Welcome to your digital world - where you can create and share high-quality multimedia productions using digital tools that are simple to use, compact and relatively inexpensive. Thanks to advances in technology, even if you're a complete novice you can take advantage of digital gadgetry like desktops, notebooks, PDAs, digital cameras or camcorders, MP3 players, scanners, image and video editing software and broadband Internet connections.

Now is an ideal time to explore your digital world, because:

• It's affordable. Most of the digital tools available today are more affordable and powerful than ever before. Multimedia-capable computers sell for under $700; PDAs can be found as low as $99; great digital cameras are available for less than $300; and digital camcorders for under $600. The list goes on.

   

• It's simple. Today's scanners, printers, digital cameras and camcorders offer more power, better automation and greater ease of use than ever before. The technology takes care of the details for you and gives you great results; at the same time, you can tweak and customize to your heart's content.

   

• It's interoperable. Playing with and sharing digital images, music and movies has never been easier. For example, you can take a Compact Flash storage card from a camera, load it into a printer and print your photos with no computer required. You can connect an MP3 player to your computer's USB port, do a quick song download and then take your music with you as you hit the road. You can even load footage from your digital camera onto your computer, edit it with video editing software, and then burn the results onto CDs or DVDs for sharing with your friends - or potential investors in your indie movie project..

• It's there. Building a digital lifestyle doesn't require a bucket of cash or an arsenal of complex and powerful hardware and software. If you've purchased a computer in the last two or three years, the center of your digital lifestyle is already in place.