Multimedia Networks: Fundamentals and Future Directions

Multimedia has become an integral part of computing and communications environment, and networks are carrying ever-increasing volume of multimedia information. The main characteristics of multimedia information are high-volume and bursty traffic, with low tolerance to delay and delay variance. The legacy networks (designed in 70s and 80s) are not able to meet these requirements. Enhancements to the older networking technologies have been developed to convert these into multimedia networks. Enhancements to LANs include Switched Ethernet, Isochronous Ethernet, Fast Ethernet, 100VGAnyLAN, FDDI-II, and Synchronous FDDI. WAN options for multimedia networking include digital leased lines and ISDN. The Internet has revolutionized business and personal communications, but falls short of being a genuine multimedia network. To make the Internet capable of carrying multimedia traffic, new protocols such as MBone, ST-II, RTP, and RSVP have been developed. Internet2 is a new initiative that is aimed at overcoming the problems of throughput, delay and jitter encountered on the original Internet. One technology that was developed with multimedia networking as one of its main applications, is the Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) technology. Upcoming Gigabit Ethernet technology will provide a path for upgrading current Ethernet networks into multimedia networks

Combining the Art, Science and Technology of Multimedia with The Multimedia Creation Circles Paradigm

Multimedia Creation Circles (MuCiCle) is a paradigm for correlating existing theories and model

Multimedia Information Networking

The focus of this tutorial paper is on networks and their ability to carry multimedia information. In this presentation, the audience will learn about the ability of the various networking technologies to carry multimedia traffic. The inability of legacy networks to carry multimedia traffic will be discussed, followed by a description of multimedia networks. LAN technologies such as Switched Ethernet, Isochronous Ethernet, Fast Ethernet, 100GAnyLAN, FDDI-II, and Synchoronous FDDI will be presented. Digital leased lines, ISDN and other WAN options for multimedia networking will also be described. Multimedia networking over the Internet will be discussed. Fundamentals of the ATM technology and its application to multimedia information networking will be presented

Multimedia and Communication Technologies in Digital Ecosystems

A Digital Ecosystem is an evolving computer based system that uses communication and networking technologies to provide a solution for a specific application domain. This paper investigates how the latest multimedia and communication technologies can be used in the development of Digital Ecosystems. The high-level models of two ongoing research projects for developing Digital Ecosystems are presented as examples. The first system aims to maximize the Utilisation of Harvested Rain Water by considering factors such as stored water level, predicted rainfall and the watering needs of different plants. The second system uses a wireless Sensor Network for bushfire detection and other weather parameters for generating early warnings. The choice of type of input and output information for these Digital Ecosystems needs to consider Quality of Service parameters, particularly delay and jitter. Conference held: 8-10 Dec 2009, Fisherman's Wharf, Maca

Applying Movement Oriented Design to Create Educational Stories

Teaching through story telling has been recognized as a pedagogical paradigm that enhances learning outcomes at many levels. Understanding life, science and even technological concepts becomes easier if the educational content is presented as a well-linked narrative. Movement Oriented Design (MOD) is a paradigm that views any presentation as a story telling artifact. From Aristotle’s time we have known that an engaging story must have a good beginning, middle and end. The core component of any MOD-based presentation is a Movement, which is a micro story with its own Begin, Middle and End components. Technology enhanced teaching and learning systems are now widely used; our aim is to enhance the learning outcomes that can be obtained from such systems. This paper proposes that the Movement Oriented Design paradigm can be used to enhance the pedagogy of e-Learning, for it uses story telling at its core

Workshop process for authoring educational multimedia using movement oriented design (MOD)

The lack of systematic processes for authoring educational multimedia content is impeding the realization of its full potential. Catering to different learning styles is also a challenge in creating effective educational multimedia content. Storytelling has been recognized as an effective pedagogical technique to keep the learners engaged. Movement Oriented Design (MOD) paradigm provides a framework for systematically developing educational multimedia stories using good storytelling principles articulated by the masters of storytelling, such as Aristotle and Robert McKee. This paper introduces Movement Oriented Design principles, and imperatives for creating good educational multimedia stories. Next it presents the workshop process for developing educational multimedia narratives

Multimedia Transmission over Wireless Sensor Networks

This chapter presents an overview of multimedia information transmission over Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs). These WSNs have evolved since the 1980s and their evolution can be divided into three generations. Wireless Multimedia Sensor Networks (WMSNs) have become viable in recent years with the availability of inexpensive video cameras, increase in procession power and memory capacity of nodes, and better power sources and their management. Multimedia information requires higher bandwidth and lower delay and delay jitter to provide the required Quality of Service (QoS) for multimedia transmission. Further research is being conducted, and can be taken even further, in the areas of advanced algorithms for content capture, compression and communication of multimedia information over WSNs