Table of contents:
Introduction | Sound for the Web |
Tips for Using Sound on the Web | Assignments
| Additional References | On
to Lesson 2.4
So you want to add sound to your Web presentation? It's easy! Just find some non-copyrighted music or other sounds, (or obtain the permission of the copyright holder), or find some public domain music/sounds, or record your music or sounds yourself. How do you do that, you ask? Well, you had a sample of recording your voice already in Lesson 2.1. In the assignments for this lesson we'll work on that some more, as well as evaluating sites with audio. This lesson is more about the theory of recording than actually doing it, however.
With CDs or any other digital recording technology, the goal is to create a recording with very high fidelity, where the recording sounds just like the source (or sometimes better thanks to filters) and perfect reproduction, where it sounds the same every time you play it. If you have analog media such as cassette tapes or vinyl records, your first step is going to be digitizing the material so that it can be used in your project. Many good FAQs on that subject can be found on the World Wide Web.
How do I know that my digital sound will play with my project? You don't. Not all web browsers have audio support built-in, but nearly all can launch external "viewers" to handle audio. Most browsers today also allow the embedding of sounds into documents, through plug-ins. But you still might have a problem conveying your mood or anything else the sound adds if your user has the sound turned off, or if a hearing-impaired user wants to view your project (see accessibility in Lesson 2.4), or if your user's computer has no sound at all. Many low-end systems don't come with sound cards or even built-in sound.
Your two choices for audio in your multimedia project are to include downloaded audio or streaming audio. There are positives and negatives to each. As the name implies, in order to hear downloaded audio, the user's browser will fully download the sound and then play it using a built-in audio player or helper application. If you want to use streaming audio, your user's connection had better be up to snuff that day, or they will 1, be unable to complete buffering (partial download) and so be unable to hear the sound, or 2, have to wait most of the day if the connection is slow, complete with delays between sections of the sound. Not a pleasant experience, as those of us who have been caught up in it will agree. Streaming media are more fully discussed in Unit IV.
We discussed codecs and file formats in Lesson 2.2, so please refer to that lesson if you have more questions about formats. Now we discuss sound recording and editing tools.
The second thing you'll need (besides the sound or script), will be a tool to create and edit digital or MIDI sound. Sound editing tools allow you to see the sound as well as hear it. You can cut, copy and paste sound in a sound editor just as you can text in a word processor--it's the same process. You can select and move, copy, paste or cut. In an editor, you can edit with great precision, something you cannot do while the music is playing. See page 97 in your text for more about editing. tools.
Perhaps the primary consideration for using sound on the Web is file size. Uncompressed audio files are BIG! For example, a 10-second CD-quality clip may be 2MB and take over 30 seconds to download using a 56 Kbps modem (if the download gods are kind). Compressed audio files may lose quality.
A secondary but very important consideration is the amount of space you have on the server that will be holding your project files. If you only have 5MB total, animated gifs (sample in presentation in Lesson 1.1) and embedded MP3s (Lesson 2.2) may be the way to go--the only way you can go, and the sounds had better be short, at that!.
A quick checklist to run through when considering sound for your Web project is:
Do you really need sound?
Some sound can enhance the content, such as having a sound effect match a part of the project, or having music set a mood. Don't use sound if there is no real benefit.Sound Quality
If you have the space, use the highest quality. Otherwise, use your encoder to reduce quality to an acceptable point. Balance size against perfection. But do try it on other systems where the equipment might not be as good as yours, so that you know the worst. Also, avoid using free clips from the Internet. They are overused because they are free, and they are often of poor quality, which should be avoided at all costs. Better no sound than bad sound.What is this going to cost?
Do you own the music or sound clip (like from a movie)? If your site is going to be seen by more than you and your three best friends, you'd better make sure that you do. Copyright infringement is no joking matter, although copyright owners may be more lenient with personal rather than commercial users. So before you decide to use sound, weigh the implications and the cost.Can the user control the sound?
Ever been trapped on one of those sites where the love theme from Gilligan's Island plays during the entire download and plays again whenever you jump between pages in the site? Then you know what I mean. If possible and appropriate, give the user a way to control the sound. Let them skip a sound clip or at least be able to adjust the volume. This is especially important if you want repeat users on the site. Maybe Gilligan's Island was cute and appropriate once, but the second time? Nah! Give them a break, so that they'll come back.
Windows students, please install AudioEdit Deluxe from the Course CD, and then follow the directions for assignment Mac students: please install a comparable editor Sound Studio 2 from the Course CD, which I belive is a comparable editor. I have no way of testing them, but you need a full-featured sound editor with the capability to save files. I looked at the description for Sound Studio 2 at shareware.com and it looks like it will do the job.
After that, feel free to experiment with what different stretch percentages do to the sound. What you should be turning in is a file with three distinct voices on it, with an echo in the last two-thirds. Sample
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