home *** CD-ROM | disk | FTP | other *** search
- Corporate Background
-
- The Ask Me Multimedia Center is a division of Innovative Communication
- Systems, Inc., a Minneapolis, Minnesota based corporation, The principal
- purpose of the business is multimedia software development for the PC DOS and
- Windows platforms. The company also offers training, support, seminars, and
- custom application development services. The company employs 10 people.
-
- Ask Me was founded in 1985 at the University of North Dakota. As a technology
- transfer project of UND, the company developed some of the first multimedia
- systems for commercial use. Interactive multimedia systems were built and
- tested in hotels, shopping malls, hospitals, and other public locations.
-
- In 1990, Ask Me was the first product of its kind to be put into national
- retail distribution. Brown-Wagh publishing of Los Gatos, CA was the
- publisher. Ingram-Micro D, Merisel, and other major distributors have carried
- the product. Ask Me has received numerous product reviews in national
- publications. For example, New Media Magazine picked Ask Me as the best
- product in its category. Ask Me 's packaging and collateral materials have
- won several regional and national awards, adding to the product's favorable
- exposure. The company's customer base has grown to include educational
- institutions, Fortune 500 companies, and multimedia developers.
-
- In addition to fostering a presence in the retail channel, Ask Me has begun
- to build an international network of professional developers and VARs. This
- high end network represents Ask Me Professional. In this regard, Ask me is
- one the few multimedia companies to offer the market two distinct product
- lines to serve both the sophisticated user and the entry-level user.
-
- In 1991, Ask Me was selected by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and Nation's
- Business Magazine as one of the most innovative companies in the country. For
- its technical and business accomplishments as a small business, Ask Me was
- awarded the "Blue Chip Enterprise" award.
-
- In 1992, the company undertook an aggressive new product development program
- for the Windows platform. The new product, called SUPER Show & Tell (SST),
- made its debut at Spring Comdex, 1993. The company has lined up retail
- distribution for SST in 15 countries.
-
- In addition to launching new software products for the retail markets, Ask Me
- Multimedia continues to excel in custom applications for major clients.
- Recent projects include an online multimedia purchasing catalog for the
- Canadian Government and a POS ordering Kiosk for a medical products
- distributor.SST Product Profile
-
- Product Name: SST (SUPER Show & Tell)
-
- Manufacturer: Ask Me Multimedia Center
- Innovative Communication Systems, Inc.
- 7100 Northland Circle, Suite 401
- Minneapolis, MN 55428-1500
- (612) 531-0603 voice
- (612) 531-0645 fax
-
- Platform: Windows 3.1, MPC Compliant.
-
- Category: Multimedia Presentation Software.
-
- Description: A free-form creation tool for making dynamic
- interactive slides. Slides are grouped together
- into carrousels. Carrousels can be linked together
- to form a modular presentation or chapters of a
- book or report. Provides for interactivity and
- branching between carrousels.
-
- Media Supported: SST creates, imports, and edits graphics, still-
- frame pictures, animations, digital audio and MIDI
- files, and digital video files.
-
- Price: $149; Introductory offer of $99.95.
-
- Applications: Presentations, brochures on floppy, videos,
- storyboarding, electron books, photo CD scrapbooks,
- class lessons, and reports.
-
- Target Audience: Sales people, teachers, students, trainers,
- authors, producers, home hobbyist.
-
- Distinguishing
- Features: (1) Define on-screen moves, size changes, color
- changes, font changes and other actions for media
- objects.
-
- (2) Modeless importing and editing of media. All
- creation done on the same screen. No overlapping
- dialogue boxes or multiple modules.
-
- (3) Time-based, not frame-based synchronization of
- events. Automatically generates a simple
- "playlist," as opposed to object-oriented
- programming or timeline layout.
-
- Graphic Formats
- Supported: BMP, DIB, PCX, GIF, TIFF, and TGA
-
- Audio Formats
- Supported: WAV and MIDI.
-
-
- Animation Formats
- Supported: Autodesk FLI and FLC
- Note: Macromedia MMM and Golddisk AWI planned for V
- 1.1, September 1993.
-
- Video Formats
- Supported: Video for Windows AVI
-
- Support Material: User's Guide; Making Great Presentations on Your PC
- Handbook; Tutorial: Clip Media; Sample Carrousels.