Interactive media authoring is basically combining a whole range of different types of media, like video, text, sound or animations into one package, like a CD/DVD to be sold in retail shops, or something downloadable on the internet, like a game.
In the modern-day, there are so many devices and products that incorporate interactive media, because pretty much everything that we digitally interact with comes under this massive, all-encompassing umbrella. Here are just a few of the different kinds of interactive media out there in the big wide world.
App design / Websites
Apps are most commonly accessed by using a mobile phone, but can also be used by interactive TVs. Hell, social media has even been known to be used from a smart fridge, somehow…
They can be used for a very wide range of different purposes, including but not exclusive to; entertainment (Angry Birds, YouTube), social media (Instagram, Discord), search engines (Google, DuckDuckGo), news outlets (BBC News, Polygon), online shops (Amazon, eBay). I think you get the picture.
The skills and products that someone would need to make an effective app would be on the lines of; graphic design, coding, market research, programming and interactive media authoring software.
As a real-life example of these, here is a screenshot that I took of Instagram on my phone.
Cash machines
Cash Machines are used for taking money out of your bank account and checking of your bank balance. People interact with their interfaces by pressing buttons. to make a cash machine, you would need skills and products like; typography, coding, programming and graphic design etc.
Games
Video games can be used by a myriad of different devices, such as consoles, phones, computers, handheld consoles, interactive TVs etc. The majority of them are consumed for entertainment purposes (Portal 2, Life is Strange), but they can also be educational (Human Resource Machine).
The skills and products that someone could potentially need to make a game are; game design software, coding, programming, 3D modelling software, sound engineering, musical skills, artistic skills, digital drawing software, tablets, computers, voice acting, typography, colour know-how, body-tracking equipment and software and actors etc.
Here’s a screenshot I took of me playing the classic browser game Agar.io.
Virtual Reality
People can experience virtual reality by either putting on some virtual reality goggles either self-contained, or connected to a computer, or they can put some goggles on with their phone inside, to replicate the authentic the virtual reality experience. Virtual reality experiences are normally used for entertainment (Superhot VR, Beat Saber), but can also be used for educational purposes, (Google Earth VR), and can even be used as a creative medium (Tilt Brush).
Some of the many skills and products someone might need to create a virtual reality experience could include; coding, programming, colour theory knowledge, artistic skills, typography, specialist cameras, cameras, tripods and game design software etc.
Augmented Reality
Augmented reality is where someone typically looks through their phone at the world around them, with the addition of virtual objects and or creatures milling about around them. It is interesting, as it allows you to somewhat blur the borders between fiction and reality.
Augmented reality experiences could be used for entertainment, educational, and interior design purposes.
some of the many skills and products someone would need to make an augmented reality experience could be; coding, programming, 3D modelling and animation software, art skills, graphic design, interactive media authoring software and typography etc.
Interactive maps
Here’s a screenshot I took of Google Earth because an interactive map can’t get much bigger than literally having the entire planet at your fingertips.
Some of the skills and products that someone would need to make an interactive map would include; Graphic design, typography, artistic skills, a good understanding of colour theory, digital drawing software and interactive media authoring software etc.
Kiosks
I found this at a bus stop the other day in Kingston. It was a touchscreen, interactive device that allows users to see live bus times, a map of Kingston, promotional photos, and train timetables.
Some of the skills and products someone would need to make one of these interactive kiosks would be typography, coding, programming, graphic design etc.
Research
https://prezi.com/3dwp4d2j2e9d/interactive-media-authoring/
Ciaran :3 