A leading expert on H.264 encoding for live and on-demand production, and as contributing editor to Streaming Media Magazine, has tested most cloud, enterprise and desktop encoding tools, worked with most online video platforms (OVPs) and live streaming services, and many webcast platforms.
HEVC comes with two benefits; equivalent quality to H.264 at about half the data rate, and ultra-high definition video. One big question about the new technology, however, is the impact of HEVC playback on device battery life, which is critical given how quickly mobile viewing is growing. Techspot’s Tim Schiesser focused on this issue in…
Producing a live event? Do you need a webcasting system like On24, a live streaming service provider like Livestream, or a conferencing solution like GoToMeeting or Google Hangouts? Not sure? Find out in my article, How to Choose and Implement a Webcasting Solution, from the fabulous 2014 Streaming Media Sourcebook. Here’s the brief intro which details what’s…
Interested in HEVC (H.265)? My article regarding same is now available on the Streaming Media website, here. Here’s the intro to give you an idea about what’s covered. While few companies of any kind are actually making money from HEVC (H.265) today, the successor to H.264 will become increasingly important during the next 2–3 years,…
I’m pretty good getting the color and brightness right on clips that I upload to YouTube, but sometimes it’s a bit tougher with webinars, especially when they are self produced. I was checking some past webinars produced on YouTube Live for a seminar I’m producing at Streaming Media East 2014 and noticed that my face…
This is one of 42 lessons from my course Video Compression for Web, Disc and PC/TV/Console Playback, on Udemy. It covers how to use HandBrake to encode for streaming. As you may know, HandBrake is a free cross-platform encoder that does a great job encoding using the x264 codec. It’s especially useful when encoding for…
Note: With the June 2014 release of iBooks Author, the procedures discussed here no longer work. Good luck with your iBooks Author encodes. I held the webinar, Encoding for iBooks Author, on March 25. The webinar, which was sponsored by TalkPoint and used their new self-serving Convey webinar system, went off without a hitch. I’ve…
Many encoding pros spend an inordinate amount of time tweaking obscure H.264 compression parameters, while the fastest way to improve quality might just be optimizing the color and brightness of your source videos. You can see that in the image on the left. Because I shot this video in a conference room lit by overhead…
Considering a cloud encoder? My article, A Buyer’s Guide to Cloud Encoders, from the fabulous 2014 Streaming Media Sourcebook, is up on the Streaming Media webiste. Here’s the scintillating intro which tells what’s covered in the article. There are many instances where cloud encoding is both efficient and cost-effective. For example, if you’re working with files already saved…
Producing a live event in the near term and need to choose an encoder? My article, A Buyer’s Guide to Live Encoders, from the fabulous 2014 Streaming Media Sourcebook, is up on the Streaming Media webiste. Here’s the brief intro which details what’s covered in the article. All live events start with an encoded stream produced by a…
I received this email the other day from the Division Manager of Web Based Services for a large southern city. He said: While doing research, I found your “Choosing a Live Streaming Encoder” presentation on YouTube. I found it very informative and took many good notes. We will most likely end up going with a…