Multimedia Basics

Multi is a prefix that means more than one. Media on the other hand basically means anything that facilitates communication e. G. Radio, T. V., newspapers etc. Multimedia therefore means anything that uses more than one medium to convey information. It can refer to text, sound, graphic, still images, art, animation and any combination that is delivered at once.

It is stored, recorded or played using computerized gadgets or devices that are electronic. This gadgets and devices can also be referred to as multimedia. It is divided into two categories: nonlinear and linear. Linear media progresses without navigational control e. G. A cinema. Nonlinear on the other hand gives a user some degree of interactivity.

This technology is used in many sectors of life. One sector that we can easily identify with is the creative industry. Most of all the entertainment we are bombarded with uses it. Those special effects in movies and animations fall under multimedia. It plays a major role in education. They can be used to prepare teaching materials and also aid in computer based training. Edutainment, a form of entertainment that combines education and entertainment can be used to teach people.

Journalism totally exploits this phenomenon. Combined Media and technology is used by journalists to convey information from wherever they are. The use of the internet is slowly changing the way information reaches us.

The commercial sector has not been left behind. Thanks to this new technology advertisements are interesting enough to capture people's attention. Communication between businesses, customers and colleagues has since moved from the traditional snail mail, and telephones to all manner of fast and effective mediums.

In the world of medicine, this technology can be used in facilitating doctor training by for example simulating a surgery. In fact it can be used to train just about anything from software simulation, military type trainings to employee training.