Downloading
When a user wishes to view video on your site, there are several possible methods that can allow said user to see the video. The easiest method is the create a hyperlink to the video file. This method is useful if you want the viewer to save the movie to their computer before viewing. This is fine for small files, but the bigger the file size, the longer the wait time and the less likely your viewers will want to wait for the entire movie to download before they can watch it. Delivering video files this way is known as HTTP streaming or HTTP delivery. HTTP means Hyper Text Transfer Protocol, and is the same protocol used to deliver web pages. For this reason it is easy to set up and use on almost any website, without requiring additional software or special hosting plans.

Progressive Downloading
This is a step up from hyperlinking to your video files. It is a temporary solution to the problems mentioned for downloading. The video file is embedded with code that is unique to each type of video, and as soon as enough of the video is downloaded to watch, the video will begin to play. If the user’s connection is fast enough, they can watch the video as it downloads. The disadvantage here is that the viewer cannot skip forward to any part of the video. This solution does not require any special software or streaming server to work.

True Streaming
This is the best way to deliver video to viewers if you want to allow the viewer to instantly skip to any part of the video or if you want to prevent the viewer from downloading the video file to their computer. True streaming works by delivering bits of video through a streaming server, which sends packets of data in real-time, effectively allowing the end user to view the data as it is arriving. This process is not possible with the HTTP protocol. Instead, RTSP is the protocol of choice for streaming media. It stands for real-time streaming protocol, and it is a method of routing video data to the end user. RTSP provides “VCR-style” control functionality such as pause, fast forward, reverse, and absolute positioning, which cannot be achieved with HTTP.

Which method should I use?
If you are serious about your videos, true streaming is the best option for delivering media to a global audience. With instant-access, built in download prevention, VCR style controls, and affordability, there’s never been a better time to start delivering streaming media to your audience. With GravityLab Multimedia, you can have the best of both worlds. We provide methods to access your streaming media via HTTP and RTSP, allowing you to choose which method is best for you. Check out our streaming video hosting plans
to see which plan best fits your needs.

GravityLab Multimedia provides hosting services for several types of streaming media. View a selection of sample files below:

Quicktime Mov
http://helix.gravlab.com:554/sample_100kbit.mov
http://helix.gravlab.com:554/sample_300kbit.mov

Quicktime Mp4
http://helix.gravlab.com:554/sample_100kbit.mp4
http://helix.gravlab.com:554/sample_300kbit.mp4

Quicktime H.264
http://helix.gravlab.com:554/sample_h264_100kbit.mp4
http://helix.gravlab.com:554/sample_h264_1mbit.mp4

Mobile 3GP
http://helix.gravlab.com:554/sample.3gp
http://helix.gravlab.com:554/sample_50kbit.3gp

Windows Media
http://media.gravlab.com/powered.wmv
http://media.gravlab.com/racecar.wmv

From the Microsoft Expression Encoder download site:

“Microsoft^® Expression^® Encoder, a feature of Expression Media, offers encoding, enhancement, and publishing of rich media experiences to Microsoft Silverlight. “

Features Include:

Better Encoding

VC-1 advanced authoring SDK integration: by adopting the new VC-1 authoring SDK, Expression Encoder 2 is able to author better quality video faster. We’ve exposed a set of presets for tuning the encoder as well as detailed settings with comprehensive tooltips for the advanced compressionist.

New profiles, and video codecs for streaming media: Encoder 2 supports a number of new modes and codecs including Quality VBR, WMA Pro (stereo), WMA Lossless, 24 bit audio and audio/video encoding stream selection.

• Improved MPEG source support: We now include an MPEG 2 decoder in the product to give a consistent story across platforms. The decoder we ship supports transport streams (so you are able to work with sources that originated from HDV cameras. Seeking performance and accuracy has been greatly improved.

Recently, GravityLab Multimedia migrated all user data to a centralized rack of servers. This has changed a few things. First, all users will log into our FTP server with the following new host: ftp1.gravlab.com. Second, Windows Explorer users now must specify the username and password in the address bar along with the host name. So now you must use the following format when accessing your files from Windows Explorer: ftp://your_user_name:your_password@ftp1.gravlab.com/

The FLV file format is supported, but FLV files will be shown as progressive download only. Ultimately, this means that users will not be able to fast-forward to any part of the video that hasn’t been downloaded yet. For small files (under a minute long or so) this is not that noticeable. But if you wish to provide true streaming with longer videos, consider
having GravityLab encode and host your videos as Windows Media and Quicktime. This will ensure that your audience is receiving the optimal experience with your content. Are you absolutely convinced that you want to use flash? Contact us for a custom quote for true flash delivery using the Flash Media Server.

