Latest trends on different free video capture software

Webcasting involves delivering audio and visual content over the internet. Webcasting would not be possible without the emergence of webcast technology, which allows audio and visual content to be streamed over the internet to listeners and viewers. There is now free webcasting technology available (including free video capture software and free encoding programs), which allows many more people to produce their own webcast.

Streaming technology is needed for webcasting. This is real-time transport protocol over user datagram protocol.

Webcast technology has provided benefits for radio stations, news corporations, companies, organizations and individuals. People can now communicate over the internet without having to require people to read and focus on a particular website. Video and audio material can be viewed or listened to as people are doing other tasks. Many people are using the new webcast technology to spread messages, provide training and information and for advertisement purposes.

Webcasting Technology

Webcasting technology refers to all the technology that allows people to broadcast audio and visual content over the internet. While looking at webcast technology, you may need to think about some of the following things.

Streaming Vs Progressive Download

There are two main methods of delivering audio and visual content over the internet, streaming and progressive download. Progressive download uses a standard web server to transmit the video or audio file. Streaming allows the audio or video file to be broadcast in real-time over the internet.

Content Creation

Content creation technology allows the audio and video file to be created and converted (or encoded) into a format that is appropriate for delivery over the internet. In order to create a file that can be broadcast using webcast technology, special software will need to used. Audio and video files will not be able to be broadcast over the internet unless they are in the correct format.

Webcasting Formatting

Webcasts need to be delivered in a particular webcasting format. People who wish to view or listen to the webcast will need to have the appropriate player that allows playing of the format. Some companies choose to deliver their webcasts in more than one format to allow a greater number of people to access it. The three main types of formats are Real Player, Windows Media and QuickTime. MP3 and Ogg audio streaming are also possible audio streaming formats.

Different Software for Different Formats

The software required to create and distribute a webcast may depend on the format you wish to use for your webcast. The three main players for streaming media are Real Networks, Microsoft and Apple.

Real Networks allows people to use Real Player to download and view or listen to webcasts. Real has a range of server and encoding software that suits both Unix and Windows platforms. The main authoring tool for Real Media is Real Producer. There are free and pay versions available.
Windows has provided the Windows Media Player to allow people to view or listen to webcasts. Windows Media Player plays many different types of media content. There are many different options with Windows Media Player, allowing such things as synchronizing functions and slide presentations. It is unable to support multiple bit-rates, which means that different versions of the same file may need to be created, each designed for different speeds. The authoring tools for Windows Media Player are found in Windows Media Tools. They can be downloaded for free.
QuickTime is the media player produced by Apple. With QuickTime there is a need for special encoding and there are minimal levels of compression. QuickTime Pro is the QuickTime authoring application. Adobe Premier and Ulead Media Studio Pro can also be used to author QuickTime files.

Continue to: Components of Webcast Technology

Webcasting Software - How Does It Work?
Webcasting Services - How To Gain The Maximum Out of It?
Oh, Yes! Webcasting Demands a License, Too
Webcasting - It Could Take Your Company A Long Way

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