UStream

The following article on UStream is from [|www.novemberlearning.com]

You’re at work and it’s 1:30. You know that your daughter is headed to history class where she will be presenting the research that she and her classmates have been spending the past two weeks preparing. Not wanting to miss a moment, you quickly logon to the class’ live video feed to watch the presentation. Excited to see the result of their work, you also call your spouse to remind him of the broadcast. Unfortunately due to a meeting, he can’t watch at this time. No worries. He’ll catch it tonight as it’s been archived every step of the way. Sound far-fetched or too difficult to do? For years, schools have weighed the costs and benefits of streaming live video from inside of school. Those who have taken the plunge have quickly found this form of broadcasting not to be for the faint of heart. High speed Internet connections, sophisticated software, streaming Web servers, expensive cameras and someone to run it all are just some of the pieces that have been needed to pull this off. Not anymore. Now, with nothing more than an Internet connection and an inexpensive webcam, every classroom can have a Web based broadcast studio. Ustream (http://www.ustream.tv) is a Web based tool that allows anyone to create shows that can be broadcasted live, broadcasted live and archived, or simply taped off air to be presented to an audience at a later time. These broadcasts can be published for anyone to view or can be password protected for a private audience. Upon visiting the Ustream Web site and exploring a bit, you will quickly see that this tool is being used for a variety of purposes. On any given day, you might see a speech being given by a presidential candidate, a conference session being presented by a doctor or a talk show being simulcast on TV or on the radio. You might even see students putting together shows for school assignments or individual interests. That’s the great part about this tool. It opens up the option to broadcast to anyone. Let’s try it out and see what a channel in Ustream looks like. Navigate to the Ustream Web site. When you get there, a video will start playing. The video that plays is random and changes variably. To the right of that window, there is a box that you can scroll through to see all of the shows being broadcast live at a given time. Click on one of the shows and it will replace the video in the main window. Below the video that is playing, click on the button that says, Go to Show Room and Chat. You will be taken to that show’s channel. Every user who wants to broadcast on Ustream must register and create a channel. This will give you the Web address (URL) that you will give to your viewers. When you get to a broadcaster’s channel, you will see a video window and a chat box. If that broadcaster is live, you should see the video playing, and you may see activity in the chat box. Below the video and chat windows, you will see show information as well as any videos that have been recorded and saved. If you see these recorded videos, you can click them to start viewing on demand. Then, if you would like to embed them into a blog or web site or share a link, you can do so by capturing this information from the channel’s main page.
 * Introducing Ustream**

As stated earlier, all you need to broadcast is an Internet connection with appropriate bandwidth and a webcam that works with your computer. For Ustream, the important number to keep in mind for bandwidth is the upload speed. You are going to be uploading a lot of video and need a speed that can support it. Thankfully, the upload speeds aren’t too demanding. You can broadcast a basic show with only 300-350 kb/s. If you have a cable, DSL, T1 or other form of high-speed access, this should not be a problem. The more speed you have, the better quality your audio and video will be. To test your upload speed, visit @http://www.dslreports.com/speedtest?flash=1. Any webcam that works with your computer should work with Ustream. You can use an external webcam or one built into many of today’s laptops and desktops. These built-in cameras are a bit less flexible when you want to point a camera in a particular direction, but they will work in a pinch. You can also record with an advanced digital camera as long as it can be connected to your computer. To get started, signup by clicking on the link in the top right corner at http://www.ustream.tv. Once signed up and logged in, click on the My Shows link. Here, you can name your show and set up the show’s preferences. These preferences include a description, background colors and fonts, chat room settings, password requirements, etc. These are all great to setup but not required if you just want to jump in and get started. To start broadcasting, click the large button that says, Broadcast Now. Doing so will open a recorder window that has a few more settings. First, a Flash permissions window will pop up asking to use your camera. Click Allow. Then, you will see settings that allow you to select the appropriate audio and video inputs for your setup. You may have to try each input if you’re not sure which to choose. You’ll know you have the correct audio input if you see the volume meter light up as you speak, and you will know you have the correct video input if you see your camera activated in the video window. At this point, you can click the Start Broadcast button and you’re live. If at any point during your broadcast viewers tell you that the video or audio looks or sounds choppy, you might try adjusting the audio and video quality sliders. If you do adjust these, there will come a point where if too low, the quality will be too distracting for your viewers. Practice using these adjustment sliders, and look to use them only as needed. They may need to be adjusted a bit for each broadcast, as your network conditions and those of your viewers are not constant. If you have not set any password protection, your show is live for the world to see as soon as you click Start Broadcast. Your show will be on the main Ustream site (though not necessarily the featured video) and anyone will be able to view it by providing them with the show’s URL. You can also put a link to your show or embed it within a blog or Web site. As I stated earlier, you can choose to broadcast live, broadcast live and record or record only for distribution at a later time. This is all done with the two buttons in the recorder window Start Broadcast and Start Recording. Clicking one or both of these will accomplish the desired task. Once you get familiar with the basics of broadcasting, you may decide to step things up a bit. Using a few other tools like CamTwist (Mac, Free, @http://www.allocinit.com/index.php?title=CamTwist) or WebCam Max (PC, $29.95, @http://www.webcammax.com/), you can create different effects in your broadcast, include picture in picture setups and even include broadcasts of your computer’s desktop. Know that using these tools and their effects often require a bit more bandwidth then a basic broadcast would. Whether you want to broadcast projects presented from school, share special events within the community, expand on opportunities for viewing faculty development sessions for your district or simply want to experiment with broadcasting your interests to a world-wide audience, Ustream is a tool that you will want to add to your arsenal. Give it a try. Set up a class broadcast team and start sharing students’ learning experiences with the world. Questions? Contact brian@novemberlearning.com.
 * What’s Needed to Broadcast?**
 * Setting Up Your Channel and Broadcasting**
 * Sharing Your Broadcasts**
 * Advanced Broadcasting**
 * Conclusion**