<![CDATA[Streaming Media Forums

<![CDATA[Streaming Media Forums - All Forums]]> http://forums.streamingmedia.com/ Fri, 20 Nov 2009 18:17:19 -0500 MyBB <![CDATA[Flash Media Interactive Server + Windows Server 2003 configuration optimization]]> http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10723.html Fri, 20 Nov 2009 07:09:27 -0500 mariusneagu http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10723.html
We have been working with Flash Media Interactive Server for a very long time now.
But one of the things we have not paid a close attention to is the configuration for it or for the operating system it resides on.
Could anyone help us with recommendations for how to configure them so that they:
- handle audio better
- handle sudden disconnects of the clients better (FMS has had for a long time problems with disconnects that are not reported to the server)
- behave better overall

The application uses a lot of audio, shared objects, communication between clients, remoting,etc.

We are working with FMS 3.5.2
Operating system is Windows Server 2003

Thank you a great deal.

]]>
We have been working with Flash Media Interactive Server for a very long time now.
But one of the things we have not paid a close attention to is the configuration for it or for the operating system it resides on.
Could anyone help us with recommendations for how to configure them so that they:
- handle audio better
- handle sudden disconnects of the clients better (FMS has had for a long time problems with disconnects that are not reported to the server)
- behave better overall

The application uses a lot of audio, shared objects, communication between clients, remoting,etc.

We are working with FMS 3.5.2
Operating system is Windows Server 2003

Thank you a great deal.

]]> <![CDATA[Point 2 Point Live Stream plus a live stream over the web]]> http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10722.html Fri, 20 Nov 2009 00:18:20 -0500 jmcutting http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10722.html
I have looked at Light Cast and Livestream as well as others... and feel one or all of these would do the online stream. My big issue is providing a high quality stream between the two locations at the best quality possible and have no delay.

Then at the same time keeping the budget reasonable.

thanks in advance,
-justin

]]>
I have looked at Light Cast and Livestream as well as others... and feel one or all of these would do the online stream. My big issue is providing a high quality stream between the two locations at the best quality possible and have no delay.

Then at the same time keeping the budget reasonable.

thanks in advance,
-justin

]]> <![CDATA[Delivering streaming content to mobile]]> http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10715.html Wed, 11 Nov 2009 07:34:22 -0500 dcm2001 http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10715.html I have set-up a MMS server for Unicast streaming. Its working fine both with mms and rtsp protocols but what settings require to deliver or watch the same streaming content on mobile phone

]]> I have set-up a MMS server for Unicast streaming. Its working fine both with mms and rtsp protocols but what settings require to deliver or watch the same streaming content on mobile phone

]]> <![CDATA[RE: Async h264-files in flashplayer]]> http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10714.html Mon, 09 Nov 2009 09:44:45 -0500 wcaulfield http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10714.html (11-09-2009 09:28 AM)basti Wrote: Is there a chance to resolve this async problem or do I need to reencode al those movies?
I would do everything differently, but of course, I would be on a PC. The major difference for me would be "edit early." Rip directly from vob to a frame editable source, edit, then encode. In my case, it would be vob to avi, edit, encode to mp4.

]]> (11-09-2009 09:28 AM)basti Wrote: Is there a chance to resolve this async problem or do I need to reencode al those movies?
I would do everything differently, but of course, I would be on a PC. The major difference for me would be "edit early." Rip directly from vob to a frame editable source, edit, then encode. In my case, it would be vob to avi, edit, encode to mp4.

]]> <![CDATA[Async h264-files in flashplayer]]> http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10714.html Mon, 09 Nov 2009 08:28:15 -0500 basti http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10714.html
I'm having a async-problem with my cutted h264 movies.

Here's my workflow:

1. MPEG Streamclip: For DVD ripping (Convert to MPEG with MP2 Audio) ->
2. Apple Compressor 3.0.5 : h264, v:1024k a:64k, 640*480, MOV fileformat ->
3. MPEG Streamclip: For cutting the movie into chapters.

I use MPEG Streamclip to cut the movies into chapters after they are encoded by Compressor. All cutted movies play fine in Apple Quicktime 7.6, VideoLAN and Mplayer. However when I play the cutted movies with a Flash Player (e.g. JW Player, Flow Player), they aren't lipsync anymore. The first chapter of the movie is in sync, but the the following chapters aren't....

