A Technological Perspective on Multimedia Computing

The perceived benefits of computing applications involving the use of media types such as voice and video, in addition to the more traditional text medium, have generated considerable research interest in recent years. This paper examines the state-of-the-art in multimedia computing from a mainly technological viewpoint. Following a brief review of progress to date in multimedia computing and a discussion of the overheads associated with handling various media types, the authors claim that before significant further progress in multimedia applications development is possible, a number of substantial advances in supporting hardware and systems software technologies is required. Consideration is then given to major storage and communications developments presently taking place, the fruition of which are likely to provide the support necessary to advance multimedia computing in a significant way.