Breadth and Depth through Multimedia

From slide shows to videos, multimedia can bring your website alive. The key is careful testing to ensure that all end users have access to the resources. This top section provides a QuickStart to Multimedia. Use the rest of the page as needed for support material.

1. Open a new document in Dreamweaver.
   Choose Commands>Create Web Photo Album.
   Create a name and provide a source folder "landmarks" from your Workshop folder. Create a new folder for the slide show called "landmarksshow".
   Example: Landmarks Slide Show.
2. Add a simple link to an audio such as lumberjack.wav
   Use FindSounds to locate other sounds.
3. Enter the HTML for an audio.
4. Embed an audio: Insert>Media>Plugin
5. Add a simple link to a video such as http://tipt3.utoledo.edu/starters/prairiedog/prairiedog1.mov
6. Enter the HTML to embed a video.

Support Materials

Explore the following resources on this page:

• Keep It Simple
• Using Plug-Ins
• Audio and Podcastings
• Animation
• Video

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Keep It Simple

When possible, add features that don't require special software or plugins. Slide shows are a simple example.

Save the following photographs in a folder called landmarks: Slide1, Slide2, Slide3, Slide4, Slide5.
Open a new document in Dreamweaver.
Choose Commands>Create Web Photo Album.
Create a name and provide a source folder "landmarks" and create a new folder for the slide show called "landmarksshow".
Edit the text as you wish.
For an example, go to Landmarks Slide Show.

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Using Plug-Ins

Plug-ins are external programs that you can add to the browser to enhance its capabilities. Add power to the browser and provide support to many other file types.

Popular Plug-ins = Adobe Acrobat Reader, RealAudio and RealVideo, QuickTime, Shockwave and Flash and VRML

Be sure to provide links to required software and plugins.

Some Examples:

• Adobe Acrobat Reader - Adobe Acrobat lets you take existing documents created with a word processor and save them as PDF (Portable Document Format) file.
• RealAudio and RealVideo - streaming formats that enable you to see and hear large audio and video files - plays the content as it is downloaded
• QuickTime - developed by Apple and is the video standard for Macintosh
• Flash and Shockwave from Macromedia - can be used to create interactive multimedia presentations that include sound and animation
• Microsoft Windows Media - like RealAudio/Video can be used to see and hear large audio and video files

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Audio and Podcasting

There are many ways to integrate audio clips into web pages. You can use various file formats including .wav, .au, .midi, and .mp3 files. You can use a text or graphic link such as

You can also put audio in a page background. Be careful when using audio because it can be VERY annoying when played in the background! Use <bgsound src="lumberjack.wav"> to add a sound to the background of the page. You can add the loop attribute such as loop="3" to indicate how many times you wish to loop the sound.

Audio can be very useful for emergent readers, people who speak or are learning foreign languages, or those learning new vocabulary. You can record sounds and save them as separate files to upload.

Software

• Audacity - open source sound editor

Examples

• Nauset Public Schools: Podcasts by Kathy Schrock
• Radio WillowWeb
• Podcast Page from Brandon Middle school
• Sandiego Zoofari Audio Tour Podcasts

Example

<p>Click the sound icon <a href="lumberjack.wav">
<img src="sound.jpg" alt="plays a line from the television show Monty Python's Flying Circus" width="20" height="20" border="0" /></a>. Can you name the television show? </p>

Result

Click the sound icon . Can you name the television show?

You can also choose Insert>Media>Plugin to embed an audio. Then add controls such as autostart="true" (tells to start the sound immediately) or controls="console" to display a console.

There are many sources for online sounds. Use the Remote Audio Collections page from Multimedia Seeds for lots of example sounds. Try adding a sound to your practice page.

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Animation

Go to Flash from eduscapes for ideas.

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Video

Video Sources

• Use your digital still camera to produce very short videos:
  • Interviews with students and teachers about class activities
  • Interview people at special events such as book, science, and media fairs
  • Interview players at sporting events
  • Short short clips from musical and drama events

Dreamweaver

It's easy to embed a movie in Dreamweaver using the Insert>Media>Plugin option.

Separate Page

You can simply link to multimedia resources. For example, click Prairie Dogs to see a Quicktime movie of two prairie dogs playing.

<a href="http://tipt3.utoledo.edu/starters/prairiedog/prairiedog1.mov">Prairie Dogs</a>

Embed in Page

You can also embed a movie on a web page. For example, click Bears to view a page containing an embedded movie that automatically plays when the page opens.

<embed src="http://tipt3.utoledo.edu/starters/bears/grizzbear.mov" autoplay="true"> </embed>

Read other options for Playing Videos in Browsers at W3Schools.

There are many sources for online videos. Use the Remote Video Clips page from Multimedia Seeds for lots of example videos. Try adding a video to your practice page. You can also find videos at our Naturescapes: Video & Images Starter Resources page.

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