Gathering a corpus of multimodal computer-mediated meetings with focus on text and audio interaction

In this paper we describe the gathering of a corpus of synchronised speech and text interaction over the network. The data collection scenarios characterise audio meetings with a significant textual component. Unlike existing meeting corpora, the corpus described in this paper emphasises temporal relationships between speech and text media streams. This is achieved through detailed logging and time stamping of text editing operations, actions on shared user interface widgets and gesturing, as well as generation of speech activity profiles. A set of tools has been developed specifically for these purposes which can be used as a data collection platform for the development of meeting browsers. The data gathered to data consists of nearly 30 hours of recorded audio and time stamped editing operations and gestures

Can small be beautiful? assessing image resolution requirements for mobile TV

Mobile TV services are now being offered in several countries, but for cost reasons, most of these services offer material directly recoded for mobile consumption (i.e. without additional editing). The experiment reported in this paper, aims to assess the image resolution and bitrate requirements for displaying this type of material on mobile devices. The study, with 128 participants, examined responses to four different image resolutions, seven video encoding bitrates, two audio bitrates and four content types. The results show that acceptability is significantly lower for images smaller than 168×126, regardless of content type. The effect is more pronounced when bandwidth is abundant, and is due to important detail being lost in the smaller screens. In contrast to previous studies, participants are more likely to rate image quality as unacceptable when the audio quality is high

A Contextual Study of Semantic Speech Editing in Radio Production

Radio production involves editing speech-based audio using tools that represent sound using simple waveforms. Semantic speech editing systems allow users to edit audio using an automatically generated transcript, which has the potential to improve the production workflow. To investigate this, we developed a semantic audio editor based on a pilot study. Through a contextual qualitative study of five professional radio producers at the BBC, we examined the existing radio production process and evaluated our semantic editor by using it to create programmes that were later broadcast. We observed that the participants in our study wrote detailed notes about their recordings and used annotation to mark which parts they wanted to use. They collaborated closely with the presenter of their programme to structure the contents and write narrative elements. Participants reported that they often work away from the office to avoid distractions, and print transcripts so they can work away from screens. They also emphasised that listening is an important part of production, to ensure high sound quality. We found that semantic speech editing with automated speech recognition can be used to improve the radio production workflow, but that annotation, collaboration, portability and listening were not well supported by current semantic speech editing systems. In this paper, we make recommendations on how future semantic speech editing systems can better support the requirements of radio production

A Semantic Web Annotation Tool for a Web-Based Audio Sequencer

Music and sound have a rich semantic structure which is so clear to the composer and the listener, but that remains mostly hidden to computing machinery. Nevertheless, in recent years, the introduction of software tools for music production have enabled new opportunities for migrating this knowledge from humans to machines. A new generation of these tools may exploit sound samples and semantic information coupling for the creation not only of a musical, but also of a "semantic" composition. In this paper we describe an ontology driven content annotation framework for a web-based audio editing tool. In a supervised approach, during the editing process, the graphical web interface allows the user to annotate any part of the composition with concepts from publicly available ontologies. As a test case, we developed a collaborative web-based audio sequencer that provides users with the functionality to remix the audio samples from the Freesound website and subsequently annotate them. The annotation tool can load any ontology and thus gives users the opportunity to augment the work with annotations on the structure of the composition, the musical materials, and the creator's reasoning and intentions. We believe this approach will provide several novel ways to make not only the final audio product, but also the creative process, first class citizens of the Semantic We

Proprietary software tools as learning aids

Proprietary software tools, though not designed for educational use, have considerable educational potential. This paper describes, as case studies, the use of proprietary graphics- and audio-editing tools in two distance-taught courses produced by the Department of Information and Communication Technologies at the UK Open University – Europe's largest distance teaching institution. The paper examines the potential advantages and disadvantages of this type of software relative to conventional educational software in terms of constructivist learning theory, and describes how students use the software in the courses concerned. The paper concludes by suggesting further developments of this approach

The Historical Development of Easter-Southern Freight Rate Relationships

A method for creating and presenting video-recorded synchronized audiovisual stimuli at a high frame rate-which would be highly useful for psychophysical studies on, for example, just-noticeable differences and gating-is presented. Methods for accomplishing this include recording audio and video separately using an exact synchronization signal, editing the recordings and finding exact synchronization points, and presenting the synchronized audiovisual stimuli with a desired frame rate on a cathode ray tube display using MATLAB and Psychophysics Toolbox 3. The methods from an empirical gating study (Moradi, Lidestam, and Ronnberg, Frontiers in Psychology 4: 359, 2013) are presented as an example of the implementation of playback at 120 fps

Spatial and subjective points-of-audition in binaural recordings

Binaural microphones worn in the ears of the recordist and plugged into a portable recording device are a discrete and portable way to capture audio recordings. The binaural audio, when heard over headphones, ideally presents an externalised and immersive recreation of sounds as heard by the recordist. Amongst the potential uses for this recording and playback method is the vivid presentation of a subjective point-of-audition meaning the listener hears events from the perspective of an active participant in the soundscape. In recordings of music this means that the listener can hear the performance ‘through the ears’ of a performer. Editing can be used to move between the points-of-audition of different performers or to incorporate recordings from spatial points-of-audition (where the listener perceives the soundscape from the perspective of a non-presence as in most audio recordings). As with Michel Chion’s explanations of spatial and subjective points-of-audition in film sound in his 1994 book Audio-Vision, the presentation will clarify these terms using comparable examples of camera shots. The creative use of subjective and spatial points-of-audition will then be illustrated using audio examples of free improvisation, found sound composition and soundscape composition and their use in other areas of mainstream and non-mainstream music will be discussed

Documentary video dissertation in American Studies

The production of documentary videos has been an innovative and dynamic feature of course delivery in the Department of American and Canadian Studies. The Department is now building on this experience to introduce an audio-visual documentary dissertation as an option for Single Honours students. The project examines - Design of a WebCT course and further training elements to support students in the making of the documentary video dissertation. They will also develop a training programme in documentary video production, including camerawork, storyboarding and editing techniques - Creation of a WebCT course to support training and documentary dissertation, and a linked website to chart progres

RECOLED: A group-aware collaborative text editor for capturing document history

This paper presents a usability analysis of RECOLED, a shared document editor which supports recording of audio communication in remote collaborative writing sessions, and transparent monitoring of interactions, such as editing, gesturing and scrolling. The editor has been designed so that the collaboration results in the production of a multimedia document history which enriches the final product of the writing activity and can serve as a basis for post-meeting information retrieval. A discussion is presented on how post-meeting processing can highlight the usefulness of such histories in terms of tracking information that would be normally lost in usual collaborative editing settings

Approaching Evaluation in Youth Community Informatics

In the Youth Community Informatics project, young people from disadvantaged communities use audio and video recording and editing tools, GPS/GIS, presentation software, graphics, and other digital technologies as the means for addressing community needs. They build community asset maps, document community history, develop exhibits in collaboration with libraries and museums, present cultural heritage, organize political action, operate community radio, create and maintain community technology centers, and express themselves through multiple media. These activities typically involve multiple partners and develop in unpredictable ways in response to community life. In order to understand what they mean in the lives of the youth and the community we need richer evaluation approaches.published or submitted for publicationis peer reviewe