Multimedia Production

Raymond GA Cote

THE MULTIMEDIA PRODUCTION HANDBOOK FOR THE PC, MACINTOSH, AND AMIGA, Tom Yager Academic Press Professional, ISBN 0-12-768030-6, $35.95

In The Multimedia Production Handbook for the PC, Macintosh, and Amiga, Tom Yager (former director of BYTE's Multimedia Lab) provides a hands-on review of modern multimedia production. This is not a book about general concepts. You'll learn about the latest packages, explore computer hardware, and become fluent with the terminology. Yager shows that beginning with multimedia is not very difficult. All you need is perseverance.

The Multimedia Production Handbook covers the PC, Mac, and Amiga in depth, with critiques as to which is best suited for specific types of work. You'll quickly conclude, and rightly so, that there is no "ultimate" multime dia computer. Perhaps you'll decide on the PC for excellent audio selections, or the Mac for brilliant graphics, and there's no comparison for the Amiga's Video Toaster special video effects.

Aside from some introductory background and overview material, the book is grouped into four sections: Presentation Graphics, Audio, 3-D Graphics and Animation, and Video. A concluding Resource Guide provides sources for all the products mentioned in the book, as well as numerous other products for which space was not available. You can send for a videotape that provides a multimedia illustration of each chapter.

Yager's conversational writing style easily leads you through the complex decisions that proper use of multimedia requires--should you go for a simple presentation or give in to the urge for flashy graphics? does DAT (digital audiotape) or MIDI provide better sound? at what point does animation outstrip your processor's ability to cope? There's also good advice on how to gear a presentation to your audience, traveling with your computer, and designing presentations when you don't know what the display hardware will look like.

The Multimedia Production Handbook takes you step-by-step through the design, development, and delivery of multimedia presentations--whether on slides, computer screens, or videotape. Even if you're only vaguely familiar with computer technology, Yager will soon have you producing convincing and informative multimedia presentations.