Multimedia technology is coming on in leaps and bounds as increasing processor power makes integrated digitised image, voice and speech systems more of a reality than a concept. After their joint agreement announced in March last year (CI No 1,145), Intel Corp and IBM, as reported briefly (CI No 1,186) have introduced the first two multimedia Digital Video Interactive – DVI – boards for 80386-based personal computers in a new line of ActionMedia 750 adaptor cards. The two are built around Intel’s 82750 video processors, and are the result of slimming down what was previously a seven-board set. The next objective according to the company is to scale the things down further on to DRAM parts for inclusion on the motherboard itself. Shipping in the second quarter, Intel is to sell 16-bit AT and 32-bit Micro Channel bus versions of the boards for UKP1,350, while IBM will offer the Micro Channel version for its PS/2s. An Intel Pro 750 PC running MS-DOS, with the boards – but without a monitor – will cost around $15,000. The delivery board decompresses full-motion digital video and audio in real time for screen presentation, the capture board converts the analogue video and audio inputs to digital data for the delivery board to process. Software includes tools such as Intel’s Real Time Video 1.5, 30 frames-per-second real-time compressor, the Video Application Programming Interface – VAPI – and a collection of C language functions for application building. Other third party tools available include an authoring system – Authology – from CEIT Systems, Luema, a painting package from Time Arts, and Mediascript from Network Technology Corp, Springfield, Virginia. To make all the image and sound wizardry happen in front of you on a micro – with a CD-ROM drive – the video and audio material needs to be compressed and written to a Compact Disk. This can be done at present only on the multi-80386 version of Intel’s iPSC HyperCube system with 64 processors. A CD-ROM can deliver 650Mb of data at 150Kb per second. A TV quality video uses 720Kb per frame, and operates at 30 frames per second – or 22.1Mb per second. On the HyperCube, Digital Video Interactive software technology that Intel bought from General Electric Co in 1988 is compressed to 5Kb per frame, using delta and still frame techniques which employ some complex algorithms. This enables 20 minutes of video, 5,000 high-resolution stills, six hours of AM quality audio or 15,000 pages of text to fit on one disk. Intel charges $250 per video minute to do the job, though it is currently in negotiation with three major European firms to allow them to do the same. However, Intel has no plans to move the compression software onto any other machine, although it will be available for the recently announced 80860 RISC-based HyperCube as soon as porting is complete. Intel expects to have the on-board 82750 pixel and display processors running at twice the 12.5 MIPS performance of the existing set by the middle of next year. AT&T Co and Olivetti & Co are currently converting Digital Video Interactive technology to Unix, and Olivetti is working to have a PAL-conformant version of the video compressor on the European market in the third quarter.
