Video On The Web
The moving image online is now an essential component of both professional and hobby sites. The tools that were once the province of big corporations like the BBC, CNN, SKY etc.etc are now desktop applications, enabling anyone to get their hands on them and edit feature- length films.
Video online, though, has only become possible because a number of factors have converged over the last few years. The almost ubiquitous installation of broadband internet access has meant that the delivery platform for almost full-motion high definition video is now a reality. The introduction of dual core processors into PCs together with advances in both graphic cards and rendering software have also played their part.
For the web designer, placing any kind of video on a web page isn't yet child's play. A number of factors have to be considered to ensure visitors to the site have a positive experience. Here at ToromeTech, we have the know how to help you showcase your videos. Below is a simple Multi Player_Video to illustrate some of our skills - Enjoy the clips.
The sample below depicts a multi Video_player having content (video clips) stored in a remote location. The Flash interface retrieves appropriate content when user clicks on a particular title. When new content is added to the remote location, the interface will automatically updates it menu to reflect the change. Note how the menu is incorporated into the interface. A far more better design than the BBC Iplayer - we think .
The Technology
To view video on the net it has to be captured,encoded and finally delivered.This process is depicted in the figure below. Why do you need to encode? At the most basic, it's because raw video is huge. If you don't encode your video, it will be too big to transmit over the Internet to your viewers. The process of encoding involves making the video as small as possible while maintaining the highest quality possible. It's a delicate balance. You can get an amazing looking video at 4 Mbps (that's the video bit rate—how many bits get transmitted every second) at 1920 × 1080 pixels, but you would need an Internet connection that is over 4 Mbps to stream it, or else download a file over 1.5 GB to view it. Conversely, you can easily create a video file that is only 100 kbps, but it may look so poor that no one wants to watch it.
See video implementation in action
Capturing devices can be as basic as a mobile phone to sophisticated HD camcorders. Obviously the gadgets you employ will have a bearing on the end product. Have a look at YouTube and you will get the full picture.
Post encoding, you have two choices of delivery - Live or On-demand
Live video means that you're capturing, encoding, and delivering video in real time. - Often called streaming. The user can start to watch the video immediately a connection is made. Because the content is coming from a streaming server, the content is not normally stored on the users machine. Think of a sports game that is being streamed on the Internet while it's happening or video conferencing. Progressive download is the other delivery option (as employed here with the multiVideo-Player) The full content has to be downloaded first before you can watch.
It is at the encoding process where the joggling act (read delicate balance) is performed. Various parameters here can be experimented with to obtain the best quality video for your intended audience. Interested in video on the web? talk to Us
See video implementation in action
Read More