Download Video Monkey 4. Adding movies for encoding 10. Encode to Flash 11. Encode to Windows Media 16. Access Mediacast 21. Upload a Flash video 23

Transcription

1 Mediacast

2 Mediacast 1 Download and install for Apple only 1.1 Download Video Monkey 4 2 Encoding video Adding movies for encoding 10 Encode to Flash 11 Encode to Windows Media 16 3 Upload to Mediacast Access Mediacast 21 Upload a Flash video 23 4 Link builder 4.1 External link builder 34 5 Handbrake 5.1 Rip that DVD only if its your own 37

3 Download and install for Apple only Mediacast - 3

4 Download Video Monkey Video Monkey is an open source video encoder. A video encoder is a piece of software that converts one video format to other video formats. This is very useful if you need video to be in a particular format. Mediacast is one example. Mediacast requires that the video meet certain requirements. Video Monkey will permit you to format the video in a variety of formats. These formats include FLV, MP4, and WMV. These are the common formats that Mediacast accepts. This converter is currently only available for Apple computers. In this lesson we will walk through the process of downloading this free open source application. Video Monkey home page Go over the the home page for Video Monkey. The web page is at When you arrive at the site home page you will see several tabs under the banner. Click the Downloads tab. Mediacast - 4

5 Current release Video Monkey is an open source application with a community of developers. They are always updating the software to make it more compatible with the latest formats and Apple operating systems. Download the most current version. In this example the current release is videomonkey Download the file by clicking the file name. The file size is just under 22 Megabytes. Save the compressed file The file is compressed as a zip. If you are asked what to do with the file, click the save file option and click OK. Files are usually downloaded into the download folder. Mediacast - 5

6 The compressed file The compressed fill should be found in your download folder. To access the file you will need to decompress the file. To decompress the file double click the videomonkey file. VideoMonkey file The VideoMonkey file should appear. The VideoMonkey video converter does not require administrator access to install and use. The application is currently in your download folder. If you are a teacher, the applications folder is password protected. So, you will not be able to place this application into that folder. Luckily Apple does not require that all application be placed into the Mediacast - 6

7 Applications folder. Video Monkey onto the desktop For this example I want to place Video Monkey onto my desktop so I can have ready access. Drag and drop the application onto your desktop. Start Video Monkey Now that Video Monkey is on your desktop, double click to make sure it works. Mediacast - 7

8 Application warning Apple will warn you that this application was downloaded from the Internet. You will be asked if you are sure you want to open it. Click the Open button. Check for updates Checking for updates is always a good idea. This way you can be aware of the current enhancements and bug fixes. You don't always have to update. Click the Check Automatically button. Up and running Video Monkey is now installed and ready. Mediacast - 8

9 Encoding video Mediacast - 9

10 Adding movies for encoding The first step in encoding videos is to add them to the Video Monkey cue. This process is as easy as drag and drop. Drag and drop videos Open a finder window with your videos. Drag a video from your finder over the the Video Monkey video list. You can drag as many videos as you need to convert. That is why I call it the Video Monkey cue. The videos are cued for conversion one at a time. This can be a real time saver if you need to convert a handful of videos. Video cue The video will appear in the cue. Each line contains basic information about the video. This information includes the file size, duration, location, dimensions and frame rate. We'll look at these as we walk through the process of converting video to different formats. Mediacast - 10

11 Encode to Flash Flash is a standard developed my a company called Macromedia. Macromedia was later acquired by Adobe. Video encoded for flash uses the Adobe Flash plugin player that is standard on most machines around the world. Encoding video in this format currently provides the format with the greatest access to the largest number of users. This is the format used by YouTube and other Internet video services. Convert to options At the bottom of the cue panel you will see a pull down menu of video conversion options. Click this menu option. Mediacast - 11

12 Default and options The default is to make your video available to all Apple devices. This is usually the best option for most conversions. In this example, though, we want to convert our video for Mediacast and Internet streaming on Flash. Flash option Click the Flash option from the menu of choices. Mediacast - 12

13 Flash encode options The default options for Flash are automatically set. These, however, are not the best options. So we will tweak them for a better video experience. The video quality is set to below Low. This will result in a very poor quality video. We need to move this over to Standard. I would not raise it more than this because the file size will increase and result in your users having to wait to watch the video. Use the standard quality and, if you don't like the way it look, you can always re-encode the video. Video size You probably already have the video at the dimensions you would like to stream. The default option is to reduce the dimensions of your video to 320 pixels wide. This is a good dimension if you want to place the video onto your web site but not as good as it could be for using Mediacast. Remove the check mark from this option to use the dimensions you used to create the video. Make sure that the Raw.FLV Format has a check mark. This is very important. Mediacast - 13

14 Output parameters Place a check mark in the option to Limit output params to input. This will assure that the video closely resembles your original video. A Normal encode speed is best for most purposes. I would leave this option at normal Begin encoding To begin the encoding process click the Start button. This will encode all the videos in your cue that have a check mark. They will all be encoded with the same settings. Mediacast - 14

15 Encode progress A progress bar will appear to the right of the check box. Encode successful When all the videos have been encoded you will see an encoding successful confirmation box. Click OK. The video will be converted into the same folder of the original video. So, if your original movie was in the Movies folder then the converted video will be in the same folder. Converted FLV file The converted Flash video file will have the.flv extension. The icon on your video might not look the same as mine. That's OK. I have different software on my computer for this video file. It does not change the way the video will be uploaded or work in Mediacast. Mediacast - 15

