"Multimedia." How do you define this omni-present word in this age of technology? Encyclopedia
Britannica Online defines multimedia as "computer technology that combines text, audio, video, and
animated graphics; provides easy access to large quantities of information, such as industrial training
manuals, dictionaries, and encyclopedias; often utilizes a small storage device, such as an optical disk;
by early 1990s had begun to revolutionize the computer, with strong implications for communication, ?etc. etc."
I ask this question because this is our Multimedia Issue, a theme that the editorial team assigned
for this particular month during our planning session over a year ago. While our previous issues have
had themes on Outdoor Land Sports, Water Sports, and Motoring; and forthcoming issues will delve on
Photography, Audio/Video as well as I.T. and Telecommunications, we felt that Multimedia should have its
own special coverage. That is, until we started research for this issue.
Then we realized that, aside from sports, all the other editorial themes were hopelessly intertwined with
this all-encompassing topic. Computers are multimedia devices. So is the new breed of camera phones that
boast not just still, but also video capabilities. Of course, digicams have long been multimedia tools. So are MP3
players and other data storage devices. Plasma and LCD monitors, too, have evolved to become true multimedia
products, what with their growing ability to mix entertainment (TV) with information (PC).
So there we were, faced with the conundrum of doing an issue that threatens to be an amalgamation of
several other past and future issues. (Hey, multimedia wasn't this broad and far-reaching twelve months ago!)
Which is why we decided to focus on the evolution of multimedia as we know it, from the early days of the CD-ROM
to today's cutting-edge MP4 and the now-ubiquitous Flash-format technology we always come across on the Internet.
Without pre-empting our A/V, Photography and ICT issues, I think we've been able to deliver to you - our
multimedia-savvy readers - the real essence of the word. We hope you enjoy it.
Manny N. de los Reyes
Editor-in-chief
mdlr@speed-mag.com
