Glossary of Video Terms Bit Rate: Bit rate is the rate at which bits of information are transferred from one location to another. In other words it is a measurement of how much data is transmitted in a specifc amount of time. For example: bits per second (bps), kilobits per second (Kbps), or megabits per second (Mbps). For example, a DSL connection may be able to download data at 768 kbps, while a Firewire 800 connection can transfer data up to 800 Mbps. Bitrate also describes the quality of an audio or video file. For example, a video file or stream that is compressed or transmitted at 3000 Kbps will look better than the same file at 1000 Kbps. Just like the quality of an image is measured in resolution, the quality of an audio or video file is measured by the bitrate. There is a trade off though. The higher the bit rate of a stream, the more bandwidth and faster connection will be requested. Video Formats: The video format is the type of file that your video content is being saved or streamed using. There are many, many video formats out there, each with their own set of pros and cons. H.264 is a new video codec standard format which is able to achieve high quality video at a relatively low bit rate. It is the preferred format to use when streaming with WebNet. RTMP: RTMP (Real Time Messaging Protocol) is a popular protocol for streaming video on-demand (VOD) and live media to Adobe Flash players (like the JW Player). RTMP supports video in MP4 and FLV and audio in AAC and MP3. RTMP offers several advantages over regular HTTP video downloads: RTMP can stream live video. Your vistors can watch a video while it is being recorded. RTMP can stream dynamiclly. The video quality automatically adjusts to changes in bandwidth. Players can seek to later parts in a streaming video; useful for large files. Players maintains a tiny buffer instead of having downloading an entire video during playback, saving bandwidth. Frame Rate: Frame rate refers to the number of still images, or frames, that are displayed in one second of video. It is measured in Frames Per Second (fps). Higher frame rates produce a smoother motion in a video but will use more bandwidth and require a higher speed connection. Low frame rates may cause rough or choppy video broadcasts but will stream better on mobile devices and slower connections. Sporting events and action movies would benifit from a higher frame rate then say church services, instructional videos, and live webcams. For these, you can safely lower the frame rate without impacting the quality of the broadcast. For example, a 15fps frame rate will still allow you to broadcast a clear stream for these types of content. Video Ads: A video ad is a pre-roll or post-roll video ad that plays before or after the video once the visitor presses play. Companion Ads: The companion ads are the graphic, non-video ads that show to the side of the player itself. Video GUID: This is the unique video ID in our system. API Links Player Width: The width of the player in pixels. Player Height: The height of the player in pixels. Show Playlist: If selected, a user defined list of videos will appear under the main video player. Playlist Items: The number of items in the playlist. Auto Play: If selected, the video will begin playing when the page loads or is selected from the playlist. Show Video Ads: If selected, videos ads will be played before or after the video once the visitor presses play (or when the page loads, if auto play is selected.) Show Companion Ads: If selected, graphic, non-video ads will be displayed to the side of the player itself. Show Share: If selected, the visitor will be given an option to share the video on their website. Show Filter: If selected, the visitor will be given an option to filter the playlist by category, genre, etc. Category: You may select the category of videos that will be listed in the playlist. User: If you have multiple user subaccounts, you may select which user’s videos will be included in the playlist. Media Type: You may limit the type of items included in the playlist by media type: Audio, Video, or Live Stream. Start Row: In the API Links section the start row lets a user choose which videos they would like to show. If I wanted to create two separate galleries on a single page and the first gallery was called “Top 5 Most Recent Videos” I would select a start row of 0 and I will set the end row to 4. This will pull the top 5 videos (this will change depending on your sort selection.) Then somewhere else on that page, or elsewhere on the site I could have another gallery called “Video Archive” and in this gallery I would set the START row to 5 and the END row to 100. This will pull the next 95 videos (not including the top 5.) Number of Items: The number of items, as defined in the previous FAQ item. Thumbnail Width: The width of the thumbnail that will be used as a placeholder in playlists. Thumbnail Height: The height of the thumbnail that will be used as a placeholder in playlists. Play in Iframe: If selected, the player code will be placed inside iframe tags to make it easier to include in some HTML pages. Sticky Livestream: If selected, when both VOD and Live Streams are included in the same playlist, the Live Stream will always appear on top.
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