Multimedia Data Types

The digitalvideo device class handles three types of data: audio, video, and still images. Many commands are specified to be data type neutral. For example, when you play or pause a file, you use the same command whether the file contains both audio and video data, audio-only data, or video-only data.

To maintain a uniform conceptual model, the device class treats a still image as a limiting case of a motion video file with only a single image. When you play a motion video file to its end, it automatically pauses or stops once the last frame is displayed. So, when you play a still image file, it pauses or stops after showing its last and only image. You can, for example, seek to the start of a still image file, and play or step it again.