Multimedia Foundations

Section I Multimedia Foundations
Chapter 1 Understanding Multimedia
Key Terms
Chapter Highlights
What It Is Is Multimedia!
Social Media
Defining Multimedia
 Great Ideas: Using Metaphors
 Great Ideas: Multimedia
 Tech Talk: Hypermedia
Understanding Multimedia
 Flashback: Three Generations of the Web
Evolving Media Industries
 Flashback: Flashback
From Old Media to New Media
 The Characteristics of Old Media
 Flashback: Paradigm Shift
 Large Organizations
 Simultaneous Delivery
Characteristics of New Media
Five Principles of New Media
 Tech Talk: Algorithm
 Tech Talk: Bits: The Common Denominator
 Tech Talk: Batch Processing
 Tech Talk: Rendering
Chapter Summary

Chapter 2 The Computer
The Digital Revolution
 Great Ideas: Communication with Binary Numbers
From Bits to Bites
History of the Personal Computer
Computer Hardware and Software
 Computer Hardware Basics
Processor Speed
 Flashback: Moore s Law
System Memory
The Human Interface
The Mouse and the GUI
The Keyboard
Saving and Managing Digital Files and Project Assets
 Tech Talk: Mastering the File System Browser
 Tech Talk: File Management 101
Digital Storage Solutions
 Tech Talk: Backing Up Your Data
 Great Ideas: Cloud Storage
Connecting Drives and Devices
Chapter Summary

Chapter 3 Planning and Design
Key Terms
Chapter Highlights
A Road Map
 Great Ideas: Target Market and Target Audiences
Creativity
The Three P s
 Great Ideas: Intellectual Property
The Client and Producer
 Great Ideas: Thinking Outside the Box
The Design Process
Chapter Summary

Section II Multimedia Design
Chapter 4 Visual Communication
Key Terms
Chapter Highlights
Visual Communication
Content and Form
 Flashback: The Medium is the Message
Aesthetics
Elements of Design
 Tech Talk: Halftone Image
 Tech Talk: Vertigo and 3-D
The Principles of Design
Unity
Emphasis
Perceptual Forces
 Tech Talk: Rule of Thirds
Chapter Summary

Chapter 5 Multimedia Page Design
Key Terms
Chapter Highlights
Organizing Content on a Page
The Gutenberg Diagram
Breaking Out of the Box
F-layout
Z-layout
 Great Ideas: Visual Hierarchy
Chunking Body Copy
Headings
 Great Ideas: The Golden Ratio
Bringing Order to Chaos
The Grid System
 Tech Talk: The Anatomy of a Grid
 Tech Talk: Inline and Floating Graphics
Tables
 Tech Talk: The CSS Box Model
Page Templates
Static and Dynamic Pages
Fixed Layouts
Television Screen Layouts
Fluid Layouts
Chapter Summary

Chapter 6 Interface Design and Usability
Key Terms
Chapter Highlights
User Interfaces
Interactivity
Types of User Interfaces
 Tech Talk: Motion Tracking Interfaces
User-Centered Design (UCD)
Designing User Interfaces
Components and Features
Navigation
 Great Ideas: Above the Fold Layout
Forms
Tailoring
Personalization
Customization
Usability
Learnability
Efficiency
Memorability
Error Management
Satisfaction
Will Usability Kill Creativity
Usability Testing
Making Interfaces Accessible
 Great Ideas: Accessibility and the Law
 Great Ideas: Accessibility and Usability
Chapter Summary

Chapter 7 Web Design
Key Terms
Chapter Highlights
How the Web Works
 Flashback: A Brief History of the Internet and World Wide Web
HTML
 Tech Talk: Sections of an HTML Document
 Tech Talk: HTML Head Content
 Tech Talk: Special Characters
Browsers
Planning Site Structure and Navigation
Defining a Site and the Root Folder
 Great Ideas: File Naming Conventions
Establishing a Hierarchy
Page Design and Layout
Ensuring Site Usability
Beginning Your Page: Structure and Title
Marking Up Your Content
Headings
Paragraphs and Blockquotes
Lists
Creating and Managing Hyperlinks
 Tech Talk: Creating an Email Link
Linking Images and Adding Image Information
Creating Tables
 Tech Talk: Controlling a Table s Appearance
Controlling Appearance: Cascading Style Sheets
Characteristics of Appearance
Margins
Background and Text Colors
 Tech Talk: Background Images
Font Type and Style
Font Sizes
Link Characteristics
 Tech Talk: Buttons and Javascript
Interactive and Multimedia Web Content
Checking Your Code and Compatibility
Uploading the Site to the Server
Chapter Summary

