Types of Multimedia - Assignment Example

Multimedia Introduction Technological intervention has been witnessed in every walk of life in the past few decades. The field of education has also been influenced by the progress of technology, due to which the modern processes of education are remarkably different from the conventional modes. Multimedia can be defined as the delivery of a message through the use of media, which includes a diverse range of technologies; audio files, videos, graphics, animations etc (Multimedia). The conventional meaning of the term multimedia has expanded from ‘the presentation of a slide show from a projector’ to a wider range of technologies. The use of multimedia has become universal and has fully integrated in the field of education. An institution desires to modernize their induction tour with the latest technologies to enhance the experience for the newly inducted students and present a promising image of the college. Multimedia is also used in organizations for various purposes. Different types of technologies shall be discussed in the paper regarding their unique uses for organization. In the end, an effective solution will be proposed for the institution to incorporate technology in the induction tour. Task 1 2. Types of Multimedia used in Organizations 2.1 Promotion and Advertising Modern organizations have numerous platforms on which they can promote the image of their organizations. Most common use of multimedia is seen in the domain of promotion and advertising. The first step in this process is to define the audience that shall be aimed to be targeted with the promotional campaigns. Radio and television are among the conventional forms of multimedia used in the field of advertising. Radio tends to be cost effective as compared to TV and print ads. Internet technology has intervened in the lives of individuals to such a great extent that life cannot be perceived without it in the modern world. Organizations use the medium of internet to reach a larger set of audiences. According to Kawamoto; there are over 1 billion internet users worldwide. Advertisements and promotional campaigns are run on social networking sites, search engines and company owned websites. Another good approach to promote the name of the company is to make a profile for the company on Facebook, MySpace and Twitter. Current campaigns and latest promotions can be advertised through these profiles. 2.2 Digital Poster Digital posters are defined as the displays that are electronically updated with respect to the content provided by the organizations. They facilitate fast and convenient updates of information therefore more information can be communicated to the audience than flat posters. They are more eye-catching as they can be incorporated with sound and video to enable a more effective delivery of message to the recipient. 2.3 Virtual Tours A virtual tour is defined as the simulation of any place which is created by the accumulation of numerous videos and snapshots. Virtual tours allow the creator to communicate the floor plan and interiors of any location to a person who might be residing thousands of miles away from that place. This type of multimedia can help any business communicate their services to their customers; this experience gives an opportunity to the customers to evaluate the quality of the service. For example, hotels advertise their rooms, spa locations and dining areas with the aid of virtual tours. Hospitals might use the same medium to communicate their medical facilities to the audiences. Real estate agencies use this type of multimedia to show the interiors, neighbourhood and location of premises. Figure 1: Screenshot of a virtual tour of a hotel (Interactive virtual tours for estate agents, hotels, business, bars and restaurants) 2.4 Education and Training This concept of acquiring education and training by means of multimedia is known as ‘computer based learning’ or ‘computer based teaching’. Businesses have adapted multimedia technologies to provide training to their employees since this medium facilitates quicker learning through the visual impact (Akuna). Attention can be captured more effectively through the technologies of multimedia. Information and knowledge may be disseminated to the employees via instructional modules on CDs or presentations. 2.5 E-learning packages E-learning is an innovative concept that has further removed the geographical barriers in the field of education, training and acquisition of other skills. E-learning platforms allow an individual to gain knowledge from the vicinity of his choice. It helps organizations to disseminate support manuals, guidelines and standards pertaining to their business. E-learning facilitates the training of employees who might be remotely located. The organization tends to save their costs in the travel and lodging expenses for the remotely located employees (Mungania). These sessions can even be interactive in nature and are capable of offering an experience similar to a personal, face-to-face communication. 2.6 Entertainment and Leisure Multimedia serves another purpose in organizations which is meant to be a recreational activity for the employees. Some organizations offer entertainment centers and software games for the employees to be utilized in their free time or after working hours. The usage of such multimedia brings the employees closer to each other and breaks the ice between colleagues. Software games also tend to enhance logical thinking and team work spirit among the employees. 2.7 Virtual Reality Virtual reality is the simulation of the real world. It makes the participants perceive their environment as reality. Virtual reality is being increasingly adapted as the mechanism to conduct conference meeting sessions; such sessions enable the participants to communicate in a virtual world where all the participants are present on the same virtual platform. Virtual reality enables engineers and architects to create innovative products since they can view the objects with 3D dimensions and angles (Custom-Made Worlds: Virtual Reality in Science and Business Science Clarified). This helps organizations come up with innovative products and services for their customers. Figure 2: (Custom-Made Worlds: Virtual Reality in Science and Business Science Clarified). Task 2 It is almost inevitable for institutions and organizations to stay isolated from the technological intervention in the modern world. Therefore, the college induction tour should also be modernized with the latest technologies. One of the things that should be introduced in the process is the virtual tour of the college that would constitute of the college map and layout of the important venues of the college, for example, seminar rooms, auditorium, cafeteria, laboratories. The virtual tour can be presented to the students with the help of recorded sound or a real presenter. Along with the presentation, few machines and terminals should be deployed around the campus that would enable the students to experience a virtual tour on their own. This approach will allow the students to get acquainted with the spaces around the campus and find their own way. The virtual tour will make the students feel like a part of a professional institution equipped with the latest technologies. Voice presentation should be presented to the students to communicate relevant information about their policies and procedures. The monotonous speeches of faculty member and administrators should be replaced with a visual presentation that can communicate the information in an interesting manner. This approach also makes it easier for individuals to comprehend the content. The presentation should be done by an experienced presenter who can read the presentation aloud to ensure that all the students understand all aspects of the presentation. The presentation should also include the code of conducts that are forbidden within the premises of the institution to maintain discipline in the environment. The achievements of the alumni should be mentioned in a concise manner in the presentation to make the students realize that they can achieve great success if they study in a committed and consistent manner in the respective institution. Task 3 Innovative projects of the students should be available to be viewed in virtual reality to analyze their designs and structure. This can be applied in the fields of architecture, arts, computer studies, engineering etc. This can be fruitful to encourage the students to create innovative things and provide an opportunity to gain from other students’ research and knowledge. Such practice can be adopted in architecture, arts, computer sciences and engineering departments. Another approach can be adapted to provide a more detailed virtual tour of the campus, coupled with information and knowledge. The presentation and the content that is being presented at that specific time in different rooms can be accessible to the viewer of the virtual tour, along with the name of the instructors and course. This can help a student to choose any course of his interest and can apply for registration. This terminal can even give the students a platform for completing their registration process. An innovative multimedia can be used to provide circulars, time tables and current activities programs to the students. This terminal will have the functions to choose the program in which the student has been enrolled and get the desired time table print out for the respective program. Colleges tend to issue circulars on different occasions, for example, change of timings in the campus or calendar for the yearly holidays; all such documents could also be printed out from the terminal. References Akuna, Valerie. Multimedia in Training and Education, Estrella Mountain Community College, n.d. Web. 19 April 2011 “Custom-Made Worlds: Virtual Reality in Science and Business Science Clarified”, Science Clarified.com, n.d. Web. 19 April 2011. “Interactive virtual tours for estate agents, hotels, business, bars and restaurants”, Virtual360.com, 2009, Web. 19 April 2011. Kawamoto, Dawn. “Internet users worldwide surpass 1 billion”, CNET News, 23 January, 2009. Web. 18 April 2011. “Multimedia”, WordIQ.com, n.d. Web. 19 April 2011. Mungania, Penina. The Seven E-learning Barriers Facing Employees, African Education Research Center, 2003, Web. 18 April 2011. Read More