The integration of audio, video, graphics and text on the
desktop promises to fundamentally challenge the centuries old
printed document as the basis of information exchange. Before
this potential can be realized, however, systems must be
devised that enable the production and presentation of
complex, inter-related media objects. These systems are
generically called multimedia-authoring tools. This article will
discuss about different aspects of Multimedia Authoring Tools
(MAT), its categorization, most common features and
prerequisites. A special attention has been given to discuss the
most common features of MAT and the best possible evaluation
criteria of authoring packages. Lastly, three most popular MAT
with their brief features are presented
