Multimedia Standards |
Introduction Multimedia Markup and PDL Graphics Audio Video Video Conferencing Virtual Reality |
Multimedia StandardsIntroductionThe best thing about standards is that there are so many of themYou will often hear this quote repeated, and a quick look at any list of standards will certainly reveal that there are indeed a large number. Part of the reason for this is that even within a single area, for example, images, one standard cannot provide a suitable solution for all applications. Choosing the right standard involves choosing the right standard for that particular application. This report will look at the standards in the area of multimedia. The first section, will look at what a standard actually is, why is important to use them, and how to choose the right standard for the job. The second section will give an overview of multimedia standards. What is a standard?Standards are in use everywhere, in every aspect of everyday life. For the most part, we simply are not aware that standards are being used, it is only when standards are not used and problems arise that we notice. For example, UK electrical appliances connect to a 240V power supply using a three pin plug. In the UK this works fine, because one standard is used across the country. Outside the UK, however, it is a different matter, as there are a variety of different plug types and voltages.So, a standard implies consistency and conformity, which means they facilitate interoperability and compatibility. They are basically a documented agreement specifying the criteria which the product or service must adhere to. These 'agreements' can arise in two main ways, through development by a standards body, de jure standards, or de facto standards, commercial products that become accepted as a standard simply because of their wide-range adoption, for example Adobe's PDF format for printable digital documents. The International Organisation for Standards or ISO (from the Greek 'isos' meaning equal) was set up in 1947 as a non-governmental organisation to promote the development of standardisation. There are now around 100 member countries, each with their own national body, such as the British Standards Institution (BSI) contributing to ISO's work. Over 10,000 ISO standards have been published, on a very wide range of subjects, from paper size to programming languages. In addition national bodies may also publish their own standards. The Internet Engineering Task Force is an open, international body which develops and maintains standards relating to the Internet, such as TCP/IP. It should be noted that because a technology is a standard does not mean that copyrights and patents do not apply to it. Why use standards?Standards in computing are developed to solve three main problems:
Choosing standardsSince there are usually several standards within a particular area to choose from, it is important to choose the right one. Factors to consider include:
Further ReadingMacMorrow, N., Cracking the code: multimedia standards and what they mean. Online Information 93, Proceedings of the 17th International Online Information Meeting.7-9 Dec., 1993, London, England. Learned Information, Oxford and New Jersey, 1993. 235-241. Kuny, Terry, "So Many to Choose From": An Introduction to Standards and the Internet. Global Village Research, Ottawa, 1996. The Governor's Council on Geographic Information - Why Use Standards? Lorcan Dempsey, Anne Mumford, Alan Robiette and Chris Rusbridge, eLib standards guidelines. Produced for FIGIT, Feb 1996. Anne Karjalainen, Using OII Document and Multimedia Standards in Concretizing the Virtual Learning Environment. Information Technology Research Institute, Jyvaskyla University Martin P. Lee & Stephanie A. Robertson, The use of Microsoft Windows Multimedia File Formats. AGOCG Multimedia File Formats Workshop, Loughborough Univiersity, 1995 Carl Fleischhauer, Digital Formats for Content Reproductions. National Digital Library Program, Library of Congress. August 1996 |
Maintained by Sue Cunningham Updated:
Graphics Multimedia Virtual Environments Visualisation Contents