Dolby Digital

Dolby Digital is the name for audio compression technologies developed by Dolby Laboratories. It was originally named Dolby Stereo Digital until 1994. Except for Dolby TrueHD, the audio compression is lossy. The first use of Dolby Digital was to provide digital sound in cinemas from 35mm film prints. It is now also used for other applications such as HDTV broadcast, DVDs, Blu-ray Discs and game consoles.

In the cinema

Batman Returns was the first film to use Dolby Digital technology when it premiered in theaters in the summer of 1992. Dolby Digital cinema soundtracks are optically recorded on a 35 mm release print using sequential data blocks placed between every perforation hole on the sound track side of the film. A constant bit rate of 320 kbit/s is used. A charge-coupled device (CCD) scanner in the image projector picks up a scanned video image of this area, and a processor correlates the image area and extracts the digital data as an AC-3 bitstream. The data are finally decoded into a 5.1 channel audio source. All film prints with Dolby Digital data also have Dolby Stereo analogue soundtracks using Dolby SR noise reduction and such prints are known as Dolby SR-D prints. The analogue soundtrack provides a fall-back option in case of damage to the data area or failure of the digital decoding; it also provides compatibility with projectors not equipped with digital soundheads. Almost all current release cinema prints are of this type and may also include SDDS data and a timecode track to synchronize CD-ROMs carrying DTS soundtracks.

Company (Heroes)

The Company refers to a fictional covert international organization in the NBC drama Heroes. Its primary purpose is to identify, monitor and study those individuals with genetically-derived special abilities. The Company played a central role in the plot of Volume Two, during the second season of the series. It is a very notable organization in the series and is connected to several of the characters.

Founders

In season two, Kaito Nakamura revealed that there were twelve founders of the Company, and a photo of the twelve is later seen (listed below under "Group photo"); it did not include Adam Monroe, an immortal human with the ability of rapid cellular regeneration, who is described as the one who "brought them all together." The Company began sometime between January 1977 and February 14, 1977. Monroe was locked away for thirty years on November 2, 1977, concluding that he only spent about 10 to 11 months with the Company. In the first season of the show, Daniel Linderman heads the Company until his demise. He is substituted in the second season by Bob Bishop, who is implied to be the Company's financial source. However, when Sylar kills him in the beginning of Season 3, Angela Petrelli takes over. Several of the founders have children who are posthumans and who are main characters within the series.

Company (disambiguation)

A company is a group of more than one persons to carry out an enterprise and so a form of business organization.

Company may also refer to:

In titles and proper names:

Company (short story)

Company is a short novel by Samuel Beckett, written in English and published by John Calder in 1979. It was translated into French by the author and published by Les Éditions de Minuit in 1980.

Together with Ill Seen Ill Said and Worstward Ho, it was collected in the volume Nohow On in 1989. It is one of Beckett's '"closed space" stories.