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Web
Pages that Talk
Microsoft Case Heads to Supreme Court Barnes
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Web pages that talk By Robert O'Malley Spencer Critchley wants to make the Web talk. Just as the movie industry had a silent era in the early part of the 20th century, the Web is experiencing a silent phase now, says Critchley, director of sonification at Beatnik. But that silence may gradually be giving way to sound as smaller sound files and faster computers converge to usher in a new era of sound on the Web. Critchley, the director of Beatnik's Leaders Program, has been providing training in the Beatnik sound system for Web development companies such as Razor fish and iXL. "We show them how to use our technology," says Critchley, a composer and interactive media producer. Unlike streaming audio formats, Beatnik's RMF file formats are embedded in the HTML and controlled by JavaScript coding on the page. RMF files can be created specifically for a Web page and are designed to download quickly. With Beatnik's sound system, says Critchley, designers can embed sounds on each page and create an overall sound design for a Web site. "The main use of RMFs is for experiencing interactive audio in a web page," says Critchley. "Beatnik is not really intended or optimized for downloading digital recordings and playing them later, the way MP3 is." The Beatnik RMF format is very scalable, adds Critchley, who believes a10-30 kilobyte Beatnik file is "a much better solution than to listen to a stream several megabits in size." "Linear audio formats [such as MP3] are designed to be started at the beginning and then played through to the end, the way you listen to an audio CD," he says. "Non-linear formats [such as RMF] give you access to the structure of the media, so that you can change the performance in many different ways, e.g. by changing the instrument that's playing, changing the tempo, key, effects, vibrato, etc. "In the world of graphics and animation, " he says, "it's like the difference between a videotape and a 3D animation rendered on the fly in a computer game. The perspective, distance, and all kinds of other characteristics of the 3D animation can be changed in response to user actions because the animation is being rendered in real time. RMF audio is also being rendered in real time," he says. New Technology Means More Sound Critchley envisions Beatnik developing "the interactive soundtracks that will become absolutely standard in the years to come." Beatnik's RMP format allows the creation of tiny files designed for interactivity. "Clearly the Internet is becoming interactive- rich media," says Critchley, who argues that improved sound technology now makes it possible to reconsider how sound is being used on the Web. Changes in sound technology are also ushering in a new era for web music, he says. The development of MP3 and other compression formats now makes it possible to shrink large sound files and stream them on the Web. In the past, established sound file formats such as WAV and AIFF were unsuitable for web use because they took too long to download. "It's been very difficult to do sound on the Web," he says. When companies initially ventured onto the Web, says Critchley, they tended to restrict themselves to using text to communicate a company message and graphics to promote the brand identity. Sound got left out because of the technical problems associated with it, he says. But companies such as Intel and CNN, he says, have well -developed audio brand identities. "It makes sense to have that audio brand loaded when the page opens," he says. In designing sound for the Web, designers must first determine the kind of sound that's appropriate for the site and its intended audience. Sound designers also need to work closely with graphic designers and programmers to ensure that a site's sound design meshes well with the other design elements. The kind of interactive sound designs that Beatnik has been developing include background music and rollover sound effects. Designers strive to make sure "all of these sounds match" and that the site has a cohesive design, says Critchley. In addition to background music and rollover sounds, sound designers are also developing entertainment ("sticky content, "as they call it) to hold viewers at a site. Visitors to the Beatnik site, for example, can test their sound-engineering skills by remixing songs on Beatnik's Mixman page. A similar sound feature proved successful when it was added to the Yahoo.com site, he says. Sound can also be an important ingredient of E-commerce sites, he says. Just as bricks-and-mortar businesses strive to create appealing visual and audio experiences for shoppers, online stores can harness the same strategies to attract customers, Critchley says. "You want to have music and sound to support that experience because it's an emotional experience," says Critchley, who adds that "a seamless audio track" can be designed to accompany shoppers as they move through the site's pages. The Value of Silence Sometimes, though, it's better to be silent, Critchley says. Sound used inappropriately on a web site can be irritating and detract from the message being communicated. Just as inappropriate colors and gaudy graphics can send visitors fleeing from a Web page, irritating sound effects and jingles can have the same numbing effect. In a business environment, says Critchley, "it would be silly to have all kinds of loud sound effects and music going on," though he adds that it may make sense to feature the audio brand identity even on a strictly business-oriented site. "Attention demanded should equal attention justified," he says, adding that some sound effects can be effective the first time around but become irritating when repeated. "If a tune is catchy that means it demands quite a bit of attention," he says "Very often it makes sense to play it once." Critchley cautions that the same restraint should be used with sound loops. While designers may effectively use them to keep sound files small, loops can also become irritating if used inappropriately, he says.
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