Chapter 20. How Multimedia Sound Works

How Multimedia Sound Works

FOR years, DOS and Windows personal computers sounded like cartoon roadrunners. They could play loud, high-pitched beeps and low-pitched beeps. But they were still only beeps. There was no hiding it.

We owe today’s multimedia sound capabilities to game players. They saw the advantages of hearing realistic explosions, rocket blasts, gunshots, and mood-setting background music long before developers creating business software realized the practical advantages of sound. Now, you can listen to your PC speak instructions as you follow along on the keyboard, dictate a letter by talking into your PC, give your PC spoken ...

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