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A step-by-step guide
+ 1. Develop the Concept
- Focus first on what you want to teach. Do not worry about using multimedia until you have a firm idea of the initial concept.
- Some links that might help:
+ 2. What is Multimedia?
- Within the context of this site, multimedia is be defined as any media format that involves the use of a computer. This could include digital audio and video forms, although both of these can be captured without specifically using a computer. Multimedia can also involve simulation, animation, an interactive game, an internet component, interactive text, and more. Further, many of these formats can be used in conjunction with one another, such as a webpage that contains a streaming video feed.
+ 3. Deciding if Multimedia could be used
- What kind of media does this concept lend itself to best? Audio/visual? A simulation? A website, such as a MyCourses page? Something else?
- Do I have the time and resources to devote to in-depth research of various multimedia forms?
- Are the funds available to purchase new software or hardware?
- What software and hardware is available for free use?
- Freeware, shareware, and pay versions of various programs can be downloaded from the following sites :
+ 4. Deciding if Multimedia should be used
- Consider the following:
- Would multimedia present the material in a way that traditional classroom exercises would not?
- Will the students gain a better understanding of the concept through the use of multimedia?
- Do the students need to gain a better understanding of the concept than what is available through traditional means?
- Is the idea important enough to devote a potentially large amount of time and money to?
- Is there an alternative technology, perhaps not computer-based, that could communicate the idea as effectively without demanding the same allotment of time and resources?
- Will this media, or the skills used in developing it, be applicable to other lessons or courses?
+ 5. What kind of multimedia would be ideal?
- What kinds of multimedia are available?
- What are the benefits and liabilities of each?
6. Searching for Multimedia v. Creating Multimedia
+ Running a search
- Familiarize yourself with the University of Delaware Policy for Copyright and Fair Use in Instruction (.pdf file)
- Choose a search engine specific to your media:
- A few multimedia search engines and databases:
- Brainstorm search terms. For example, if you want a biographical video about Lincoln, you could use the terms "Lincoln", "biography", "historian", "history", "president", "civil war", and many others in any combination.
- Review results. If you only used the term "Lincoln" you might end up with results on the Lincoln Memorial, the Lincoln Towncar, or the Lincoln High School basketball team.
- Amend the concept, if necessary, especially if you find something that works better than what you’d originally had in mind.
- Determine applicable copyright laws (.pdf file). What steps do you have to perform to use this material?
- Determine the audience's software requirements. Will your students (or you, if the media will only be used in the classroom) need a specific program to utilize the material? Explore the source site for any indication of this, such as link buttons that allow you to download popular media players.
  
- Determine a means of distribution.
+ Creating from scratch
- Choosing a media type
- Assess your operating platform. Some multimedia programs are specific to PC, others to Mac. At UD's PRESENT, we provide support for Windows 2000 and XP, as well as Mac OS X.
- What software is available?
 Interested in taking advantage of the emerging technology of podcasting? Visit CNet's Weekend Project site for detailed, step-by-step video and text instructions. Other podcasting tools and resources include:
- Audacity: A freeware audio recording and editing program. Not intended specifically for podcasting.
- Note: If you use Audacity to develop audio files, make sure that you also download the LAME encoder to save them as mp3's, as this file format is currently the most popular for podcasting.
- iPodcast Producer: A pay program for developing and publishing podcasts.
- iTunes: Currently the most popular program for finding, subscribing to, and playing podcasts.
- Podcast Alley: An alternative podcast resource. This site provides an index of available feeds, but does not have any accompanying software.
- Flashkit: A site that provides thousands of public domain songs, song loops, and sound effects.
- TD Scripts.com: A web-based utility that generates the XML code you will need to publish your podcast.
- RSS Validator: A web-based utility that checks your feed to make sure it is in proper working order. Provides prompts to help you solve whatever problems it detects.
- Install software.
- Generally, you will be given prompts and directed what to do next by the program's intstallation tool. However, if you need additional help, visit CNet's download information page.
- Familiarize yourself with the software.
- Usually, a manual or a readme.txt file can be found in the folder that the program has been installed to.
- Decide on hardware
- What do you have and what do you need, based on the software you have chosen? To give you a better idea, look at the manual or readme.txt file in the software folder.
- Be aware that you may need to purchase hardware, based on your current hardware, software, and the desired output. You can often find hardware at affordable prices at one of the following sites:
- Familiarize yourself with hardware.
- Hardware components will often come with a cd which contains an installation tool much like those described in the software section above. If you are not provided with a paper-based manual for your hardware, the installation disc will likely contain this documentation.
- Develop the multimedia product.
- Follow the instructions provided with the software and/or hardware to develop your final product. If you need additional help with this or any other step, please contact the staff of UD's PRESENT.
- Determine a means of distribution.
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