compression.

The algorithms used in lossless compression are:

1. Run Length Encoding

Run-Length Encoding (RLE) is a simple form of lossless data compression where sequences of
identical elements are replaced with a single element and a count of how many times that
element is repeated consecutively.

Here's a simple example to illustrate how RLE works:

Original: AAAAAABBBCCDAA
Encoded: 6A3B2C1D2A

In this example, the sequence "AAAAAA" is replaced by "6A," meaning "A" is repeated six
times. Similarly, "BBB" is replaced by "3B," and so on. The encoded representation is typically
more compact for data with long runs of repeated elements, making it an efficient method for
certain types of data.
 2. Lempel-Ziv-Welch (LZW)
What is LZW used for?
LZW compression is a method to reduce the size of Tag Image File Format (TIFF) or Graphics
Interchange Format (GIF) files. It is a table-based lookup algorithm to remove duplicate data and
compress an original file into a smaller file.

What is Lempel–Ziv–Welch (LZW) Algorithm?

Lempel–Ziv–Welch (LZW) Algorithm is a common lossless data compression algorithm. As it is

a lossless compression algorithm, there is no data loss during compression. LZW (Lempel–Ziv–
Welch) is named after the scientists who developed it, Abraham Lempel, Jakob Ziv, and Terry
Welch. LZW is a 'dictionary-based' lossless compression algorithm that scans a file for data
patterns that appear more than once. These patterns are then saved in a dictionary, and references
are placed within the compressed file wherever repetitive data occurs. In hardware
implementations, the algorithm is simple and has the potential for very high throughput. It is the
algorithm used in the GIF image format and is part of the widely used Unix file compression
utility compress.

3. Huffman Coding
Huffman coding is a form of lossless compression which makes files smaller using the frequency
with which characters appear in a message. This works particularly well when characters appear
multiple times in a string as these can then be represented using fewer bits . This reduces the
overall size of a file.

Huffman Coding is a technique of compressing data to reduce its size without losing any of the
details. It was first developed by David Huffman.
Huffman Coding is generally useful to compress the data in which there are frequently occurring
characters.

How Huffman Coding works?

Suppose the string below is to be sent over a network.

 Each character occupies 8 bits. There are a total of 15 characters in the above string.
Thus, a total of 8 * 15 = 120 bits are required to send this string.

 Using the Huffman Coding technique, we can compress the string to a smaller size.
  Huffman coding first creates a tree using the frequencies of the character and then
generates code for each character.

 Once the data is encoded, it has to be decoded. Decoding is done using the same tree.

 Huffman Coding prevents any ambiguity in the decoding process using the concept of
prefix code ie. a code associated with a character should not be present in the prefix of
any other code. The tree created above helps in maintaining the property.

 Huffman coding is done with the help of the following steps.

 Calculate the frequency of each character in the string.

Sort the characters in increasing order of the frequency. These are stored in a priority queue Q.

 Make each unique character as a leaf node.

 Create an empty node z. Assign the minimum frequency to the left child of z and assign
the second minimum frequency to the right child of z. Set the value of the z as the sum of
the above two minimum frequencies.
 Remove these two minimum frequencies from Q and add the sum into the list of
frequencies (* denote the internal nodes in the figure above).
 Insert node z into the tree.
 Repeat steps 3 to 5 for all the characters.
 For each non-leaf node, assign 0 to the left edge and 1 to the right edge.

 For sending the above string over a network, we have to send the tree as well as the
above compressed-code. The total size is given by the table below.
  Without encoding, the total size of the string was 120 bits. After encoding the size is
reduced to 32 + 15 + 28 = 75

4. Arithmetic Encoding

Arithmetic encoding is a lossless data compression technique that encodes a message into a
single floating-point number within a specified range, based on the probabilities of the symbols
in the message. It provides efficient compression by assigning variable-length codes to symbols,
with more probable symbols getting larger code ranges.

What is the best choice for compression: Lossless or lossy?

