SMIL

The Synchronized Multimedia Integration Language (SMIL) is an XML-based, from the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) developed for a standard markup language for time synchronized multimedia content. SMIL enables the integration and management of multimedia elements such as audio, video, text and graphics in Web pages; SMIL-files can use Java applets and -Servlets or CGI scripts that are linked, and so, for example, to access a database. The file extensions are .smi and .smil

Characteristics
The most important features of SMIL include:

  • Specification of the layout and synchronization;
  • Adaptation to the transmission bandwidth;
  • Selection of different language versions;
  • Adaptation to different screen resolutions and color depths;
  • Support of hyperlinks.

The current version used is SMIL 2.1.

SMIL 3.0
SMIL 3.0 is since 21 December 2006 a W3C Working Draft. The latest version was on 13 July 2007.

SMIL 2.1
SMIL 2.1 has since December 2005 the status of a W3C Recommendation. SMIL 2.1 contains a number of enhancements which are mainly for use in mobile devices with multimedia messaging system.

SMIL 2.0
The official recommendation for SMIL 2 was in August 2001. Their non-normative Boston-Draft version was already used for new implementations (IE5.5).

SMIL 2 led to several extensions, with modular especially fundamental structural changes. The modularization allows to integrate parts of the specification within other (XML) formats (namespace mechanism), or a defined subset of the specification to implement.

From the vector graphic format SVG, the animation elements have been taken over and expanded. A stand alone animation (as well as the import and hiding of video content) was previously not provided for in SMIL. SVG provides Version 1.1 also express the integration of its own format by SMIL.

SMIL 1.0
The W3C published in June 1998 the first official recommendation for SMIL 1.

Production

SMIL is text based and an application of XML, and the basic syntax defined the layout of the multi-media presentation, the timing and interaction with the presentation can be learned relatively easy. In principle, everybody can create SMIL-files or change with any text editor.

The preparation of SMIL is supported by various applications:

  • Adobe GoLive!
  • Allaires Homesite
  • CWI GRiNS Editor
  • Macromedia Dreamweaver, in conjunction with the G2 Objects
  • LIMSee 2.0 and 3.0 (beta)
  • TMAN.

While SMIL1 is a for itselve standing file format, SMIL2 can be integrated also into other file formats such as XHTML and SVG. The namespace mechanism of XML-Formats is used for building up all former named formats.

So far, SMIL has at the moment in the industry no concrete and successful application. The first mass use of SMIL is found in the HD DVD. This suggests to other applications in the industry, but also the general public hope.