On Demand Hosting

The Record module permits you to capture your productions to a local hard drive. The resulting files can be hosted on a network later, so viewers can connect whenever they like. If you have the resources available, you can host the video yourself – but if many people want to view your production, you will likely avail yourself of a service to stream it on your behalf.

Ideally, on demand streaming video begins to play on request after a few moments. (Letting the stream get a bit ahead of the client playback device is called buffering, and helps ensure smooth playback). This stands in contrast to other types of online video distribution which requires the viewer to completely download the video file before he can begin play. Given a sufficiently high speed connection between host and viewer, they may well be able to enjoy a seamless viewing experience without stuttering or other issues.

Live Streaming

Live streaming is a growing international market, and one you may well wish to serve. This form of streaming is a somewhat more demanding implementation. Rather than record a file and deal with it later, live video is transmitted over the network (effectively in real-time, give or take a little time in the pipe as it were.)
Delivering a good quality stream requires that you consider both your network connection capabilities and that of your viewers. As well, to ensure reliable delivery, you ideally have some idea of the size of your audience.

Naturally, streaming video is highly compressed to reduce bandwidth demands and make it available to a wider group. The decision as to which encoding format to use for your live stream is up to you or – in some cases – your client. Here are some things to consider:

• Some corporate and institutional network administrators opt to support one or another format exclusively (check with your IT department to find out if this affects your decision).

• RTMP and RTSP combined have a very wide installed user base, and work well across multiple platforms (PCs, Macs, Linux, etc.).

Bandwidth Considerations

You’ll often hear the term bitrate in connection with streaming. This expression refers to data throughput per second (generally measured in Kilobits per second, or Kbps.) You could think of this as being like water flowing through a hose. You control the faucet, because you get to choose the streaming Profile setting in the system’s Configuration panels. However, you don’t own the hose – or, at least, not the entire hose.

Once the stream leaves your immediate environment, even if you can supply good throughput locally, bandwidth may be constricted elsewhere along the transmission path. The level of Internet traffic can impose limits, but another major factor is the sort of connections your viewing audience may have.
Consider an example scenario: Even though you know that most of your audience is going to connect to your program using (relatively slow) wireless devices, you use a very high outgoing bitrate – thinking that this is surely enough to fill the need. The fact is, though, a high bitrate actually ensures a poor experience.

The client player tries to play at the specified bitrate, but (in this example) the wireless bottleneck impedes flow. It is as if you connected a fire hose on your end, giving them a suitable high capacity nozzle for their end – but in the last stage of flow, the stream must pass through a small garden hose. Sadly, the stream will be quite insufficient, and output from the nozzle (the client player) falters badly.

For reliable performance, try to ensure the potential upload bandwidth from your system to the net is around twice the bitrate you choose. You can broadcast at a rate closer to your actual ceiling, but reliable performance cherishes headroom.

Also consider the expected download abilities of your viewers. Ideally, a safety margin 1.5 times the stream’s bitrate is desirable. This may mean you need to consider using a lower resolution, or lower framerate for your stream. Doing so when required generally delivers a smooth result, and is the wise course (nothing inclines viewers to turn away quicker than a stuttering, start and stop stream).