There is no "right" or "best" answer when it comes to choosing between lossless vs. lossy
compression. The choice depends on:
 The application
 Acceptable level of quality loss
 Desired file size
So, for example, a blog or portfolio website could benefit from lossy compression since it offers
significant file size reduction, saves storage space and improves site performance and user
experience. On the other hand, a website that requires high-quality photos would be better off
with lossless compression.

It is also possible to use both types of compression for the same application.

Still Image Compression Standards

The two main international bodies in the image compression area the International Organization
for Standardization (ISO) and International Telecommunication Union ITU. ISO deals with
information-processing related issues such as image storage and retrieval, whereas ITU deals
with information transmission
JPEG (Joint Photographic Expert Group) is the standard jointly developed by ISO and ITU in
1992 for still images—for both continuous-tone grayscale and color images. JPEG is officially
referred as ISO/IEC IS (International Standard).
JPEG is a single algorithm for still image compression. Actually, the JPEG standard defines four
modes of operations. They are sequential DCT-based mode, sequential lossless mode,
progressive DCT-based mode, and hierarchical mode
Popular bi-level image compression standards are Group 3 and Group 4 (also called ITU-T
Recommendation T.4 and T.6), developed by the International Telecommunication Union
(formerly known as CCITT) in 1980 for fax compression, and JBIG, and developed by ISO in
1994 for black-and-white image compression. The working group in ISO recently defined a new
bi-level image compression standard called JBIG2, in conjunction with JPEG2000 standard.

VIDEO COMPRESSION TECHNIQUES

 Video compression technology is a set of techniques for reducing and removing
redundancy in video data.
 The compressed video must have a much smaller size compared to the uncompressed
video. This allows the video to be saved in a smaller file or sent over a network more
quickly.
 The video compression efficiency is related to the video bitrate for a given resolution and
frame rate. The compression is more efficient if it results in lower bitrates.
 Video compression may be lossy, in which case the image quality is reduced compared to
the original image.
 For lossy compression, the goal is to develop compression techniques that are efficient
and result in perceptually lossless quality. In effect, even though the compressed video is
different from the original uncompressed video, the differences are not easily visible to
the human eye.
 Video data may be represented as a series of still frames, or fields for interlaced video.
 The sequence of frames will almost certainly contain both spatial and temporal
redundancy that video compression algorithms can use.
 Most video compression algorithms use both spatial compression, based on redundancy
within a single frame or field, and temporal compression, based on redundancy between
different video frames.

Spatial Compression
Spatial compression techniques are based on still image compression. The most popular
technique, which is adopted by many standards, is the transform technique. In this technique, the
image is split into blocks and the transform is applied to each block. The result of the transform
is scaled and quantized. The quantized data is compressed by a lossless entropy encoder and the
output bit stream is formed from the result. The most popular transform algorithm is the Discrete
Cosine Transform (DCT) or its modifications. There are many other algorithms for spatial
compression such as wavelet transform, vector coding, fractal compression, etc.
Temporal Compression
Temporal compression can be a very powerful method. It works by comparing different frames
in the video to each other. If the video contains areas without motion, the system can issue a
short command that copies that part of the previous frame, bit-for-bit, into the next one. If some
of the pixels are changed (moved, rotated, change brightness, etc.) with respect to the reference
frame or frames, then a prediction technique can be applied. For each area in the current frame,
the algorithm searches for a similar area in the previous frame or frames. If a similar area is
found, it’s subtracted from the current area and the difference is encoded by the transform coder.
The reference for the current frame area may also be obtained as a weighted sum of
corresponding areas from previous and consecutive frames. If consecutive frames are used, then
the current frame must be delayed by some number of frame periods.

