Get Streaming!

Get Streaming!

Released October 2012
Publisher(s): Focal Press
ISBN: 9781136036736

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Book description

Get Streaming with this fun, easy-to-read guide!

Streaming your audio and video online is inexpensive, easy, and fun. Get the fast results you need with Get Streaming! - a step-by-step, introductory level book that gets you up and running today.

Streaming media technology is growing into an indispensable part of a successful business communications strategy. This book will not only give you a professional boost, it will help you deliver your home videos to family and friends anywhere in the world!

Why slog through a technology tome for weeks when you can start right now with the simple, easy-to-follow procedures in this book. Use the comprehensive glossary of terms with one sentence definitions to lay the foundation for your streaming know-how. You'll take away a practical understanding of streaming media without feeling overwhelmed by confusing detail. Tips and insights from leading streaming pros are also at your fingertips.

Whether you want to stream a corporate video, home videos, or your favorite music for friends - after reading this book, you will:

* Understand the three steps of streaming: Capture, Encode, Broadcast
* Install free streaming software, capture raw media, encode into a streamable file, place that file on a streaming server, and link it all up to the Internet!
* Know the fundamentals of how the Internet works in relation to streaming media
* Build simple, effective streaming applications with free tools
* Learn how to make the right streaming media technology choices, including codecs, for your specific situation
* Understand RealVideo, Windows Media, QuickTime, Flash MX and MPEG-4 software
* Make informed choices from among the leading streaming media content creation tools made by RealNetworks, Microsoft, Apple Computer, and Macromedia
* Master the steps for creating on-demand streaming audio and video files as well as learning about live audio and video streaming
* Understand the computer hardware and Internet bandwidth you'll need for maximum success
* Glimpse the future business and career opportunities in the expanding streaming media field.

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Halftitle
  3. Title
  4. Copyright
  5. Contents
  6. Foreword
  7. Preface
  8. Introduction
    1. Purpose of the Book
    2. Scope of the Book
    3. Who Should Read This Book
    4. Why Learning About Streaming Media Is Important
    5. The “Streamie”
    6. Streaming Media Defined
    7. The Streaming Process
    8. The Streaming Media Landscape
    9. Career Opportunities
    10. Why Use Streaming Media
    11. Layout and Organization of This Book
  9. Chapter 1 Get Started
    1. Terms to Know
    2. Fire Drill! And You’re the Firefighter
    3. What Is a Media Player?
    4. Prepare to Install a New Media Player
    5. Download and Install a New Player
    6. Prepare to Download and Install an Encoder
    7. Prepare to Encode an Audio and Video File
    8. Put the Newly Encoded Media File on Your Streaming Server
    9. Prepare to Create a Metafile
    10. RealNetworks’ RealPlayer/Helix
    11. Prepare to Link to Your Metafile via Your Web Page
    12. Chapter Summary
  10. Chapter 2 Get Your Audio and Video Now
    1. Terms to Know
    2. You’ve Put Out the Fire. Now What?
    3. Time Out! Can’t I Just Hire Someone Else to Do This?
    4. Pre-Production Planning
    5. Audio and Video Inputs
    6. Support Equipment
    7. Places to Buy Equipment
    8. Fundamentals of Audio Recording and Video Composition for Streams
    9. Chapter Summary
  11. Chapter 3 Prepare Your Audio and Video
    1. Terms to Know
    2. Coming into the Home Stretch
    3. Streaming Media Players
    4. What Is a “Media Player?”
    5. Choosing the Right Streaming Format: Evaluating Your Audience and Resources
    6. Optimize Your Audio
    7. Optimize Your Video
    8. Choosing the Right Codec
    9. Media Player Behavior and Multiple Bit Rate Encoding
    10. Encoding
    11. Chapter Summary
  12. Chapter 4 Broadcast Your Audio and Video
    1. Terms to Know
    2. Showing the World Your Work
    3. Live vs. On-Demand
    4. Get Ready to Serve Your Streams
    5. Operating System and Streaming Server Considerations
    6. Security
    7. File Storage
    8. Bandwidth
    9. Unicasting and Multicasting
    10. Buying a Streaming Server
    11. Technical Support
    12. Advanced Metafiles
    13. Set Up Your Web Page
    14. Upload Your Web Page
    15. Testing
    16. Promote Your Streams
    17. Outsourcing to a Streaming Media Hosting Service
    18. Chapter Summary
  13. Chapter 5 Alternative Systems & Advanced Topics
    1. Terms to Know
    2. Taking the Streaming Roads Less Traveled
    3. Before You Veer Off the Main Highway
    4. MPEG: The Most Talked About Alternative to Proprietary Architectures
    5. What is a Standard?
    6. Open Source: An Alternative to Proprietary Systems
    7. Peer-to-Peer (P2P) Streaming
    8. Synchronized Multimedia Integration Language
    9. The PowerPoint Alternative
    10. Streaming Business Opportunities and Models
    11. Calculating a Return on Investment
    12. Chapter Summary
  14. Resources
  15. Glossary
  16. Index

Product information

  • Title: Get Streaming!
  • Author(s):
  • Release date: October 2012
  • Publisher(s): Focal Press
  • ISBN: 9781136036736