The Handbook of multimedia information management

the long version

Traditionally, databases have been designed to handle quantifiable data - numbers, fields, words, etc. - things that can be easily identified, sorted, classified, and filed. Recent advances in data storage technology and the explosion of the world of multimedia require a new kind of database, one that can handle audio, video, CAD, hypermedia, images, and animation. But how do you identify what is contained in a video clip? How do you tie the search tools of the database into an audio excerpt? What if there are several versions or ones in different languages? What parameters do you apply when sorting graphic images? How do you store and retrieve this massive amount of information quickly and easily? In The Handbook of Multimedia Information Management, a team of experts from all over the world tackles these and other questions. For database designers, developers, and analysts or for anyone looking to catalog their exploding multimedia holdings, this book is required reading.