AUDIO COMPRESSION TECHNIQUES

General Framework:
 In archiving programmes such as DOBES it is important to understand the mechanisms
that increase or decrease the quality of the documentation.
 A general principle for archives is that the best possible quality should be generated,
since we don’t know how future generations will use the resources.
 In particular the popular MiniDisc and MP3 technologies imply compression. Therefore,
we argue that they should only be used in exceptional cases.
1. High Quality Digital Audio
A high quality digital audio representation can be achieved by directly measuring the analogue
wave form at equidistant time steps along a linear scale
The distance between the grid markers on the time axis is defined by the sample frequency, and
on the amplitude axis by the maximal amplitude divided by the number of bits. Therefore, higher
sample frequencies give narrower grids along the time axis and more bits (narrower grids) along
the amplitude axis
The individual values to be stored on computers and representing the sound wave can only be
located on the cross points of the underlying grid. Since the actual sound pressure will never be
exactly on these cross-points, errors are made, i.e. digitization noise is introduced. It is obvious
that the narrower the grids are the smaller the error will be. Therefore, a higher sample frequency
and a larger number of bits will increase the quality.
2. Compression Principles
Modern chip makers invested time to work out compression mechanisms that reduce the amount
of storage space needed and nevertheless produce intelligible sounds. The sample frequency and
the number of bits cannot be reduced, therefore they were looking to other methods. The
designers of the ATRAC (used in MiniDisc recorders) and the MP3 compression algorithms both
used some characteristics of the human sound perception system to reduce the capacity needed.
The algorithms are “psycho-acoustically” based compression techniques, since they claim to
reduce information in the sound signal that cannot be heard by the human ear anyhow.
The algorithms both focus on the representations of those parts where the ear is more sensitive
which is around 1000 Hz (linear PCM treats all components equally). This means that fricatives
for example are not represented as well as some of the formants of, for example, vowels. Further,
the algorithms use two masking effects: (1) the spectral masking says that if there is a dominant
peak in the spectrum somewhere (perhaps introduced by a bird or so) the ear will filter out all
neighboring frequency components that are below an envelope function derived from
psychoacoustic experiments. Thus relevant frequency components of the speech signal could be
filtered out. (2) The temporal masking says that if a loud sound occurs the human ear will filter
out other sounds that are below a certain threshold function also derived from psychoacoustic
experiments, whereby the post-masking effect is much stronger than the pre-masking effect. Also
here useful sound components over time could be filtered out.

4. Recommendations
The Technical Committee of IASA (International Association of Sound Archives) has made a
clear statement that no compression techniques should be used to create and store sound material
when long-term preservation is intended. The best possible quality has to be maintained. DOBES
and similar archives have to follow these recommendations. The compression format leads to
another difficulty: we don’t know how long the algorithms will be supported and understood. A
direct digitization is preferable in this respect as well.

CONVERT A CD-AUDIO CUT TO MP3

We live in a world where we want all our music collection and audio to be available at our
fingertips anytime, anywhere. If your shelves are filled with CDs, not only do they end up taking
up unnecessary space, but you are limited to only listening to your music, audio, or songs on a
CD player or a device with a built-in CD player.

To make sure your audio is compatible with other media players and devices, the best solution is
to convert audio CD to MP3 and have your audio files in a digital format as digital audio tracks.
This article will show you how to convert CD to MP3 format using Switch Audio Converter, the
best CD to MP3 converter in just a couple of steps.
1. Download Switch Audio Converter
Download Switch Audio Converter. Follow the installation instructions and then launch/open the
program after you have finished installing it and insert the desired audio CD disc into your
computer.

2. Import CD Audio Tracks into the Program

In the main toolbar, click the arrow beside the Add File(s) button and from the dropdown select
the Add CD tracks from an Audio CD option to add the CD you wish to convert to digital
MP3. Select the disc drive and click OK. The CD files will automatically be imported into the
program.
Note: Switch cannot be used to convert DRM-protected CDs.
3. Choose an Output Folder
Set the output destination where you would like your converted files to go after they have been
converted from CD to MP3. Click on the Save to Folder drop-down arrow to view the drop-
down menu and select a folder from this list. Click on the Browse button to the right of the arrow
to open the file finder window and select a folder on your computer this way.

4. Convert CD to MP3
Click on the drop-down arrow on the left-hand side of the program next to the words "Output
Format" to view the list of available audio file formats. Select MP3 from the list and click on
the Convert button to start converting CD to MP3.