Interactive Media

This class is one of my favorite classes. Because it provides me a systemic introduction about assessment and design of computer-based interactive multimedia communication, and concepts and skills of design, production, and management multimedia projects. Through the class, I acknowledged the tendency of development of modern multimedia production and its applications in computer-based training, hypertext, on-line systems such as Web sites and intranets, and interactive multimedia. I also mastered the process and strategies of producing an interactive media program through an instructor's point of view and organizing the contents of it according to learner's characteristics and interactivities between learner and the program..

It is the most important that I understand the principles of analyzing, developing, organizing, designing and evaluating a multimedia project. This is very helpful for my further study and profession, because I am not only can use some kinds of authoring softwares, but also grasp the main strategies from analysis of client's needs and audience, development of objectives, selection of media and strategies, organization of content and design of messages, and production and evaluation of the whole program.

On the other hand, this class is very challenging. I studied and familiarized different authoring softwares, including, Netscape Communicator, Adobe Page Mill, Multimedia toolbox II, Macromedia Director, and I also mastered Adobe Photoshop, Premiere and other softwares for designing and editing multimedia production. All this help me acknowledge the popular authoring tools used in the field of producing multimedia programs and control them in the designing process.

I also made Two Prototypes, using Multimedia toolbox II, and Authorware. This gave me great chances to practice the whole process and various skills of designing and producing interactive multimedia programs. (See Topics I find in this field.)
 
 

Important skills in developing interactive multimedia production:
 

Concept  Definition (Purpose, Needs)

Defining the Target Audience (Task Analysis, Objectives)

Designing and Prototyping (Flowchart, Storyboard)

Selecting Media and Strategies (Budgeting, Choosing Authoring Tool)

Organizing Content and Designing Message (Understanding Topics)

Authoring or Producing (Digitizing Data--Text, Graphic, Audio, Video, Animation)

Evaluating or Testing (Alpha, Beta Testing, ROI)

Dissemination or Delivery