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Using Sound and Video:
Sites that use sound or video:
http://www.jon-secada.com/
http://www.site4sound.com/
http://www.sonyclassical.com/music/89465/main.html
http://www.weboutloud.com/index.html
http://www.panomedia.com/ebms/ebvideo.htm
Learning sound & video formats:
Sound:
.wav - originally created for windows platform, tend to get large.
.midi - played by sound card, converts to synthesizer sound, tend
to be small.
.mp3 - cross platform, compressed file played by helper application.
.au - originally created for unix platform, tend to be small.
.aiff - originally created for apple/mcintosh platform.
Video:
.mov - originally mcintosh, uses Quicktime helper application.
.avi - originally windows, uses Media Player help application.
.mpeg/mpg - compressed video format, cross platform.
For more information about sound and video formats, go to:
http://www.webreference.com/js/column20/formats.html
http://www.learnthenet.com/english/html/34filext.htm
What are Helper Applications/Plug-Ins:
Helper Applications - a separate program used by your browser
to do certain jobs that
either the browser can not do or can not do as well as the stand-alone
program. Helper
applications normally open their own window when started and appear
separate from the
browser window.
Plug-Ins - are programs designed to work within the browser.
It adds features to the
browser in such a way as the new capabilities seem to be apart of the
browser itself.
For more info on Helper Applications and Plug-Ins, go to:
http://help.netscape.com/kb/consumer/19970621-24.html
http://www.mozilla.org/docs/end-user/helper-applications.html
http://wp.netscape.com/assist/helper_apps/index.html
Inserting a Sound File in a Web page:
Be aware that sound file can be very large files; much larger than
the typically .htm page.
Adding too many sound files to a site can bog the site down and make
it slow to load.
Just as in inserting graphics, keep your sound clips to a minimum.
You can insert a sound on a web page by either offering a link to the
sound or by placing
the sound as a background sound that will play automatically or can
be controlled via a
control panel.
Insert a sound by linking:
1. Save the sound file in a sub- folder to your web page folder.
(i.e. "sounds")
2. Add the code to your web page as follows:
<a href=" mysounds/filename.wav">
Click Here</A>
3. Save the web page.
4. Load the web page and sound files to your web host. (see Web Developer's
course)
You can also link to a sound file by offering an image as the link
text:
1. Save the sound file in a sub- folder to your web page folder.
2. Add the code to your web page as follows:
<a href="mysounds/filename.wav"><img
src=myimages/graphic.gif"></a>
3. Save the web page.
4. Load the web page, sound file and graphic file to your web host.
Embedded Sound:
You can also include a sound by adding it as a background sound using
the <embed> tag.
When placing an embedded sound, you can have the sound start automatically
or allow
the user to control the sound via an online control panel.
Following info taken directly from www.htmlgoodies.com:
The Format For An Embed:
<EMBED SRC="peanuts.mid" AUTOSTART=FALSE
LOOP=FALSE WIDTH=145 HEIGHT=55
ALIGN="CENTER">
</EMBED>
Here's What's Happening:
EMBED tells the browser an embed sound is here -- go get the
plug- in.
Remember, embed commands are associated with plug- ins.
Note: If no plug-in is available, the browser will do one of three things:
1. Do nothing. This is true of very early level browsers or browsers
other
than Netscape.
2. Put up a dialogue box asking you how you want to handle the file.
3. Tell you a plug- in is needed and ask you if you'd like to go get
it.
HEIGHT/WIDTH deals with the plug- ins control panel size on
the page. The
control panel at the top of the page was giving a size of 145 pixels
wide by 55
pixels high.
You can't very well embed a sound, so to have the browser understand
what the
thing is, it is offered as if it is almost an image. (Note the image
of the control
panel popped up.) If you do not want a panel, add the command HIDDEN="yes"
or set the height and width to zero.
SRC stands for "source." It tells the browser where
to go to get the audio file.
AUTOSTART deals with whether you want the sound to play by itself
or by the
viewer starting the file after the plug- in box pops up. "True"
starts the file straight
away, "false" prompts the viewer. Note I used "false"
above. "True" would have
started the file straightaway upon load.
LOOP works the same way. "True" loops the sound so
it plays forever. Make the
loop "false" if you only want it played once.
More About Embedding
1. You can embed just about any type of sound file as long as the
person using your
page has the ability to read it.
2. RealAudio still works as a helper application. What's great about
RealAudio is
that it plays the sound as it is being downloaded. The play is almost
instantaneous.
Great invention.
3. Download time with an embed is not sped up or slowed. The entire
file must
download before the plug- in plays it. What is different (and better)
about this is
that an embed starts the download process without anyone clicking
on blue words (links).
Also, you can play with the page while the download is occurring,
rather than just
sitting and waiting like you have to do with helper applications.
Inserting a Video File in a Web page:
As with inserting a sound, you can place a video on your page by offering
links to it.
(Note: Although embedding videos is technically possible, it is beyond
the scope of this course.
For information on embedding video files, go to:
http://htmlgoodies.earthweb.com/tutors/videoembed.html
and read the tutorial.)
To link to a video file:
1. Save the video file in a sub- folder to your web page folder.
(i.e. "myvideos")
2. Add the code to your web page as follows:
<a href="myvideos/filename.avi">
Click Here to see video</a>
3. Save the web page.
4. Load the web page and video files to your web host. (see Web Developer's
course)
Finding free sounds and videos to include on web page:
http://www.partnersinrhyme.com/
http://www.thefreesite.com/Free_Sounds/Free_WAVs/
Google trick: (returns index listing to bunches of video files)
-inurl:htm
-inurl:html -inurl:asp intitle:"index of" +(wmx|mpg|avi)
Making own sound clips:
It's possible to make your own .wav files by using the Sound Recorder
program that
comes with all windows operating systems. You must have a microphone
properly
attached to your computer in order to successfully record the sounds.
To make a .wav file:
1. Open the Sound Recorder program from Media/Entertainment path
under the
Accessories menu.
2. Click on Record button.
3. Record sound.
4. Click Stop button.
5. Save file.
Streaming Media:
What is streaming media?
Audio and/or video that plays over the Internet without downloading
to the end user's
computer. Think television and radio for your computer. Streaming is
different from
downloading in that playback starts immediately with just a mouse click
for the viewer,
and the large file is not saved to the viewer's computer. This provides
a high level of
security for original content.
This course did not discuss streaming media. For more information
on streaming media,
go to:
http://www.streamingmediaworld.com/gen/tutor/whatis/
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