Multimedia

Adding Digital Audio to Web Pages

In addition to background music and sound effects, there is also the opportunity to do interviews, voice over narration, tutorials, poetry readings, and any number of other spoken word applications.

If you are thinking about digital audio for your site, there are several different possibilities to take into consideration. Keep in mind that the clarity and depth of the sound will depend on the quality of the visitor's speakers, the kind of playback device they use, the quality of the source material, and the expertise brought to turning this source material into digital files.

It is the job of the web site designer to make the digital transfer from the source material for the use of audio on a web site. The source material can be tape or CD. There are numerous tools available for this transfer process, and a number of software solutions to consider. The final choices will depend on the purpose of the audio on the site. Speech, for example, usually requires less sophisticated compression and editing than a classical concerto.

If you only want to add some "background" music to your site, the best choice may be to use MIDI files, as MIDI is the most efficient way to use the available bandwidth [the only requirement is for your server to be correctly configured to use the MIME file type]. While MIDI can be originally created (using electronic keyboards, for example), the simplest way to add MIDI to a site is to download MIDI files from one of the many sources on the web. In some cases this music is free, in others there is a reasonable charge. The web page designer will then incorporate the correct tags into the page which will allow the music to play whether the visitor is using Netscape or Explorer. The music can be set up to play automatically or can play when a "button" is clicked.

Because all originally recorded music is copyrighted and cannot be placed on a site without written permission from the artists and / or publishing company, the only people who need to be concerned about CD quality sound are people selling music. For most web sites, the audio will either be voice, sound effects, or background music as described above.

In chosing which format, plug-ins, software, etc to use, we generally take the approach that it is almost always better to make the most important aspects of the pages available to the largest group who can access the files. Right now that means 56K modems and DSL, browser versions 6.0 / 7.0, and monitors set to "thousands of colors."