After analyzing the Files with MediaInfo Mac, it seems that the audiotrack (50s26ms) doesn't have the same length as the videotrack (50s400ms).

I think the problem is that those Flash Players can't read or interpret the editlist atom located in the movie file to keep the movie in sync (or maybe caused by keyframes?). So I tried to scale those tracks to the same length using ffmpeg, mp4box and qtcoffee and then remux them, but it didn't work....

Is there a tool that can extract the synchronised tracks of the movie as a file without editlist (e.g by trimming or scaling the track that's too long)?

Is there a chance to resolve this async problem or do I need to reencode al those movies?

Best regards, basti

]]>
I'm having a async-problem with my cutted h264 movies.

Here's my workflow:

1. MPEG Streamclip: For DVD ripping (Convert to MPEG with MP2 Audio) ->
2. Apple Compressor 3.0.5 : h264, v:1024k a:64k, 640*480, MOV fileformat ->
3. MPEG Streamclip: For cutting the movie into chapters.

I use MPEG Streamclip to cut the movies into chapters after they are encoded by Compressor. All cutted movies play fine in Apple Quicktime 7.6, VideoLAN and Mplayer. However when I play the cutted movies with a Flash Player (e.g. JW Player, Flow Player), they aren't lipsync anymore. The first chapter of the movie is in sync, but the the following chapters aren't....

After analyzing the Files with MediaInfo Mac, it seems that the audiotrack (50s26ms) doesn't have the same length as the videotrack (50s400ms).

I think the problem is that those Flash Players can't read or interpret the editlist atom located in the movie file to keep the movie in sync (or maybe caused by keyframes?). So I tried to scale those tracks to the same length using ffmpeg, mp4box and qtcoffee and then remux them, but it didn't work....

Is there a tool that can extract the synchronised tracks of the movie as a file without editlist (e.g by trimming or scaling the track that's too long)?

Is there a chance to resolve this async problem or do I need to reencode al those movies?

Best regards, basti

]]> <![CDATA[RE: Async h264-files in flashplayer]]> http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10714.html Mon, 09 Nov 2009 09:52:44 -0500 basti http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10714.html
I'm cutting the encoded files because this saves a lot of time. Cutting the vob file and then saving each chapter takes much longer to edit.
I already have handled hundreds of movies this way, so I would be happy if this async problem can be fixed somehow....

]]>
I'm cutting the encoded files because this saves a lot of time. Cutting the vob file and then saving each chapter takes much longer to edit.
I already have handled hundreds of movies this way, so I would be happy if this async problem can be fixed somehow....

]]> <![CDATA[RE: h264 vs vp6]]> http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10711.html Tue, 03 Nov 2009 17:18:24 -0500 Dave http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10711.html
Have you taken a look at:
http://www.streaminglearningcenter.com/c...g-a-codec/

]]>
Have you taken a look at:
http://www.streaminglearningcenter.com/c...g-a-codec/

]]> <![CDATA[RE: h264 vs vp6]]> http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10711.html Fri, 06 Nov 2009 18:00:50 -0500 Dave http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10711.html

]]>

]]> <![CDATA[RE: h264 vs vp6]]> http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10711.html Thu, 05 Nov 2009 08:25:26 -0500 cata12 http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10711.html
Have a look at: http://support.on2.com/h264_faq.php ,it's a good article about h264 versus vp6. Basicly what is your project about? What do you want to achieve in terms of video quality? 248k is a bit low for live streaming if we think that HD starts from 1mb.

Regards,
Catalin

]]>
Have a look at: http://support.on2.com/h264_faq.php ,it's a good article about h264 versus vp6. Basicly what is your project about? What do you want to achieve in terms of video quality? 248k is a bit low for live streaming if we think that HD starts from 1mb.

Regards,
Catalin

]]> <![CDATA[RE: h264 vs vp6]]> http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10711.html Tue, 17 Nov 2009 09:21:03 -0500 cata12 http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10711.html
Yes indeed you are right but I was saying about HD because he said about H264 which is the encoding standard for HD video broadcast. Here is what we use to do flash streaming: http://www.blinkotv.com/files/pdf/blinko...ive_hd.pdf You see there how to do it and what are the advantages. Of course the download speed of the viewers needs to be at least equal with the bitrate he is using to stream, if they want to view without having buffering issues. It also depends on what he needs to stream, the webcasting software.
I just found this article which is a good start in choosing a codec or another:
http://www.streamingmedia.com/article.asp?id=9259

See me offline if you need additional information about streaming software or codecs.
Regards
Catalin
EyePartner Inc.