To display a banner image (along with a link to more information) while video is rendered in Windows Media Player, add an entry to a Windows Media metafile (a file with a .wvx file name extension) by doing the following:

1. In a text editor such as Notepad, add the following basic code while substituting the example server, paths, and file names with the appropriate information:
   
<ASX version = “3.0″>
<TITLE>Sample Demo</TITLE>
<BANNER HREF=”http://WebServerName/Images/Banner.bmp”>
<ABSTRACT>Learn more about our company</ABSTRACT>
<MOREINFO HREF=”http://WebServerName.com”/>
</BANNER>
<ENTRY>
<REF HREF=”mms://ServerName/PublishingPointName/Video.wmv”/>
</ENTRY>
</ASX>

   In the previous code, the HREF attribute of the BANNER element has the value http://WebServerName/Images/Banner.bmp that refers to a banner image (194 pixels wide by 32 pixels high) that is stored on a Web server. The text contained in the ABSTRACT element displays as a ToolTip when the user hovers over the banner graphic. Finally, when a user clicks the banner graphic, the URL provided in the MOREINFO element opens in a Internet browser, such as Internet Explorer. In this example, one digital media file named Video.wmv, which is stored on a computer running Windows Media Services, plays back in the Player.

When the iPhone was unveiled, the mobile phone market was instantly changed. Consumers raced to buy them, and sales exceeded all expectation. The iPhone now dominates the mobile phone market. But what does this mean for mobile streaming?

Unfortunately, the current version of the iPhone does not support 3rd generation phone features such as higher data transfer rates that allow true streaming video to be viewed on compatible mobile phones. The good news is that a 3G version of the iPhone is in development, and is supposed to be available sometime in 2008. But for now, the iPhone is a device that downloads video only. If you want a viewer to see your video on their iPhone, they have to download it from their computer and load it onto the iPhone through iTunes.

If you do want to encode video for the iPhone, here are the requirements:

1) Codec must be MPEG-4 or H.264
2) Resolution can be up to 720×480 (but its actual display resolution is 480×320)
3) Frame-rate: 24fps

That’s it!

Recently, GravityLab Multimedia made the switch to a new billing and support system. The new member center is available at http://members.gravlab.com/. From our member center, you can view your invoices, change your billing information, change your password, and more. Following are instructions on logging in.

1. Go to http://members.gravlab.com/
2. Enter your e-mail address for the login name
3. Your password should be the same as the password you use to upload files
4. Use the menu bar to navigate the different features.
5. When you are finished, log out

And as always, if you have any additional questions about our new billing system, contact support@gravlab.com

For those whose businesses rely on the Internet to produce revenue the latest Google update, nicknamed Jagger, was one of the biggest events in the past couple years (probably since the Florida Update of 2003). With this 3-part update Google has essentially changed many of the rules and have thrown the SEO community for a loop.

In this update there are a few key areas that have impacted the way sites rank and how an SEO (or a business owner optimizing their own site) needs to approach and address the various components. The key areas that have been affected with this update are:

• The history of your web pages
• The way backlinks are counted
• Site content & structure

GravityLab Multimedia offers several mobile video hosting plans, and many of our customers ask how they can create .3gp video files in order to stream the video to 3rd generation cell phones.

For this tutorial you will need a short clip of uncompressed video, including audio. You will also need Apple QuickTime Pro. You can buy a QuickTime Pro serial directly from Apple. Entering the serial number into the QuickTime player activates additional features in the software, including the ability to encode video to a variety of formats. See the “Buy QuickTime Pro…” option under the QuickTime player’s Help menu.
Once it is installed and running:

1. Load the uncompressed video clip using the player File > Open File… menu option.

2. Click on the File > Export… menu option.

3. Under the Export option choose “Movie to MPEG-4″, then click on the “Options…” button beside the Export drop down menu. (If your cell phone only plays .3gp video files, choose the 3G menu option instead of the MPEG-4 option.)

The key options are “File Format” and “Image Size.”

4. Choose MP4(ISMA) as the file format option. Although you probably will not know if your mobile phone is ISMA (a standards organization) compliant, try encoding with this option. If your device fails to play the file, try encoding with plain vanilla MP4.

5. Set the image size to the video resolution of your cell phone. If you choose the wrong size, your video may play and you will hear sound but it will have no image.

6. Select the Audio codec by clicking on the drop down menu at the top of the screen and choosing “Audio.”

7. Set the audio options to the following:

8. Upload the file to your cell phone and try to play it.

If your phone chokes on the video file, load the uncompressed file back into QuickTime Pro and try different settings to optimize the file size of the video.