1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University History of Multimedia
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
History of Multimedia
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
3000 B.C.E.
● Chinese entertainers use firelight to project silhouettes of puppets onto a screen. Fundamentally, movies and video representations throughout all future technologies rely on this same principle: casting light onto a flat surface to communicate visually.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
62 C.E.
● Egyptian astronomer Ptolemy proves the phenomena of rapidly moving still pictures appearing as one moving image. This idea had originally been conceived by the Roman poet Lucretius in 65 B.C.E.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1450● Johann Gutenberg
invents movable type, allowing mass production of documents.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1834● Charles Babbage
designs the first automatic digital computer, the Analytical Machine.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1837● Samuel Morse debuts
the telegraph, connecting Philadelphia and Washington D.C. and revolutionizing long-distance communication.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1858● North America and
Europe are temporarily linked by transatlantic telegraph cable, but the connection is not permanent until 1866.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1876● Alexander Graham
Bell invents the telephone.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1877● Thomas Ava Edison
invents the phonograph. Two years later he invents the light bulb.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1889● Fusajiro Yamauchi begins
manufacturing "Hanafuda" playing cards in Kyoto, Japan. Over the next four generations, the Yamauchi family business will evolve from playing cards into electronic games, becoming the modern Nintendo Company Ltd.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1900● Nickelodeons become
popular in the United States. One of the first opens in Pittsburgh.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1901● Guglielmo Marconi perfects
a wireless radio system that transmits Morse code over the Atlantic Ocean.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1903● German scientist Arthur
Korn invents the fax machine.
● The Great Train Robbery becomes the first feature film.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1912● David Sarnoff, a Marconi
wireless operator in New York, receives the SOS from the sinking H.M.S. Titanic. (Sarnoff later goes on to create RCA and its spinoff, NBC.)
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1920
● KDKA-AM radio signs on the air in Pittsburgh to becomes the world's first commercial radio station. That same year, CFCF in Montreal became the first Canadian radio station.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1926● J.L. Baird
demonstrates the first practical television system based on designs created in 1884 by German scientist Paul Nipkow. Baird debuts the first color TV two years later.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1927● Philo Farnsworth
transmits the first electronic TV picture. Bell Telephone Laboratories tests wireless TV broadcasts.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1947● AT&T proposes idea of cellular phones
to the Federal Communications Commission. The FCC responds by limiting frequencies for only 23 possible phone conversations, so AT&T drops research for decades.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1950● Computer technology is used in flight
simulators, arguable the first application of computer interactivity.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1953● In order to raise funds, Stanford University
in California starts leasing nearby land to high-tech companies. Varian Associates puts up the first building in Palo Alto's new Stanford Industrial Park, part of the area soon to become known as "Silicon Valley."
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1958● Willy Higinbotham
builds a computer-generated tennis-like game which almost becomes the first video game, but the idea fails to gain popular support.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1966● Ralph Baer's
Odyssey, produced by Magnavox, becomes the first commercial computer game.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1972● Nolan Bushnell founds
Atari and introduces Pong, the first modern commercial video game. (In 1976, Bushnell sells Atari for $28 million. A year later he opens the first Chuck E. Cheese's restaurant, which he also later sells.)
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1976● Steve Wozniak and Steve
Jobs found Apple Computers and introduce the Apple II, the first PC to use color graphics.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1978● Video laser disc
introduced. The system was not well-promoted, and after about 10 years disappeared from the market.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1980● Sony Walkman introduced,
changing music into a more exclusive/singular experience.
● Namco's Pac-Man hits coin-operated arcades worldwide.
● Ted Turner's Cable News Network (CNN) begins broadcasting.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1982● Disney releases the movie
Tron, featuring groundbreaking computer-generated images throughout most of the movie.
● Atari develops the data glove.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1983● Compact Discs debut as
a popular format for music albums, computer data storage, and multimedia.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1984● Apple Computers buys airtime
during Super Bowl XVII to preview its next new personal computer, the Macintosh.
● The first Mac released later in January features a 3.5-inch floppy drive, 128k of RAM, a built-in 9-inch b&w screen and speakers - no internal hard drive. A 512k Mac is released in September.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1985● The Commodore Amiga debuts as
the first true multimedia computer.
● Ninendo Entertainment System (NES) comes to the United States.
● Max Headroom: 20 Minutes Into The Future movie airs on British TV. (An American TV series on ABC debuts the following year.)
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1987● CompuServe introduces the GIF
image file format.
● Apple debuts Hypercard, Bill Atkinson's hypertext-linking multimedia program.
● Adobe Illustrator released.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1988● Macromind (later renamed Macromedia)
releases Director.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1990● Adobe Photoshop is released.
● The development of Photoshop started in 1987 by the brothers Thomas Knoll and John Knoll.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1991● Adobe Premiere is released.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1992● Apple releases QuickTime.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1993● The videogame Doom motivates many home PC
users to upgrade in order to play the game.
● Broderbund releases the CD-ROM game Myst which goes on to sell more than 6.3 million copies.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1994● Netscape Navigator 1.0 is released to the public.
● The Web edges out Telnet as the second most popular service on the Internet.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1995● RealAudio introduces streaming
audio to the Web; streaming video soon follows.
● Disney and Pixar make Toy Story, the first feature-length movie totally comprised by computer graphics. (The 77-minute film takes four years to make and 800,000 machine hours to render.)
● Sony Playstation game system introduced.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1996● Affordable digital cameras become
widely available.● DVD video is introduced.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1997● Macromedia buys FutureWave
Software and begins producing the company's FutureSplash Animator program under a new name, Macromedia Flash.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1998● Apple iMac released, creating a
fashion for all types of small electronics. Phones, paper shredders, clothing irons and more gadgets become available sporting blue-tinted translucent plastic covers.
● Adobe ImageReady released.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
1999● Northwestern University
freshman Shawn Fanning develops the original Napster application for sharing MP3 files. Napster Inc. is founded in May.
● The Matrix revives the model of science-fiction virtual reality with innovative special effects.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
2000● Ananova.com launches a
lightweight British news site using "the world's first virtual newscaster," a talking animation of a green-haired woman.
● U.S. District Judge Marilyn Hall Patel issues an injunction against Napster Inc., halting the peer-to-peer trading of MP3 music files.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
2001● The WiFi (wireless fidelity)
movement soon goes mainstream among consumers.
● Kazaa restructures its business operations to become a joint venture by companies operating from different countries, making effective prosecution almost impossible.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
2002● George Lucas' Star Wars: Attack
of the Clones becomes the first major movie entirely shot with digital cameras.
● Sales of DVD players surpass VCR sales for the first time. Also a first, revenues from videogame sales surpass movie box office revenues.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
2003● Apple releases an upgrade to its
iTunes software allowing users to purchase individual songs for 99 cents each. The service generates more than $1 million in revenue its first week.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
2004● Apple introduces the iPod Mini, a
smaller version of its MP3 player.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
2006● HD-DVD format
is introduced as the successor to DVD technology.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
2007● Although HD
DVD has early successes, the competition with the Blu-ray format becomes intense.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
2008● On 4 January 2008 citing consumer
confusion and indifference as a reason for lackluster high-definition software sales, Warner Bros. announced it would stop supporting HD DVD by June 2008, and the company would release HD titles only on Blu-ray Disc. On Feb 18, Toshiba announces that HD DVD player will no longer be manufactured.
● The final HD DVD release worldwide was Death Proof in Germany on December 18, 2008.
1. History of Multimedia - Copyright © Denis Hamelin - Ryerson University
End of lesson