Presents…“Best Encoding

Practices”

For use with

Ways to distribute video on the web

Ensemble offers 2 different ways to deliver video content:

•Progressive Download

•Streaming

Streaming vs. Progressive Download

Progressive download

•Downloads the entire file to the user’s hard drive.•File will play as it becomes available but it does not take into account optimization of bandwidth.•Users cannot “jump” to different points in the video that have not yet downloaded.

Streaming vs. Progressive Download

Streaming

•Optimizes the use of bandwidth.•Less likely to skip.•Users can “jump” to different points of a video.•Is purged from local computers when the video is done.

Server List

Overview of video terms

Encoding – The process of making a video MUCH smaller so it can more easily be sent over the web.

Bitrate – The higher the “bitrate” typically the higher the quality of the video itself. A bitrate that is too low often appears to be overly pixelated.

Framerate – The number of different frames that will appear in a second of time. Hollywood movies are typically 25-30 frames per second. A framerate too low will give the impression that the movement is somewhat choppy.

Overview of Video Terms

Compression – the technique used to make a video smaller when the software “encodes” it. Different types of compression affect the final quality of the video and also the server that it can be hosted from.

Compression types:h.264 (.m4v, .f4v, .mp4) - the newest high standard in compression.

Flash (.flv) – also known as Flash, this type is another great choice for the web.

Windows Media (.wmv – the standard for Windows Movie Maker, this format needs Windows Media Player to play.

Workflow for Exporting Video

Windows Movie Maker

iMovie ‘09

Adobe Premiere CS4 and CS5

Windows Movie Maker

Windows Movie Maker

Follow the steps by clicking “Next” until a .wmv file is created on your computer

Make sure that you upload the .wmv file to the Windows Media Server within Ensemble.

iMovie ‘09

When you have finished editing your creation, click on Share and then Export using QuickTime

iMovie ‘09

Name your video then click save. When the movie finishes exporting RENAME the .mov extension to .mp4, and then upload the file to the Flash Streaming Server within Ensemble.

Adobe Premiere CS4 and CS5

When you’re ready to export your video, go to File->Export->Media

Adobe CS4 and CS5

As you can see there are a TON of options. The most important to consider is the H.264 compression under Format, the Frame width and height is 720 x 480 or less, and the file size is under 1500MB or 1.5GB.

If the video does not meet these specifications, it’s best to either lower the bitrate, reduce the Frame Width and Height or possibly cut the video into multiple parts.