]]>
Yes indeed you are right but I was saying about HD because he said about H264 which is the encoding standard for HD video broadcast. Here is what we use to do flash streaming: http://www.blinkotv.com/files/pdf/blinko...ive_hd.pdf You see there how to do it and what are the advantages. Of course the download speed of the viewers needs to be at least equal with the bitrate he is using to stream, if they want to view without having buffering issues. It also depends on what he needs to stream, the webcasting software.
I just found this article which is a good start in choosing a codec or another:
http://www.streamingmedia.com/article.asp?id=9259

See me offline if you need additional information about streaming software or codecs.
Regards
Catalin
EyePartner Inc.

]]> <![CDATA[h264 vs vp6]]> http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10711.html Tue, 03 Nov 2009 16:53:09 -0500 trini_tech http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10711.html
i am streaming at 248k at 15fps.

]]>
i am streaming at 248k at 15fps.

]]> <![CDATA[RE: h264 vs vp6]]> http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10711.html Tue, 03 Nov 2009 19:04:27 -0500 trini_tech http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10711.html

]]>

]]> <![CDATA[RE: some advice please :)]]> http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10710.html Tue, 03 Nov 2009 13:45:59 -0500 Dave http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10710.html
What's your upstream broadband capacity between the encoder and the new server ? Any contention ratios or is it guaranteed ? Tested it ? Tested it again ? Testing it from now till the event ?

What bitrate(s) are you planning on encoding your stream(s) at ? 100Mbps will get used up pretty quick with 100+ connections.

There's a load test simulator for WMS which you could/should use to test the server prior to the event.

]]>
What's your upstream broadband capacity between the encoder and the new server ? Any contention ratios or is it guaranteed ? Tested it ? Tested it again ? Testing it from now till the event ?

What bitrate(s) are you planning on encoding your stream(s) at ? 100Mbps will get used up pretty quick with 100+ connections.

There's a load test simulator for WMS which you could/should use to test the server prior to the event.

]]> <![CDATA[RE: some advice please :)]]> http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10710.html Sat, 07 Nov 2009 09:46:08 -0500 Dave http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10710.html
As for the load test - take a look at:
"Checking Server Performance with Windows Media Load Simulator"
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windows...adsim.aspx

If you are using WMS, then either an embedded Windows Media Player, or a Silverlight player application is the usual approach.

Silverlight can give you a better cross platform/cross browser experience 'out of the box', whereas embedding WMP for every platform/browser version can be quite a challange as you need to start using some browser detection logic (and if the user has JavaScript disabled on their browser then that code will fail).

Embedding for Firefox and Gecko
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/...S.85).aspx
http://www.streamingmedia.com/article.asp?id=8584

You can find fully functional Silverlight media players included with Expression Encoder, or you can use the likes of the JW WMV Player.
http://www.longtailvideo.com/players/jw-wmv-player/

If using Silverlight, you need to make sure that HTTP streaming is enabled on WMS (it's not by default).

If you don't need any fancy controls and just want some video in the web page, you can do this in Expression Blend without the need for code behind. Just drag a media element onto the canvas, set the source parameter to the WMS URL and that's all there is to it. Even adding some basic controls requires minimal effort:
http://www.silverlight.net/learn/videos/...-playback/
(it's even easier in the later versions of Blend as it takes care of the button event handlers)

If you embed a WMP, then it's usually a good idea to also include a hyperlink below the embedded player which points to a asx or wsx metafile that allows the user to launch a standalone media player to access the stream in case of embed problems.

I'm not aware of a Flash application being able to access a stream from a WMS server, so if you want to go down that route then you would need to consider changing the back-end server.

]]>
As for the load test - take a look at:
"Checking Server Performance with Windows Media Load Simulator"
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windows...adsim.aspx

If you are using WMS, then either an embedded Windows Media Player, or a Silverlight player application is the usual approach.

Silverlight can give you a better cross platform/cross browser experience 'out of the box', whereas embedding WMP for every platform/browser version can be quite a challange as you need to start using some browser detection logic (and if the user has JavaScript disabled on their browser then that code will fail).

