Lattice C picture: lattice.iff The ultimate method of creating a multimedia system is to write the entire thing from scratch, and there is no better way to write a complicated program than with the C language. Currently, Lattice/SAS C is the compiler of choice, although it has to be said that the public domain and shareware offerings are getting pretty close. DICE in particular is hot stuff, although you will have to remember to buy the Commodore Include datafiles before you can do anything useful. The benefits of writing your own system are obvious - it will do exactly what you want it do, and you have total ownership of the copyright. You could even sell the system yourself. Writing in C also means your code is portable, so adapting it to run on PCs or MACs might bring even more fame. The disadvantages are also obviously - it's bloomin' hard work. You'll need to write your own image display code, your own animation code and your own sound management code. You'll have to cope with keyboard and mouse input, time scheduling, ARexx ports, editors and above all, it will have to be totally reliable. Working along, this could easily take six months to complete - no mean task. Product: Lattice/SAS C v6 Price: £255 Availability: Hisoft ARexx Picture: arexx.iff Believe it or not, but it is possible to write an entire application using ARexx. The only catch is that you'll need standalone programs to display graphics, animations and so on but the good news is that all you require is already written and in the realm of public domain and shareware. Graphics can be handled with ViewTek, for although it doesn't itself have an ARexx port (shame) it can be driven from the CLI/SHELL, and ARexx is more than capable of doing this. Likewise there are dozens of IFF-sample playback programs around, so linking the entire lot together is only a matter of churning out the relevant ARexx script. If there is a major problem, it's probably one of speed. ARexx is an interpreted language and therefore not the fastest. It would also be a difficult task indeed to prevent glitches as the various programs are called, and you might find the Workbench display keeps popping to the front - not always a very pleasant experience. Product: ARexx Price: free with all new Amiga's Availability: Commodore Bargain box Getting hold of a good authoring system without spending a lot of money isn't as difficult as you think. Using ARexx you could build one for nothing, as most other required programs are public domain. As for a dedicated programming language, you might be surprised how many older versions have appear on magazine coverdisks - so start ordering those back issues now. Software Comparison Chart ------------------------- Note: Rather than make a chart which the different text editors would screw up, I've listed each program and their features separately. You can then put them all into one chart yourself. Programs -------- CanDo Helm MediaPoint Scala Hyperbook AmigaGuide Amos BlitzBasic Lattice C ARexx Features -------- Program name Program type Hypertext support Graphics support Amiga Sound support MIDI support Animation support Animation played from disk AGA graphics External hardware support Scripting language ARexx Overall Rating Individual programs and features -------------------------------- Program name CanDo Program type Multimedia authoring system Hypertext support Yes Graphics support Yes Amiga Sound support Yes MIDI support No Animation support Yes Animation played from disk No AGA graphics Yes External hardware support No Scripting language Yes ARexx Yes Overall Rating ***** Program name Helm Program type Multimedia authoring system Hypertext support Yes Graphics support Yes Amiga Sound support Yes MIDI support No Animation support Yes Animation played from disk No AGA graphics Yes External hardware support Yes Scripting language Yes ARexx Yes Overall Rating **** Program name MediaPoint Program type Multimedia authoring system Hypertext support No Graphics support Yes Amiga Sound support Yes MIDI support Yes Animation support Yes Animation played from disk Yes AGA graphics Yes External hardware support Yes Scripting language Yes ARexx Yes Overall Rating ***** Program name Scala Program type Multimedia authoring system Hypertext support No Graphics support Yes Amiga Sound support Yes MIDI support Yes Animation support Yes Animation played from disk Yes AGA graphics Yes External hardware support Yes Scripting language Yes ARexx Yes Overall Rating ***** Program name Hyperbook Program type Multimedia authoring system Hypertext support Yes Graphics support Yes Amiga Sound support Yes MIDI support No Animation support No Animation played from disk No AGA graphics No External hardware support No Scripting language No ARexx Yes Overall Rating *** Program name AmigaGuide Program type Hypertext system Hypertext support Yes Graphics support Limited Amiga Sound support No MIDI support No Animation support No Animation played from disk No AGA graphics Limited External hardware support No Scripting language Yes ARexx No Overall Rating *** Program name Amos Program type Programming Language Hypertext support No Graphics support Yes Amiga Sound support Yes MIDI support No Animation support Yes Animation played from disk No AGA graphics No - extension promised External hardware support No Scripting language Yes (BASIC) ARexx Yes (Pro only) Overall Rating *** Program name BlitzBasic 2 Program type Programming Language Hypertext support No Graphics support Yes Amiga Sound support Yes MIDI support No Animation support Yes Animation played from disk No AGA graphics No - extension promised External hardware support No Scripting language Yes (BASIC) ARexx No Overall Rating **** Program name Lattice/SAS C Program type Programming language Hypertext support DIY Graphics support DIY Amiga Sound support DIY MIDI support DIY Animation support DIY Animation played from disk DIY AGA graphics DIY External hardware support DIY Scripting language C ARexx DIY Overall Rating *** (note 1) Program name ARexx Program type Interprocess communication language Hypertext support No Graphics support No Amiga Sound support No MIDI support No Animation support No Animation played from disk No AGA graphics No External hardware support No Scripting language Yes ARexx n/a Overall Rating ***** (note 2) note: Any system that has an ARexx port can (in theory at least) do anything. For example, CanDo can call a program that play's animations directly from disk. Of course, this isn't as convienient as a program like MediaPoint which can directly play animations in this way. note 1: With Lattice/SAS C, you need to write the features yourself. Theoretically, it can do everything. note 2: Although ARexx itself cannot display graphics or play sounds, it can ask other programs to do it on it's behalf. box out Jargon Busters Hypertext A hypertext system is one in which clicking on a particular word will bring the user to a defition or more relevant text. Scripting language For fine-tuning, it is important that an application can be editing at the scipt level. For example, although CanDo applications are generated by clicking and dragging, it is also possible to enter commands directly from the keyboard. Playback from disk Especially when memory is limited, it is useful to be able to play back animations from disk without having to load them all into memory first. External hardware support Some systems can control dedicated hardware such as laser disk players or audio CD players. MIDI playback For the best possible musical backing, an external systhesiser can be contolled if the software supports MIDI. box out: Copyright Problems! You might be worried about using a particular sound sample or photograph, but news just in from the States presents a whole new problem: the concept of Multimedia has itself been copyrighted. The Amercian company Compton's NewMedia has been granted a patent for "a search system in which a multimedia database consisting of text, picture, audio and animated data is searched through multiple graphical and textual entry paths". In its broadest sense this covers just about everything covered in the last few pages: a truly crazy state of affairs. Compton NewMedia are actually proposing that you pay them to license your multimedia application. Until the big boys such as MicroSoft (who produce a help system for Windows that neatly infringes the patent) and their lawyers can talk some sense into the patent commision, this is what you'll have to do to remain 100% inside the law. Frightning, isn't it?