Media Language, 1991 – The Magic Browser

Following the major IBM Project, 1990 which produced the GPE, a number of issues had arisen requiring to be addressed including: a better programming language than C++ supportive of correct software engineering (EIFFEL was discovered and employed); a mechanism providing for non-programmers to create applications; an extension of the GPE concept of ‘rectangles’ to the notion of (information) ‘chunking’ (where each element identified in a domain was carefully named, listed in an Index – from which it could be selected and linked to a ‘Chunk’ including a definition – in text, images etc); thus – information modelling encouraging domain/subject experts to structure information in terms of formal naming of fundamental elements (and indexes) and where complex subjects/domains are abstracted into a minimal set of high level constructs – employing a custom ‘network editor’ to construct logical hierarchical graphs: essentially browsable. Two instantiations of Media Language were evolved in a series of projects with a range of end users in a variety of domains. The GPE modelling – focused on Rectangles; Media Language modelling – focused on Chunks.

Media Language Projects

The first Media Language project was ‘STILE’; the second was Media Language Tutorial; the third was ‘VPH’; the fourth was ‘Leeds: The Intelligent City’ and thereafter, others not illustrated here.

The “STILE Browser” shown here was the first application created for the Department of Textile Industries at the University of Leeds – which immediately recognised the potential of interactive multimedia for modelling domains and delivering interactive multimedia. One of the screenshots shows a phase of an animated Weaving Simulation conveying the essential meaning of “warp’ and ‘weft’.

The STILE Home Page – with the Welcome Chunk placed in the History Strip on the right.

The STILE Browsable Index – every element in the Textiles Domain named is allocated to the Index and a Chunk generated by Media Language to be marked up with content (text, graphic, animation etc).

The STILE Textiles Domain Browser – an expert defined Schema/Map of the Domain – created with a small simple network editor (NED).

The STILE Information Chunk: Denim.

The STILE Chunk: Weaving including a Weaving Animation showing the Warp and the Weft – with a series if previously displayed Chunks placed in the History Strip on the right.

The STILE Chunk: Weaving including a Weaving Animation showing the Warp and the Weft – with a series if previously displayed Chunks placed in the History Strip on the right.