Graphic

A digital representation of non-text information

Drawing Chart Photograph

Also called graphical image There is no movement or animation in a graphic

Graphic (contd)
Graphics are used to illustrate certain concepts more clearly than text can (Saturns rings) Graphics play an important role in teaching since many people are visual learners think about car icons or road signs Graphics serve as navigation aids in many software packages (think about buttons, even in Windows or on the Mac)

Graphic (contd)
Sources of graphics:
Clip art packages Scanners or digitizers Digital cameras Stock photograph agencies Draw/paint programs

Animation
A graphic which has the illusion of motion by displaying a series of still graphics Examples
Office Assistant Demonstrations of how something works (engine) Simulations (hospital ward)

Used for better illustration that a graphic Sources:

Web or CD-ROM for canned animations Web development packages (animated GIFs) Commercial animation or rendering software

Audio
Music, speech or any other sound. Sources:
Microphone CD-ROM, DVD-ROM Sound card input Radio card MIDI Can also purchase canned audio clips Web Music composition suites

Audio (contd)
Useful for concepts that cannot be conveyed with sound vibration of a bearing Can supplement text and graphics and enhance learning

Graphics
Desktop publishing Image editors Illustration programs Image galleries Graphic suites

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Desktop Publishing
Programs that allow you to create publications
Mix text and graphics Professional quality

Popular programs
Adobe Page Maker Microsoft Publisher QuarkXPress

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Image Editors
Programs for creating and editing bitmap images
Bitmap images use dots or pixels to represent an image Bitmap images are also called raster images

Popular programs
Microsoft Paint Adobe Photoshop Corel PhotoPaint
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Illustration Programs
Programs used to create and edit vector images Drawing programs Vector images use geometric shapes or objects Popular programs
Adobe Illustrator CorelDraw Macromedia FreeHand Micrografx Designer

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Image Galleries
Libraries of electronic images Used for a variety of applications Two basic types
Stock photographs Clip art

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Image Galleries
Organization Art Today Broderbund Design Gallery Live GifArt Graphics Maps Site www.arttoday.com www.broderbund.com www.dgl.microsoft.com www.gifart.com www.graphicsmap.com

Graphic Suites
Bundled graphic programs Can buy a larger variety of graphics programs at a lower cost Popular suites
CorelDraw Graphics Suite Corel's Graphic Pack Micrografx's ABC Graphic Suite

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Raster vs Vector
In the world of computer graphics, there are two types of images - raster and vector. Some programs that create raster images (also known as pixel or paint images) are Photoshop or Paintbrush. Some programs that create vector art (also known as object-oriented art) are Illustrator and FreeHand. Other programs, such as CorelDRAW, have tools to create both raster and vector images.

Raster Images
Raster images are made up of a whole lot of tiny dots, called pixels. To illustrate this concept, we will use a sheet of graph paper. Each square on the sheet represents one pixel. Let's start simple and create a black and white circle that is 20 pixels in diameter. The number of pixels determines the resolution of your file. The computer stores this file by recording the exact placement and colour of each pixel. The computer has no idea that it is a circle, only that it is a collection of little dots.

Each pixel has a coordinate, and the contents of that pixel are recorded and saved in a file.

In the previous example, we see each individual pixel, and the circle is very blocky. By adding more pixels, thereby increasing the resolution, we can make that same circle appear smoother because the pixels are much smaller. Of course, the higher your resolution is, the larger your file size will be because the computer has many more pixels to keep track of. Where the problem arises is when you try enlarging a raster image. Because the resolution is set, when you scale the art, in reality, you are just enlarging the pixels, which results in a jaggy (or pixelated) image.

Vector Images
Vector art is different in that instead of creating individual pixels, you create objects, such as rectangles and circles. By noting the mathematical coordinates of these shapes, a vector program can store files in a fraction of the space as raster images, and more importantly, be able to scale images to virtually any size without any loss in detail.

Unlike raster images, the vector circle appears smooth at 100% (left) and just as smooth when enlarged 800% (right).

These two graphics shows the differences between an enlarged vector graphic on the left (notice the smooth edges) and an enlarged bitmap graphic on the right (note the jagged edges). Many companies have their logos created as vectors to avoid problems with scaling: A vector graphic logo maintains its high quality appearance at any size.