Section III Static Media
Chapter 8 Graphics
Key Terms
Chapter Highlights
Graphics and Images
Graphics
Images
Digital Imaging
Raster Images
 Tech Talk: Color Space
 Tech Talk: Compression
Vector Graphics
Display Screen Standards
Aspect Ratio
Image Rendering
 Great Ideas: The Illusion of Apparent Movement
Television Standards
 Flashback: The Legacy of Analog Television
Digital Television
Chapter Summary

Chapter 9 Text
Key Terms
Chapter Highlights
An Introduction to Typography
Legibility and Readability
Characteristics that Define Typefaces
Stroke, Contrast, and Stress
Weight: Regular, Boldface, and Light
Posture: Roman, Oblique, and Italic
Proportions and Letterform Parts
Categorizing Typefaces
Serif Typefaces
Sans-Serif Typefaces
Decorative Typefaces
Script Typefaces
Symbol Typefaces and Special Characters
 Tech Talk: Category Characteristics
Computers and Typefaces
 Great Ideas: Adding to Your Typeface Collection
Additional Text Attributes
Font Styles: True and Faux
Italics and Boldface for Emphasis
Condensed or Expanded Type
All Caps and Small Caps
Underline and Strikethrough
Font Size
Font Color
Baseline Shift
Superscript/Subscript
Anti-aliasing
 Tech Talk: Font Management
Character and Line Spacing
Kerning and Tracking
Leading
Alignment, Justification, and Distribution
Font Transformations
Some Final Tips
Limit the Number of Typefaces
Text First, Type Second
 Tech Talk: Designing Text for Screen Display
Designing the Text for Screen Display
Less is More
Chapter Summary

Chapter 10 Photography
Key Terms
Chapter Highlights
Photography
Consumer Cameras
Prosumer and Professional Cameras
Video Cameras
The Imaging Chain
The Lens
 Tech Talk: Focal Length and Angle of View
 Tech Talk: Optical Versus Digital Zoom
The Iris
The Shutter
 Great Ideas: The Image Sensor
 Flashback: The Decisive Moment - by Chris Walker
Exposure
Measuring Light Intensity
Great Ideas: Flash Control
White Balance
Focus
Autofocus (AF)
Manual Focus (MF)
 Great Ideas: Selective Focus
Depth of Field
Aperture Size
Focal Length
Subject/Camera Distance
Exposure Modes
Automatic Modes
 Tech Talk: Stitching Mode
Semi-Automatic Modes
Manual Mode
Image Stabilization
 Great Ideas: Memory Cards
Downloading Images
Digital Image Management
 Tech Talk: Metadata
Chapter Summary

Section IV Time-Based Media
Chapter 11 Audio Production
Key Terms
Chapter Highlights
Sound and Audio
What is Sound?
 Great Ideas: Characteristics of a Sound Wave
 Tech Talk: Dynamic Range
 Great Ideas: Equalization
Digital Audio Sampling
Pulse-Code Modulation
 Flashback: Industry Standards
Codecs and Container Formats
WAV and AIFF
Sound Recording
Microphones
 Tech Talk: The Proximity Effect
 Great Ideas: Four Reasons for Using a Professional Grade External Microphone
Balanced Audio Connectors
XLR Connectors
Unbalanced Audio Connectors
TS and TRS Connectors
RCA Connectors
Adapters
Cable Management 101
 Great Ideas: The Over-Under Wrap
Audio Monitoring
Audio Metering (objective monitoring)
Listening (subjective monitoring)
Chapter Summary

Chapter 12 Sound and Video Recording
Key Terms
Chapter Highlights
Motion Picture Film Recording
Magnetic Recording
 Great Ideas: Helical Scanning
 Tech Talk: Tape Recording Basics: Track Pitch and Speed
Professional Videotape Formats
Analog Tape Formats
 Tech Talk: Composite Versus Component Color Processing
Digital Tape Formats
High-Definition Tape Formats
 Flashback: DV: The Blue Book Standard
DV Formats
Two Types of Video Compression 
 Tech Talk: Color Sampling
Consumer Formats
Betamax and VHS
MiniDV
 Tech Talk: Optical Disc Formats
File-Base Recording Formats
 Tech Talk: Container Formats
Open Standards for File-Base Recording Formats
 Tech Talk: Intermediate Formats
Proprietary Standards for File-Base Recording
 Tech Talk: Recording Variables in AVCHD
Chapter Summary

Chapter 13 Time-Based Editing
Key Terms
Chapter Highlights
Nonlinear Editing
The Building Blocks of an Edited Sequence
 Great Ideas: The Stand-Up
 Great Ideas: Designing Graphics for Television
Continuity Editing
Cut-ins
 Tech Talk: Cutting-on-Action
The Project Folder
The Project File
Media Files and Media Clips
 Flashback: NLE Pioneers
Components of an NLE Interface
Project Window
The Timeline
The Preview and Program Monitors
 Great Ideas: NLE Keyboard Shortcuts
Adding Clips to the Timeline
A Simple Editing Scenario
Transitions
Chapter Summary

Index