Welcome to ITS Streaming Services

Media streaming provides a mechanism for you to allow users to access media content, such as movies or audio, while maintaining control over its distribution. ITS Streaming Services allows you to upload and use streaming content in your web sites, or anywhere a web link can be used.

When users access your movies or audio files, they will be able to watch or listen to the content, but they will not be able to save it to their own computer or redistribute it to others. The primary drawback to this distribution method is that they will only be able to view these items when they are connected to the Internet.

Getting a Streaming Services Account

Streaming Services accounts are available to Texas State faculty and staff groups and to individual Texas State faculty for instructional purposes. To sign up for an account, simply email ITS Academic Computing, using "Streaming Services account request" for the email's subject line.

Uploading Media to the Streaming Server

Uploading your content to the streaming media server is almost as easy as copying files to another folder on your own computer. Follow the instructions below for your operating system. Remember these few tips when copying your files to the server:

• When you are asked for a username and password, use your Texas State NetID (i.e. aa99) and password. Do not include a domain name, such as txstate/ or @txstate.edu
• IMPORTANT: Use only your own NetID. If additional persons need access to your streaming media folder, please have the folder's owner request the change by emailing tracs@txstate.edu. Be sure to include the folder name in your request, as well as the NetID you would like to grant access to.
• You may only upload file types that the streaming server can deliver to users. See Preparing Content for Use With Streaming Services for a list of supported file types. Uploading other types of files will produce an error message.
• Different operating systems respond to unsupported operations in different ways. If you receive an error message while using the server, check the following before contacting ITS for support:
  • If you are having problems logging in, be sure that your caps-lock key is not engaged. Passwords are case sensitive.
  • If you are having problems uploading a file, be sure that it is of one of the supported file types.
  • Remember, when you change the password associated with your NetID, you'll need to use the new password to access the streaming server. Occasionally, a short delay may occur after you change your password before you can use the new password to log in.

Connecting from Windows XP

1. Open My Computer, either by choosing it under the Start menu, or by double-clicking its icon on the desktop.
2. In the My Computer window, click My Network Places in the Other Places box on the left side of the window.
3. In the Network Tasks box that appears on the left side of the window, click Add a network place. The Add Network Place Wizard appears. Click Next > to continue.
4. From the list that appears, select Choose another network location and click Next >
5. In the Internet or network address: field, type https://stream.its.txstate.edu/users/<NetID>, substituting your NetID for <NetID> in the URL. For example, if your NetID is aa99, you would type https://stream.its.txstate.edu/users/aa99
6. After typing in the address, click Next >.
7. Type in your NetID and password and click OK
8. Click Next > to accept the default name for the new network place.
9. Click Finish.
10. To access the server in the future, simply return to My Network Places (steps 1 and 2) and double-click the server's icon.
11. To copy files to the server, drag them into Network Place you just created.

Note: you may be prompted for your NetID and password a second time. This is normal behavior and does not indicate an error.
Note: You may find a file named .htaccess in your folder. This file should be ignored. It cannot be removed.

Connecting from Windows Vista

The 32-bit version of Vista* is supported, but requires a hotfix to correct problems; it is called Software Update for Web Folders (KB907306), and can be downloaded here.

Once the hotfix has been applied, you will be able to access the streaming server by following these steps:

1. Click Start, Computer, then click Map Network Drive at the top, below the address and search bar
2. In the window titled Map Network Drive, click on the link towards the bottom that reads Connect to a Web site that you can use to store your documents and pictures
3. Click Next on the Welcome to the Add Network Location Wizard window
4. Select Choose a custom network location and click Next
5. In the Internet or network address field, type https://stream.its.txstate.edu/users/<NetID>, substituting your NetID for <NetID> in the URL. For example, if your NetID is aa99, you would type https://stream.its.txstate.edu/users/aa99
6. After typing in the address, click Next
7. Type in your NetID and password and click OK
8. Type a name for the share and click Next
9. Check Open this network location when I click Finish and then click Finish
10. You'll see in the left panel under Folders the name you chose in step 7.
11. To access the server in the future, simply return to Computer (step 1) and double-click the server's icon.
12. To copy files to the server, drag them into Network Location you just created.

Note: you may be prompted for your NetID and password a second time. This is normal behavior and does not indicate an error.
Note: You may find a file named .htaccess in your folder. This file should be ignored. It cannot be removed.

