A   S t r e a m i n g   M e d i a   P r i m e r :  

H O W   D O   I   P U T   M Y   S T R E A M I N G   M E D I A   O N  T H E  W E B ?

HOW DO I PUT MY STREAMING MEDIA ON THE WEB?

A URL that begins with HTTP:// points to a Web server; a URL that begins with RTSP:// points to a streaming server.

Like any other resource fi le you publish on the Web, you post your media fi le to a server that has a con 

nection to the Internet and an accessible IP address. Like any other resource fi le served over the Web, 

your streaming media fi le is referenced by a URL (uniform resource locator). But there are some signifi  

cant differences between publishing Web pages and downloadable fi les vs. publishing streaming media.

PUBLISHING STREAMING MEDIA

Web server vs. streaming server what's the difference?

Earlier in this primer, we distinguished between a Web server and a streaming server. Publishing your 

streaming media fi les on a Web server is possible, but it results in pseudo streaming (aka progressive 

download, aka HTTP streaming, aka fast start streaming in the QuickTime architecture). For true 

streaming (aka hinted streaming in the QuickTime architecture), streaming media fi les must be posted 

to a streaming server.

Are you absolutely, positively sure you want to do true streaming?

Web server pros

Web server cons

Streaming server pros

Streaming server cons

   No special server software 

   Can't transmit live feeds

   Only way to transmit live feeds

   Requires a streaming server

needed; just use your Web server

   Can't broadcast or multicast

   Broadcasts and multicasts (one 

   Playback may be disrupted or 

   Media gets through no matter 

   No fl exibility for end user e.g. 

stream to many viewers)

delayed if data rate exceeds 

how slow the connection, because 

end user cannot skip  chapters  

   VOD (video on demand) fi les 

connection speed or available 

lost packets are retransmitted 

audience must download fi le in its 

can provide fl exible access 

bandwidth

until they are received

entirety, from beginning to end

for end users 

   Media typically loses some data in 

   With fast connections, media 

   Leaves a copy of the media 

   Doesn't leave a copy of the movie 

transmission, and lost packets are 

plays as it downloads, so it seems 

fi le on the end user's hard disk, 

on the viewer's hard disk

gone for good

like streaming to the audience

risking unauthorized alteration 

   Does not use up space on end 

   Firewalls may not allow 

   End user gets to keep a copy of 

and/or redistribution

user's hard disk

streaming fi les to pass

the fi le to play and/or share

   Bandwidth usage can adjust 

   No problems with fi rewalls

to conditions

What kind of streaming media server(s) do I need?

If you do not plan to stream too many fi les to very many people, and you can be sure that your entire 

audience will be happy to use the same, single architecture, then you probably need only one server. 

And it is possible to run your streaming server software on the same computer which is functioning 

as your Web server.

But if your audience is large and you want to offer the opportunity for the end user to choose which 

player to use, remember that you need a different streaming server for each architecture you plan to 

support. To serve streams that are compatible with the three dominant architectures, you'll need server 

software from Microsoft for Windows Media (.asf) fi les, from Real for RealMedia (.rm) fi les, and from 

Apple for hinted QuickTime (.mov) fi les. What this means in terms of machines, is that you'll need 

a Windows or Unix operating system to run all three servers, since Windows Media and RealMedia 

namic Media

servers do not run on MacOS.

y

In terms of hardware, the amount of storage you need can be calculated using the bandwidth math 

basics you've already learned in this primer multiply the bit rate of your streaming media (in kilobits 

per second) by the length of the media (in seconds) and divide by 8, to arrive at the amount of disk 

obe D

space (in kilobytes) you need for your streaming media fi les:  

d

(Kbps X seconds)

A

=  KB

8

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