Continuing Evolution
There are many terms used to denote the interactive nature of digital applications—multimedia, new media and interactive design are common examples. Because the interactive sector has quickly evolved through phases, the terms have often been coined to reflect a phase that then gets surpassed. A quick historical overview will give the background that causes confusion for those joining the dynamic sector.
The word Multimedia used to have a specialist connotation for the audio-visual industry. Uses of multiple or mixed media in such analogue systems as slide shows or overhead projectors were known as ‘multimedia’. But this specialist use was superseded by the arrival of digital technology. Integrated digital media was termed interactive multimedia and usually shortened to plain multimedia for convenience.
The need to differentiate between analogue (linear) and digital (interactive) uses of media spawned other terms like New Media and Digital Media. The term ‘New media’ carries it’s own problems as the media associated with the original term are replaced with newer instances of the ‘new’. Obsolescence is endemic in the interactive arena. However, the term remains in use although Digital Media and Interactive Media are more stable terms and are being used increasingly. The term Interactive Media highlights the interactive connotation that is a key characteristic of the difference between the older style media and the new .
‘Social media’ has evolved to describe the more recent success of digital social sites such as Facebook and MySpace, and would include the phenomenon of mobile texting, especially Twitter. The success of these built on the social aspects of ‘blogs’ on the Internet. The more recent social sites are interactive but even the denotation of interactivity has become ‘accepted’ and dropped so that social media with its inherent interactivity is considered the norm. When the Web quickly became the largest hardware platform, and development for it became the most common form of interactive development, the emphasis on ‘media’ was dropped in a similar way.
This may have been because the capacity for using media other than text on the Web was limited at that time. Skill sets such as Web Design, and Web Development came to the fore and these more specific terms overshadowed the more general terms like Digital Media and Interactive Media.
The irony is that ‘multimedia’ was the preferred term used by telcos (telecommunications companies) because when they entered the interactive arena they did not have any previous use of the term and did not find it confusing. That has changed now. The term ‘apps’ meaning ‘applications’ has taken over since the development of ‘apps’ for mobile phones and has been
popularised amongst the whole use community, rather than just being used by some programmers as a shorthand.
In the wider technological context, terms like ICT (Information and Communications Technologies—favoured in the education sector), the Digital Revolution, and Convergence began to be used in an attempt to define the pervasive changes that interactive technologies were causing within traditional business sectors. They were used in a strategic way, since as soon as a particular delivery channel is mentioned—DVD, iTV, Web or mobile for example—the emphasis shifts from trends to specific forms of production. This shift in perspective is important because it explains why some people see connections across forms of digital media and skill
sets while others only relate to a particular area of specialism. This will be developed further during this paper.
At the moment the strategic buzz word remains ‘Broadband’. This refers to an upgrade in the communications infrastructure needed to allow faster more media-rich access to digital content and, as we have seen with other terms, its exact meaning has evolved; becoming ever faster over the years.
Interactive Media
Interactive media normally refers to products and services on digital computer-based systems which respond to the user’s actions by presenting content such as text, graphics, animation, video, audio, games, etc.
Interactive media is the integration of digital media including combinations of electronic text, graphics, moving images, and sound, into a structured digital computerized environment that allows people to interact with the data for appropriate purposes. The digital environment can include the Internet, telecoms and interactive digital television.
No wonder it is difficult for new entrants to understand. The important concepts to hold on to are ‘interactive’ and ‘media’ across a range of ‘delivery channels’ or ‘platforms’.
Terminology
Though the word media is plural, the term is often used as a singular noun.
Interactive media is related to the concepts interaction design, new media, interactivity, human computer interaction, cyber culture, digital culture, and includes specific cases such as, for example, interactive television, interactive narrative, interactive advertising, algorithmic art, video games, social media, ambient intelligence, virtual reality and augmented reality.
An essential feature of interactivity is that it is mutual: user and machine each take a more or less active role (see interaction). Most interactive computing systems are for some human purpose and interact with humans in human contexts. Manovich complains that ‘In relation to computer-based media, the concept of interactivity is a tautology. .... Therefore, to call computer media “interactive” is meaningless – it simply means stating the most basic fact about computers.’. Nevertheless the term is useful to denote an identifiable body of practices and technologies.
