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June 2009 
The Mac Times UK Nov/Dec 1990
Michael
Interactive Multimedia
- from the vision to the reality - by Michael Grove
” There is nothing more difficult to carry out, nor more doubtful of success, nor more dangerous to handle than to initiate a new order of things. For the reformer has enemies in all who profit by the old order, and only luke-warm defenders in all those who would profit by the new order. This quality of lukewarmness arises partly from a fear of adversaries, who have the law on their side, and partly from the incredulity of mankind, who do not truly believe in anything new until they have had actual experience of it.”
Machiavelli - The Prince - 1513
Over the next several issues of - The Mac Times UK - I intend to publish my own thoughts in relation to Interactive Multimedia. I shall attempt to break down all the hype, de-mystify what, to some, has become almost a black-art and explain the opportunities, which are only just falling into place. Opportunities which will allow every individual, with access to an Apple Macintosh, to take advantage of this new communications medium.
For that is what Interactive Multimedia is - a new communications medium. A medium which, in itself, is an amalgam of other electronic media, but, more so, an enabling technology which has the capability of “gluing” together different combinations of media (multimedia) in the same intuitive and consistent way that we have become used to with the Macintosh itself. A medium which will allow us, as a result of customizable configuration, to construct interactive computer integrated solutions as easily as we can use Lego building blocks. These solutions which will enable us to do things which we have never before been able to do - in a more creative and cost effective manner.
The “mind thinks by association - so why don't computers ?” was the title of the first HyperCard promotional literature. James Burke produced that superb television series - ” Connections ” in which he set out to prove that every event in history was connected to another … and that a maximum of seven steps was needed to complete the link. James Burke is now, needless to say, an avid follower of the Macintosh and Hypercard.
I have attempted in my initial overview entitled - ” The first hundred piece jigsaw now in place ” - to whet the appetite, as it were, by listing a hundred or so significant events which represent the thin threads of parallel technological developments which have brought us to the present day. All these events have been collated and a ” view by date ” sort applied to list a ” timeline “. If we were to colour each of these thin threads we would quickly realize that the thin thread of printing led to the integration of Macintosh and Linotronic in 1984 & 1985.
This was the first time that we experienced the phenomenon of electronic ” cut & paste ” - but only cut and paste in one specialist area of activity. In recent months most of the other threads have moved towards a direct relationship or association with the Macintosh and enabled the concept of cut and paste to be applied to their own specialist area of activity. The Macintosh is the only common platform - at this time - on which one can do this.
Why I am so bold as to pronounce that the hundred piece jigsaw is in place, is because I am confident , having waited patiently for many years, that we will now be able to cut and paste between every specialist area of communication to explore the possibilities of completely new methods. We shall then be able to construct our Lego building blocks into as many solutions as are appropriate and necessary.
"Imagination alone can give me a vision of the future"
"Interactive Multimedia will allow us all to explore that vision"
"The secrets of my own vision are all tied up in my List of Connections in the December edition of Mac Times UK - browse through them and see if you can come up with the appropriate connections as I have done since my first childhood vision.” - see what connections you come up with - you never know there might be a Macintosh at the end of the rainbow !
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