ABSTRACT
To appreciate the importance of audio, think about what happens when sound is not present. For example, if the sound portion of a television news report is lost, the report is cancelled. But what happens when the video (visual) portion of a television news report is lost? The report can still carry on with just the audio. While film relies on both sight and sound, even “silent” movies had musical accompaniment. And, of course, radio is truly the “theatre of the mind,” where all meaning must be conveyed and communicated by sound only. This concept is just as relevant when we consider the importance of audio on the Web, and the deployment of web-enabled audio technologies, from streaming audio to peer-to-peer file sharing and podcasting.