Interactive media are an instance of a computational method influenced by the sciences of cybernetics, autopoiesis and system theories, and challenging notions of reason and cognition, perception and memory, emotions and affection.
Any form of interface between the end user/audience and the medium may be considered interactive. Interactive media is not limited to electronic media or digital media. Board games, pop-up books, game books, flip books and constellation wheels are all examples of printed interactive media. Books with a simple table of contents or index may be considered interactive due to the non-linear control mechanism in the medium, but are usually considered non-interactive since the majority of the user experience is non-interactive sequential reading.
What is the extent of the interactive media revolution?
Because there are many people involved across all sections of the information industries, media and computer programming together with telecommunications and broadcasting, it is difficult to take an overview.
It used to be that each represented a minority within its own sector. Online training development was seen as part of the traditional training specialism although it embraced new skills, production methods and business models. Interactive broadcasting fulfilled the same function for the broadcast industry. Online editing of web site content was the new branch of journalism and publishing. Interactive law, interactive graphics, interactive health and so on followed the same pattern. They shared the important characteristic of being interactive change agents within their areas.
Change Agents are people with the vision and skills to implement a change in organizational culture or business practice. Now, the digital revolution has quietly pervaded all business areas and specialisms. It is integrated into each role. All people are expected to have a basic mastery of using interactive media platforms for their jobs. Many need to learn how to use more specialist applications within their work. More people in management roles are expected to be able to direct, coordinate, conceive and manage the development or updates to digital programs
through internal or external teams.
The digital revolution has affected all facets of life. Each of the specialisms had a digital inroad created by the change agents. But one of the key characteristics of change is that it causes resistance from the traditionalists. They can delay change and even stifle it by building barriers. They tend to have the upper-hand in influence within their own sector and even higher levels such as government and other administrations. Their traditional mindsets work, often unconsciously, against the new ways of thinking that don’t fit into what have become the accepted categories. Education and training can help to ensure wider understanding and acceptance. Change agents needed protecting and nurturing within organizations and discipline specialisms as the digital revolution progressed. The traditionalists lack credibility with the change agents because of the mindset clash—and then so much more hinges on this communication barrier.
There are many terms used to denote the interactive nature of digital applications—multimedia, new media and interactive design are common examples. Because the interactive sector has quickly evolved through phases, the terms have often been coined to reflect a phase that then gets surpassed. A quick historical overview will give the background that causes confusion for those joining the dynamic sector.
The word Multimedia used to have a specialist connotation for the audio-visual industry. Uses of multiple or mixed media in such analogue systems as slide shows or overhead projectors were known as ‘multimedia’. But this specialist use was superseded by the arrival of digital technology. Integrated digital media was termed interactive multimedia and usually shortened to plain multimedia for convenience.
The need to differentiate between analogue (linear) and digital (interactive) uses of media spawned other terms like New Media and Digital Media. The term ‘New media’ carries it’s own problems as the media associated with the original term are replaced with newer instances of the ‘new’. Obsolescence is endemic in the interactive arena. However, the term remains in use although Digital Media and Interactive Media are more stable terms and are being used increasingly. The term Interactive Media highlights the interactive connotation that is a key characteristic of the difference between the older style media and the new .
‘Social media’ has evolved to describe the more recent success of digital social sites such as Facebook and MySpace, and would include the phenomenon of mobile texting, especially Twitter. The success of these built on the social aspects of ‘blogs’ on the Internet. The more recent social sites are interactive but even the denotation of interactivity has become ‘accepted’ and dropped so that social media with its inherent interactivity is considered the norm. When the Web quickly became the largest hardware platform, and development for it became the most common form of interactive development, the emphasis on ‘media’ was dropped in a similar way.
This may have been because the capacity for using media other than text on the Web was limited at that time. Skill sets such as Web Design, and Web Development came to the fore and these more specific terms overshadowed the more general terms like Digital Media and Interactive Media.
The irony is that ‘multimedia’ was the preferred term used by telcos (telecommunications companies) because when they entered the interactive arena they did not have any previous use of the term and did not find it confusing. That has changed now. The term ‘apps’ meaning ‘applications’ has taken over since the development of ‘apps’ for mobile phones and has been
popularised amongst the whole use community, rather than just being used by some programmers as a shorthand.