Embedding for Firefox and Gecko
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/...S.85).aspx
http://www.streamingmedia.com/article.asp?id=8584

You can find fully functional Silverlight media players included with Expression Encoder, or you can use the likes of the JW WMV Player.
http://www.longtailvideo.com/players/jw-wmv-player/

If using Silverlight, you need to make sure that HTTP streaming is enabled on WMS (it's not by default).

If you don't need any fancy controls and just want some video in the web page, you can do this in Expression Blend without the need for code behind. Just drag a media element onto the canvas, set the source parameter to the WMS URL and that's all there is to it. Even adding some basic controls requires minimal effort:
http://www.silverlight.net/learn/videos/...-playback/
(it's even easier in the later versions of Blend as it takes care of the button event handlers)

If you embed a WMP, then it's usually a good idea to also include a hyperlink below the embedded player which points to a asx or wsx metafile that allows the user to launch a standalone media player to access the stream in case of embed problems.

I'm not aware of a Flash application being able to access a stream from a WMS server, so if you want to go down that route then you would need to consider changing the back-end server.

]]> <![CDATA[some advice please :)]]> http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10710.html Tue, 03 Nov 2009 13:03:53 -0500 vade http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10710.html
this weekend i will be live streaming a live event to a possible audience of hundreds could be more.

i would like some advice on if my setup can handle this.

i have just been given access to a new dedicated server with this hardware:

network 100MB up and down
Quad Core Xeon
2.4 GHz / 1066MHz
4GB dual channel Ram

we have another server where the website itself is hosted my line of thought is that if i have the website on the existing server and stream and broadcast using the new one that will help with any load problems.

my stream setup is:

camera--> high spec PC with windows media encoder --> broadband --> new server with windows media services running --> the world!

if i put the webpage on the old server and then embed a publishing point from the new server then the stream thro the publishing point will only relie on the the new server. correct?

i know this all sounds like i am out of my depth or w/e but theres a lot riding on this and i want to make sure i get this right.

thanks in advance for any help

vade

]]>
this weekend i will be live streaming a live event to a possible audience of hundreds could be more.

i would like some advice on if my setup can handle this.

i have just been given access to a new dedicated server with this hardware:

network 100MB up and down
Quad Core Xeon
2.4 GHz / 1066MHz
4GB dual channel Ram

we have another server where the website itself is hosted my line of thought is that if i have the website on the existing server and stream and broadcast using the new one that will help with any load problems.

my stream setup is:

camera--> high spec PC with windows media encoder --> broadband --> new server with windows media services running --> the world!

if i put the webpage on the old server and then embed a publishing point from the new server then the stream thro the publishing point will only relie on the the new server. correct?

i know this all sounds like i am out of my depth or w/e but theres a lot riding on this and i want to make sure i get this right.

thanks in advance for any help

vade

]]> <![CDATA[RE: some advice please :)]]> http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10710.html Tue, 03 Nov 2009 14:50:00 -0500 vade http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10710.html
i like the ideal of doing a load test on the WMS server could you possibly provide a link Smile

thanks for coming back to me

btw is using windows media player as the embeded player the standard way togo or is there a better player (flash or something) which can be embedded?

]]>
i like the ideal of doing a load test on the WMS server could you possibly provide a link Smile

thanks for coming back to me

btw is using windows media player as the embeded player the standard way togo or is there a better player (flash or something) which can be embedded?

]]> <![CDATA[RE: Need Some Advice]]> http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10709.html Fri, 30 Oct 2009 16:52:08 -0400 Dave http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10709.html
Choice of equipment will depend on the design of your set - have you done any ground work there ?

Basically you are going to need to consider lighting, audio capture and video capture and balance you budget between them.

Depending on what sort material your artists are going to be demonstrating and how this will be done, will affect the kit you are going to initially want to invest in.

A good starting point might be VASST's 'Video for the Web - what you need to know' DVD as it takes you through a range of equipment you might want to consider and highlights some of the pitfalls of web video.

Also check out some of Jan Ozer's videos from past StreamingMedia conferences on StreamingMedia.com and also his website at: http://www.streaminglearningcenter.com/c...roduction/

Dan Rayburn published a series of "Hands On" guides covering various aspects of streaming Media which are well worth reading.

Steve Mack's Streaming Media bible is well worth a read as it has a good introduction to production, even though it's a bit dated now.