*At this time, connecting to the streaming server from the 64-bit version of Windows Vista is unsupported due to problems with WebDAV functionality. Once confirmation has been made that a patch has been issued to correct the problem in the 64-bit version, the above instructions will still apply. To check what version of Vista you are running, click Start, right-click Computer and select Properties. Under System, check the System Type

Connecting from Mac OS X

1. Switch to Finder
2. From the Go menu, choose Connect to server… (or press command-K)
3. In the Server Address: field, type https://stream.its.txstate.edu/users/<NetID>, substituting your NetID for <NetID> in the URL. For example, if your NetID is aa99, you would type https://stream.its.txstate.edu/users/aa99
4. Click Connect. In the dialog box that appears (entitled WebDAV File System Authentication), type your NetID and password, then click OK
5. Drag your files into the Finder window that appears.

Connecting Using Other Tools

Uploads to the streaming server are performed using WebDAV, so you may use any WebDAV-capable software to upload your content. Simply use the URL https://stream.its.txstate.edu/users/<NetID>, substituting your NetID for <NetID> in the URL. For example, if your NetID is aa99, you would use https://stream.its.txstate.edu/users/aa99. Log in with your Texas State NetID and password.

Accessing Your Streaming Media

End-user Requirements

To access content on the ITS Streaming Services system, your audience will need to have QuickTime® version 7 or greater installed. At the time of this writing, QuickTime® 7 is available for free for Windows 2000, Windows XP, and Mac OS X.

For your audience's convenience, you may want to provide a link to Apple's QuickTime® download page wherever you link to your streamed content. QuickTime® for Windows and Mac OS can be downloaded for free from http://www.apple.com/quicktime/download/.

It is preferred that you access streaming media through a high-speed internet connection.  All campus computers have suitable connections. If you do not have high-speed internet access, you may experience a lengthy delay before the media begins playing in the open browser window.

Linking Directly to Streaming Content 

To link to your streamed content from a web page or email, for instance, use the following URL format:

1. Begin with the URL that you used to connect to the streaming server to upload your content. That URL is https://stream.its.txstate.edu/users/<NetID>, where <NetID> is your NetID. For example, if your NetID is aa99, you would use https://stream.its.txstate.edu/users/aa99
2. To that URL, append a forward-slash ("/") followed by the name of the file you want to link to. For instance, if you uploaded a file named mymovie.mp4, and your NetID was aa99, you would now have https://stream.its.txstate.edu/users/aa99/mymovie.mp4. Advanced: If you have created any subfolders in your upload directory, you would need to add those to the URL, in front of the movie name.
3. Important: Change https at the beginning of the URL to http (eliminate the s).

Your final URL will look something like http://stream.its.txstate.edu/users/aa99/mymovie.mp4

Using Streaming Media in TRACS

Although full integration with TRACS is not yet available, using built-in functionality, you can reference your streaming media from TRACS, allowing your students or project members to view or listen to it.

1. In your TRACS worksite or project, add a new resource.
2. For the item type, choose URL (link to website)
3. In the URL field, type in the URL described in the preceding section.
4. Enter a descriptive title. Tip: append "(QuickTime)" to the title to let your audience know what they'll be connecting to.
5. Click Add

Your content will appear as a resource link, and will open in a new window when clicked.

Advanced: Embedding Content Into Web Pages

In some cases, you may want to embed streamed content directly into a web page. This technique can be relatively complex, but Apple provides documentation on how to use the <EMBED> and <OBJECT> tags to play video or audio on a web site. The HTML Scripting Guide for QuickTime explains the process.

When following these instructions, you should use the URL described above (in Linking Directly to Streaming Content) for the SRC parameter.

This technique can also be used inside an HTML Page resource in TRACS.

Preparing Content for Use with Streaming Services 

ITS Streaming Services uses Apple's QuickTime® technology. QuickTime® provides an easy-to-use, consistent way for your audience to view all sorts of media, including movies and MP3s. Media in QuickTime® format can be viewed on Windows and Mac OS operating systems of various versions.

In order to stream media from the Streaming Services server, you'll need to have it in one of the following formats:

• QuickTime® Movie (.mov)
• MPEG-4 Movie (.mp4)

IMPORTANT: When saving your file, be sure that you choose to make it "Hinted for Streaming" or choose the option to "Prepare for Internet Streaming." If you receive a "disconnected" error when trying the view the video, double-check that you've selected this option.