In the wider technological context, terms like ICT (Information and Communications Technologies—favoured in the education sector), the Digital Revolution, and Convergence began to be used in an attempt to define the pervasive changes that interactive technologies were causing within traditional business sectors. They were used in a strategic way, since as soon as a particular delivery channel is mentioned—DVD, iTV, Web or mobile for example—the emphasis shifts from trends to specific forms of production. This shift in perspective is important because it explains why some people see connections across forms of digital media and skill
sets while others only relate to a particular area of specialism. This will be developed further during this paper.
At the moment the strategic buzz word remains ‘Broadband’. This refers to an upgrade in the communications infrastructure needed to allow faster more media-rich access to digital content and, as we have seen with other terms, its exact meaning has evolved; becoming ever faster over the years.
Interactive media normally refers to products and services on digital computer-based systems which respond to the user’s actions by presenting content such as text, graphics, animation, video, audio, games, etc.
Interactive media is the integration of digital media including combinations of electronic text, graphics, moving images, and sound, into a structured digital computerized environment that allows people to interact with the data for appropriate purposes. The digital environment can include the Internet, telecoms and interactive digital television.
No wonder it is difficult for new entrants to understand. The important concepts to hold on to are ‘interactive’ and ‘media’ across a range of ‘delivery channels’ or ‘platforms’.
Terminology
Though the word media is plural, the term is often used as a singular noun.
Interactive media is related to the concepts interaction design, new media, interactivity, human computer interaction, cyber culture, digital culture, and includes specific cases such as, for example, interactive television, interactive narrative, interactive advertising, algorithmic art, video games, social media, ambient intelligence, virtual reality and augmented reality.
An essential feature of interactivity is that it is mutual: user and machine each take a more or less active role (see interaction). Most interactive computing systems are for some human purpose and interact with humans in human contexts. Manovich complains that ‘In relation to computer-based media, the concept of interactivity is a tautology. .... Therefore, to call computer media “interactive” is meaningless – it simply means stating the most basic fact about computers.’. Nevertheless the term is useful to denote an identifiable body of practices and technologies.
Interactive media are an instance of a computational method influenced by the sciences of cybernetics, autopoiesis and system theories, and challenging notions of reason and cognition, perception and memory, emotions and affection.
Any form of interface between the end user/audience and the medium may be considered interactive. Interactive media is not limited to electronic media or digital media. Board games, pop-up books, game books, flip books and constellation wheels are all examples of printed interactive media. Books with a simple table of contents or index may be considered interactive due to the non-linear control mechanism in the medium, but are usually considered non-interactive since the majority of the user experience is non-interactive sequential reading.
What is the extent of the interactive media revolution?
Because there are many people involved across all sections of the information industries, media and computer programming together with telecommunications and broadcasting, it is difficult to take an overview.
It used to be that each represented a minority within its own sector. Online training development was seen as part of the traditional training specialism although it embraced new skills, production methods and business models. Interactive broadcasting fulfilled the same function for the broadcast industry. Online editing of web site content was the new branch of journalism and publishing. Interactive law, interactive graphics, interactive health and so on followed the same pattern. They shared the important characteristic of being interactive change agents within their areas.
Change Agents are people with the vision and skills to implement a change in organizational culture or business practice. Now, the digital revolution has quietly pervaded all business areas and specialisms. It is integrated into each role. All people are expected to have a basic mastery of using interactive media platforms for their jobs. Many need to learn how to use more specialist applications within their work. More people in management roles are expected to be able to direct, coordinate, conceive and manage the development or updates to digital programs
through internal or external teams.
The digital revolution has affected all facets of life. Each of the specialisms had a digital inroad created by the change agents. But one of the key characteristics of change is that it causes resistance from the traditionalists. They can delay change and even stifle it by building barriers. They tend to have the upper-hand in influence within their own sector and even higher levels such as government and other administrations. Their traditional mindsets work, often unconsciously, against the new ways of thinking that don’t fit into what have become the accepted categories. Education and training can help to ensure wider understanding and acceptance. Change agents needed protecting and nurturing within organizations and discipline specialisms as the digital revolution progressed. The traditionalists lack credibility with the change agents because of the mindset clash—and then so much more hinges on this communication barrier.
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