16 Encode to Windows Media Windows media is another streaming format. This format is more common on computers with the Windows operating and the Windows Media Player. Apple computers usually are not able to play video encoded as a Windows Media Video(WMV). Apple computers need a plug-in from a company called Flip4Mac. This plugin is free and includes the ability to play.wmv files and any media encoded for Silverlight. Silverlight is a plugin similar to Flash. I permits Windows and Apple computers to view Windows Media Video and any other application developed under Silverlight. If you are on an Apple and cannot view Windows Media content then you will need to install the plugin from Flip4Mac. Look at the chapter on installing plugins. Windows Media Video To convert the video in your cue to Windows Media, select WMV from the pull down menu. Mediacast - 16

17 The WMV option The WMV option is right above the Flash option. Encode quality Move the quality slider over to Standard. Make sure that Encode only is selected from the pull down menu and remove the 320 pixels wide option. The encode only option is selected because we don't need any addition parameters or information for uploading to Mediacast. Standard quality Mediacast - 17

18 is usually good but it can be adjusted if you don't like the look of your video. Removing 320 pixels wide will assure that the video matches your video dimension options. Output parameters Set the encoding speed to normal and place a check mark on limit output params to input. This option will match the video settings of your original video as closely as possible. Begin encoding Click the Start button to begin the encode process. Mediacast - 18

19 Encoding process A progress bar will appear next to the check box. Successful encoding When the encoding is complete you will see a confirmation dialogue box. Click the OK button. The encoded video will be converted to the same folder of the original video. Encoded file The encoded file will appear in the folder with a.wmv extension. Don't worry if the icon on yours does not look like the one in this example. I might have different software on my computer to view this video and the icon will represent that software on my computer. Mediacast - 19

20 Upload to Mediacast Mediacast - 20

21 Access Mediacast Log into the Ysleta Mediacast site to upload your video. This lesson will walk you through the process of logging onto Mediacast. Mediacast site Go to the following page at Mediacast - 21

22 Login Use your district username and password to login. Mediacast - 22

23 Upload a Flash video In this lesson we will see how to upload a Flash encoded video into Mediacast. Mediacast admin You will need to have admin rights to upload a video into Mediacast. You should see the Admin tab on the right. Click on the Admin tab. Media Resources On the admin page click the media resources option. The other options on this menu might be different depending on your level of access. Mediacast - 23

24 Add new video resource When the media resources are disclosed, click the Add New link. Media options A page will appear with all the media options that are available in Mediacast. Adobe Flash options Find the Adobe Flash option and click on the radio button. Mediacast - 24

25 FLV and next step For the flash option to the right you will see the first extension is FLV. Click the Next Step button. Title and description On the next step enter a meaningful title and description for your video. Title and description sample This is my example for the video I will upload. Mediacast - 25

26 Main category Select a main category for your video. Category options When you click on the category some other options will become available. The availability of these categories depends on your level of access. I won't cover these options at the moment. Mediacast - 26

27 A subcategory Click on a sub category to the right of the main category. If you don't have an appropriate sub category, you will need to create one. Subject area Below the category section you will find an area to select the subject for your video. Subject example In this example I selected training. Mediacast - 27

28 Author A pull down menu allows you to set the author of the video. This pull down menu contains the list of previous authors. If your name or the name of the author does not appear, enter that information in the box to the right. New author If the author is not on the pull down list, enter the name or names here in this box. Each author needs to be separated by a colon. Publisher Enter the publisher information just like you entered the author information. Mediacast - 28

29 More information There is more information to be filled in. Enter all the relevant information for your video. When you're done, click the Next Step button. Expiration date For most media you won't need an expiration date. In this example I will leave it without expiration. Access control For most situations access will be set to public. I would recommend you leave this option to public. Only district employees will be able to access the video with district credentials. Mediacast - 29

30 Advanced options For most situations you won't need to place any options here. When you're done, click the Next Step button. Media monster Click the Media Monster link to select the server for uploading the video. Select your video file Click the Select file(s) for upload button. Select the file Find the file and double click the file to begin the upload process. The process will begin immediately. Mediacast - 30

31 Finished Click the Finished button when the file is finished uploading. Another finished You will return to the page with the Media Monster link. Click the Finished button. Preview Your video is not uploaded. Click the preview link to take a look at your video. Mediacast - 31

32 Video preview Your video will appear on a new page. Everything should work just fine. Mediacast - 32

33 Link builder Mediacast - 33

34 External link builder Sometimes it can be very useful to provide a link to your video. The external link builder is a tool that helps you create an external link you can share. External link builder Click the External URL Builder link. External link information Enter your district credentials in the username and password fields. This is necessary so users won't need to enter their credentials to view the video. Don't place an expiration date. Mediacast - 34

35 External link example In this example I have entered my credentials for the link. When you are done click the Proceed button to the right. Your link A page will appear with the link created for this video. Copy and share this URL in any manner you need. There is also a link that will this URL to anyone. Mediacast - 35

36 Handbrake Mediacast - 36

37 Rip that DVD only if its your own Handbrake is a free open source software that rips video content from a DVD. This should only be done with video content that was created by you and is not part of any commercial distribution. Abide by copyright laws! Don't get in trouble! Don't copy that DVD if it's not yours!! You will need to download two pieces of software to make this work. The first is HandBrake itself and the other is VideoLan. VideoLan is an open source video player. This software is used by HandBrake to help decode the contents of a DVD. Let's download HandBrake The first software you will need is of course HandBrake. Go to the web page shown in this example. The web page address is handbrake.fr. Mediacast - 37