Audio Formats

MP3 is the most commonly used audio compression format. Most portable music players and audio applications support MP3, so tools for working with MP3 audio are abundant. AAC is a slightly higher-quality option, allowing for better-sounding audio with a smaller file size. Tools for working with AAC audio aren't as common those that support MP3, but Apple's free iTunes music player is capable of converting most other formats (including MP3) to AAC.

Whichever format you use, you should follow the guidelines below for encoding your audio for Streaming Services. These guidelines will produce audio that strikes a good balance between quality and file size.

IMPORTANT: Once you've encoded your audio, it will still have to be converted to a QuickTime movie file in order for the server to work with it. MP3 and AAC files cannot be used as-is with the streaming server.

Video Formats

QuickTime® movies can be created with a number of tools. On a Mac, iMovie, part of the iLife suite, is capable of working with QuickTime® footage and exporting movies to QuickTime®. QuickTime® Pro (a paid upgrade to the QuickTime® player, available on Mac OS and Windows) is the best tool for outputting high-quality video suitable for Streaming Services.

No matter which tool you choose to create your media, you will find that the options available for video and audio components are numerous and often overwhelming. If you're unsure what settings to use, save your movie in a full-quality format and consult someone knowledgeable about producing files suitable for streaming.

The Importance of File Size

Simply put, a smaller file size means that your audience will require lower network bandwidth when connecting to the streaming server. By sacrificing some quality in your video or audio, you allow your viewers to access your media more easily, sometimes even over a dial-up modem. It's important to consider this when preparing your content, and you should always use the lowest acceptable quality settings.

Although data storage space is fairly inexpensive, and most users' network bandwidth is commonly quite high, you should still make an effort to keep file sizes low for streamed content. To understand why, consider that a 10MB video containing 30 seconds of footage must be delivered at 10MB ÷ 30s = 333kbit/s to be viewed in real time. In contrast, a 5MB video containing 30 seconds of footage must only be delivered at half the speed: 5MB ÷ 30s = 167kbit/s. For modem users, under optimal conditions, this still means that the video will take three times the footage length just to download the video.

You can significantly reduce the size of media files by shrinking the dimensions of a video clip or using a low bit rate audio or video encoding setting. Test various quality settings to find one that is acceptable in quality and minimal in file size. Consider using audio-only formats for the most significant size reduction.

Support

Support for this service is provided by Instructional Technologies Support.

For help using videos with TRACS contact the help team at tracs@txstate.edu, or by phone at (512) 245-2319.

For help with video streaming in conjunction with the Gato content management system, email gato@txstate.edu.

For all other streaming server issues, such as uploading or encoding video, contact Academic Computing at itsac@txstate.edu, or by telephone at (512) 245-3787.

Before you contact support, please try following:

• If you are having problems logging in, be sure that your caps-lock key is not engaged. Passwords are case sensitive.
• If you are having problems uploading a file, be sure that it is of one of the supported file types.
• Remember, when you change the password associated with your NetID, you'll need to use the new password to access the streaming server. Occasionally, a short delay may occur after you change your password before you can use the new password to log in.

• If you or one of your students or project members is having problems viewing or listening to you content, please ensure that QuickTime® version 7 or later is installed and that it is the application designated to handle RTSP streams.  To download QuickTime® please go to http://www.apple.com/quicktime and click [Free Download Now].  Click [Save File].  Locate the saved iTunesSetup file and double-click on the icon to begin install.  Once QuickTime is installed, change the player settings so that it is your default player. Click [Edit], [Preferences] and then [QuickTime Preferences].  Under the File Types tab, check the following boxes “Streaming - Streaming Movies,” “MPEG – MPEG system, video and audio files” and “MP3 – MPEG layer III movies and streams.”  Click [OK].

• To make sure that QuickTime® is the application designated to handle RTSP streams please follow these steps:
  1. Open the QuickTime® control panel (in the Windows Control Panel or Mac OS X System Preferences)
  2. In Windows, click the File Types tab. On Mac OS X, click the Advanced tab and then click the MIME Settings… button.
  3. In the list, expand the Streaming item and ensure that RTSP is checked.
  4. Try again after closing all web browser windows (at a minimum) or restarting the computer (preferred).

• Are you using Mozilla Firefox as your web browser?  You can download a free copy of Firefox at http://www.getfirefox.com.  Click [Download Firefox - Free].  Click [Save] and select a location to save your file.  After the download is complete, click [Run].

• It is preferred that you access streaming media through a high-speed internet connection.  All campus computers have suitable connections. If you do not have high-speed internet access, you may experience a lengthy delay before the media begins playing in the open browser window.