Introduction to VideoDoc™

What is VideoDoc?

VideoDoc is a CD-based electronic documentation system tailor-made for subjects that deal with motion and complex processes. For example,

• Sports and physical fitness instruction (soccer, golf, baseball, martial arts, aerobics, plyometrics)
• Do-It-Yourself (DIY) guides (home improvement/repair, auto repair, painting)
• Training guides (equipment operation, procedures and processes, user manuals)
• First aid, CPR and physical therapy instruction
   

Figure 1.  The VideoDoc window

VideoDoc combines the best features of printed books, videos (VHS tapes and DVDs) and computers.

• VideoDoc provides fast and easy access to topics of interest via

• Table of contents
• Hyperlink navigation (similar to the links used to navigate the world wide web)
• Alphabetized index
• Keyword searches
• User-defined "favorites" list

• Like a printed book, a VideoDoc can provide extensive detail using text and diagrams. It can be read like a novel, front to back, or used as a reference, with individual topics being referred to as needed.

• Unlike a book, VideoDoc makes use of video clips to "bring to life" the motion or action being described in print. ("A picture is worth a thousand words"? A video clip, in many instances, is worth a thousand pictures).

• VideoDoc allows information to be printed on your PC’s printer and taken with you to soccer practice, the backyard, the park, the gym, the garage, etc. And printouts can include individual frames of video footage.
   
• VideoDoc allows up to 2 hours of video to be stored on a single CD-ROM (no need to swap CDs).

A printed book or manual is ideal for presenting a large amount of detailed information. Printed books, however, must rely on illustrations to augment written descriptions of complex actions and movements. It can be very difficult for a reader to understand the subtleties and timing of a movement or action, even with a large number of quality illustrations. VideoDoc addresses this limitation by using video footage to demonstrate movement, rather than static illustrations. Written descriptions are linked to video clips. This allows the reader to, first, read about the process or movement in detail and then see it in action.

VHS video tapes and DVDs are best suited for front-to-back viewing (e.g., a movie). It’s generally very time-consuming to find the exact snippet of video you’re looking for (e.g., a specific drill or exercise) within a 90 minute video using the fast-forward and seek buttons on a VCR or DVD player. There’s also no ability to search by keyword for a specific subject or video clip. The VideoDoc system addresses this problem by providing a table of contents, alphabetized index and keyword search capability. A user can find a subject of interest and be reading and viewing associated video clips in a matter of seconds. Subjects can also be added to a personal favorites list for future reference (e.g., A coach could add a few drills that he/she would like to perform at the next practice to a group in their favorites list entitled "Drills for next practice").

A second problem with a video tape or DVD is that they’re primarily "video only" media. It’s generally difficult to present detailed textual information on the TV screen since the viewer is usually too far from the television to read anything other than very large letters. The large text limits the amount of information that can be presented on the screen at a given time. For this reason, instructional videos tend to rely on voice-overs to explain what’s being shown. Voice-overs force the viewer to move at the pace of the spoken word or scan ahead without hearing the voice-over (since audio is muted when scanning or fast-forwarding). VideoDoc makes use of all media types (text, graphics, images and video). The user can go directly to the subject they’re interested in and read (or skim) the material at their own pace, playing short video clips as needed.

Also with a TV, VCR or DVD, there’s no way to print out the information being viewed. Even if printing were possible, there’d be nothing to print (you can’t print video). The only option left for the viewer is to frantically take notes and sketch diagrams while watching the video, stopping and starting the video as needed in order keep pace with the presentation of the material. VideoDoc allows information, including selected frames of video, to be printed on a PC printer (see screenshot below). The user can read up on a particular subject and watch associated video clips while sitting in front of the computer and then bring a printout of that subject with them to practice, the gym, or the backyard.

Figure 2. Preview window of VideoDoc's PrintPlus™ feature with selected video frames automatically embedded in printed output.

• 2 hour video capacity.  Many existing CD-based offerings provide a very limited amount of video footage (20 – 30 minutes per CD) and, in some cases, distribute material on multiple CDs, forcing the user to continuously swap CDs. VideoDoc can provide up to 2 hours (120 minutes) on a single CD.

• Easy-to-use, yet powerful, user interface.  Some existing systems have user interfaces that are cluttered and difficult to navigate, making it hard for the user to find the information they’re looking for.  VideoDoc provides a number of easy-to-use mechanisms for finding information quickly and efficiently, including a table of contents, index, and keyword searches.  Some existing systems also make poor use of the available screen "real estate" with space being wasted on cosmetic features and "flash" at the expense of the presentation of useful content.   These systems typically run in "full screen mode", preventing the use of other applications while running. Even worse, although running in full screen mode, these applications wind up using only a small fraction of the available screen real estate!

• Advanced printing capability. Some existing CD-based systems have limited and cumbersome printing subsystems that require the installation of a separate program. In some cases they require that program to be re-started whenever printing is needed. VideoDoc makes printing as simple as pushing a button. VideoDoc is also the only system that automatically embeds video stills in printed output.

Contact hayes@creative-computing-inc.com for more information about publishing your content using VideoDoc.

Copyright 2003, Creative Computing, Inc.