## MMPM/2 Device Driver Reference

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### Ultimotion Data Stream Specification

Advances in microprocessor power, data storage, and compression technology have provided key technologies for creating and playing digital video data on personal computers. The high capacity disk drives and CD-ROMs satisfy the large storage needs of digital video data. Additionally, today's more powerful microprocessors provide sufficient power to handle digital video data in real time. When these advances are combined with image compression techniques, the result is a powerful integration of video and the personal computer.

Several compression algorithms are currently in use throughout the industry . Some of these algorithms are numerically intensive and use additional video hardware to compress and decompress the digitized video. Others are less numerically intensive and can be handled by software running on the main CPU and still maintain sufficient frame rates to provide motion. These are referred to as software-only algorithms. While software-only techniques are attractive due to their low cost, the video quality of these algorithms is typically lower than the hardware-based algorithms. Consequently, producers of digital video data struggle with trading off lower quality and cost of software-only techniques for the higher quality and cost of hardware-assisted video. Ultimotion* provides a motion video compression technique capable of producing a high level of quality in a software-only playback environment.