MST 230: Online Media Production Two
'The Digital Producer' Readings
CHAPTER 8: New Directions for your Video Output
- Digital Distribution Producers of video programming have never had so many options for distributing their work in today's markets. Digital, computer-based development and distribution methods have multiplied the possibili-ties beyond anything we could have imagined just ten years ago.
Compression Revisited - From the vantage point of the production "trenches," perhaps the best approach to all these distribution options is by way of compression. Returning once again to this fundamental concept, the form of com-pression you choose for your final video content defines the context in which it will be used.
All Things MPEG -For more infor-mation on evolv-ing MPEG standards, visit: drogo.cselt.stet.it /mpeg Out of the broad field of existing codecs, MPEG is quickly becoming the de facto standard for mainstream delivery of digital video. MPEG is a worldwide compression standard developed by the Moving Pic-ture Experts Group, an organization started in 1988 by Leonardo Chairiglione and Hiroshi Yasuda with the intent to standardize video and audio for compact discs. The MPEG-1 standard, delivering near-VHS quality digital video, was adopted in 1992 by the Interna-tional Standards Organization (ISO) and the International Electro-technical Commission (IEC). The MPEG-2 standard, delivering broadcast-quality digital video, was adopted in 1994. As this brief history implies, these two highly effective compres-sion schemes are custom-made for digital distribution of video con-tent.
DVD: The Perfect Medium?
DVD stands for Digital Video Disc, or Digital Versatile Disc, depending on whose column you are reading this week. While "Video" is the more popular term, "Versatile" is more apt.
• Image quality: DVD makes use of the MPEG-2 video standard discussed earlier. As a result, it is the first consumer format to offer broadcast-quality video, overcoming the unimpressive video currently delivered on CD-ROM or the World-Wide-Web.
• Interactivity: The first-generation DVD-standard offers a level of interactivity previously unavailable with broadcast-quality video.
• Clear standards: The DVD standard, while still evolving, is embraced by a broad spectrum of consumer and computer device manufacturers. Unlike the piecemeal standards that have always hindered the development and marketing of CD-ROM titles, DVD titles that adhere to the standards should play effectively on any compatible device.
• Cross-over medium: Unlike CD-ROMs, which must be played in a computer, DVDs will play on DVD players in the family room as well as on any computer equipped with a DVD drive. In this respect DVDs have more in common with audio CDs, but this time with pictures.
QuickTime and AVI Codecs: - Whither (or Wither) CD-ROM? QuickTime started the revolution in digital video early in the 1990's. AVI soon followed on Windows.
• Clear standards? Well, not quite. DVD does not yet have a unified standard for recording onto disc, for example. CD-R (CD record-able) and CD-RW (CD read-write) technologies are well estab-lished and should have a firm hold on the market for some time.
• Interactivity? CD-ROM titles still display a much broader range of interactive possibilities than first-generation DVD titles.
• Limited Graphics: The subpicture feature of DVD is limited to four colors and four contrast levels at a time. CD-ROM technol-ogy allows a much greater range of graphics image display.
• Installed base: The number of CD-ROM equipped computers cur-rently in homes ensures that the current generation of CD-ROM titles are not ready for retirement just yet.
24p: The Next Big Thing- Facing the rapid growth of distribution possibilities, Hollywood has begun to take seriously a new format -- 24p, or 24 frames-per-second progressive -- that relies heavily on the oldest format in the industry: film.
Producer's Checklist: Trends to Watch
These are the trends that will most affect your work as a producer in the future.
The big buzzwords:
• DVD
• MPEG-1 and MPEG-2
• MPEG-4
• Digital set-top boxes
• Streaming media
• Asset Management
• Collaborative environments
• 24p formats and workflows