Blogs

Just a quick note about my new book, Mastering Webcam and Smartphone Video: How to Look & Sound Great in Webinars and Videoconferences ($24.95). Here’s the who, what, where, why, and when. Who:  The book is targeted towards non-media professionals who produce webinars or frequently Skype or FaceTime with business associates.  What: The book provides media and technical training to help those …

My article, The Great UHD Codec Debate: Google’s VP9 vs. HEVC/H.265, is up on Streaming Media. Here’s the intro that describes what I tried to do. As of today, the great UHD codec debate involves two main participants: Google’s VP9 and HEVC/H.265. Which one succeeds—and where—involves a number of factors and will likely differ in various streaming-related markets, which I …

(February 4, 2017: While the Fnord plug-in appears to be available, there’s no mention of the HEVC plug-in on the Vanguard site. Note that AME now has HEVC encoding in the latest version, most likely using the MainConcept HEVC codec). In their latest Creative Cloud reveal, which I wrote about here, Adobe didn’t include either HEVC or VP9 in Adobe …

Someone sent me an email this morning asking about DRM-related information. I collected these resources for him, and then thought it might make a useful blog post. So, if you’re interested in Digital Rights Management, here are four resources you can check out on the Streaming Learning Center and beyond. 1. I gave a session on DRM at Streaming Media …

My article on HEVC Advance is up on Streaming Media. Here’s the opening section which tells what’s covered. On March 24, HEVC Advance, an independent licensing administrator announced a new HEVC patent pool, in addition to the one being offered by MPEG LA. In this article, we’ll explore exactly what that means and what the implications are. To gather this …

My article, A Buyer’s Guide to Cloud-Based Video Encoding and Transcoding 2015, just appeared on StreamingMedia.com. It covers both live and VOD encoding, and should be useful for anyone considering a significant investment in on-premise encoding gear, or those seeking to move to the cloud. Click here to read the article. 

My article, a Buyer’s Guide to Live Video Encoders 2015, just appeared on StreamingMedia.com. Here’s the intro graph that covers what’s covered.  Congratulations, you’re buying a live encoder. In 2014, Ooyala released survey results showing that live videos are watched, on average, 11 times longer than VOD videos. So taking your presentation, webinar, or other production live is a great …

My article, a Buyer’s Guide to On-Demand Encoders 2015, just appeared on StreamingMedia.com. Here’s the lead graph that describes what I cover.  Choosing an encoding tool is a fundamental decision for anyone posting video to a website. In this video-on-demand (VOD) encoding buyer’s guide, I’ll run through the most relevant product categories, point out noteworthy examples, and identify the factors …

My article, How to Encode to HEVC: A Simple Guide for H.265 First Timers, just appeared on StreamingMedia.com. I did a lot of testing with x.265 and the MainConcept HEVC codecs to understand the quality/encoding time tradeoffs of their various features. If you’re starting to produce with either of these codecs, you’ll find it a useful primer.  Click here to …

An interesting story on Silverlight, Flash and HTML5 just appeared on StreamingMedia.com. By way of background, Panopto is a lecture and presentation capture and sharing platform used by leading academic institutions and Fortune 500 companies around the world. The company originally based their products around Silverlight, but had to change because Chrome will soon no longer load the Silverlight plug-in.  …