CMP's DV Expert series is good for more in depth detail on specific aspects e.g. Jay Rose's Great Sound for Digital Audio. (he also has his own website)

BBC Training have some free online tutorials on production tips as well http://www.bbctraining.com/onlineCourses.asp

Dave

]]>
Choice of equipment will depend on the design of your set - have you done any ground work there ?

Basically you are going to need to consider lighting, audio capture and video capture and balance you budget between them.

Depending on what sort material your artists are going to be demonstrating and how this will be done, will affect the kit you are going to initially want to invest in.

A good starting point might be VASST's 'Video for the Web - what you need to know' DVD as it takes you through a range of equipment you might want to consider and highlights some of the pitfalls of web video.

Also check out some of Jan Ozer's videos from past StreamingMedia conferences on StreamingMedia.com and also his website at: http://www.streaminglearningcenter.com/c...roduction/

Dan Rayburn published a series of "Hands On" guides covering various aspects of streaming Media which are well worth reading.

Steve Mack's Streaming Media bible is well worth a read as it has a good introduction to production, even though it's a bit dated now.

CMP's DV Expert series is good for more in depth detail on specific aspects e.g. Jay Rose's Great Sound for Digital Audio. (he also has his own website)

BBC Training have some free online tutorials on production tips as well http://www.bbctraining.com/onlineCourses.asp

Dave

]]> <![CDATA[RE: Need Some Advice]]> http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10709.html Wed, 04 Nov 2009 14:21:50 -0500 Dave http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10709.html
Cheaper cameras often produce a lot of noise as they have to amplify the signal levels coming from the imager device. The more available light to start with, then the less amplification required, and the less noise.

Attention to lighting can also produce a better quality encodes/lower bit rates, by controlling contrast and shadows.

This can reduce the amount of work that the encoder has to do, once again allowing you to keep the costs down, and push quality up.

]]>
Cheaper cameras often produce a lot of noise as they have to amplify the signal levels coming from the imager device. The more available light to start with, then the less amplification required, and the less noise.

Attention to lighting can also produce a better quality encodes/lower bit rates, by controlling contrast and shadows.

This can reduce the amount of work that the encoder has to do, once again allowing you to keep the costs down, and push quality up.

]]> <![CDATA[RE: Need Some Advice]]> http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10709.html Thu, 05 Nov 2009 08:20:03 -0500 cata12 http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10709.html
As Dave said, think about a good capture card (I recommend you IntensityPro from BlackMagicDesign), then a good video camera (I use Canon Vixia HF10). HDMI connexion is the best here especially
if you want to stream HD quality. Also make sure you make an rough estimation about the audience's size because this reflects the bandwidth spent. If you have a big audience get a package with more GB included.
Have a look on http://www.blinkotv.com also. It may help you decide the live streaming software to go with. Another question is: will your viewers pay in order to access your stream or this is a free service (free broadcasting software)?

Best regards
Catalin

]]>
As Dave said, think about a good capture card (I recommend you IntensityPro from BlackMagicDesign), then a good video camera (I use Canon Vixia HF10). HDMI connexion is the best here especially
if you want to stream HD quality. Also make sure you make an rough estimation about the audience's size because this reflects the bandwidth spent. If you have a big audience get a package with more GB included.
Have a look on http://www.blinkotv.com also. It may help you decide the live streaming software to go with. Another question is: will your viewers pay in order to access your stream or this is a free service (free broadcasting software)?

Best regards
Catalin

]]> <![CDATA[Need Some Advice]]> http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10709.html Fri, 30 Oct 2009 12:53:14 -0400 samcar http://forums.streamingmedia.com/thread-10709.html
I am looking for a little advice here. I am new to streaming media and I consider myself to be somewhat tech savy (I pick it up descently). I am looking into setting up a channel on livestream. I am going to be producing a show where local/regional artists can show thier work, discuss it, and give a demo of their technique. So, my question is what kind of equipment should I be getting? - My budget isn't that much so beginer/used/inexpensive is the route I would like to take.

Thanks,
Samuel

]]>
I am looking for a little advice here. I am new to streaming media and I consider myself to be somewhat tech savy (I pick it up descently). I am looking into setting up a channel on livestream. I am going to be producing a show where local/regional artists can show thier work, discuss it, and give a demo of their technique. So, my question is what kind of equipment should I be getting? - My budget isn't that much so beginer/used/inexpensive is the route I would like to take.

Thanks,
Samuel

]]>