Basics
Q. What is cast:stream?
A. cast:stream is a suite of applications that enable you to broadcast live or on-demand rich media presentations with synchronized video and audio, over the internet, LAN, WAN or other network, or locally from hard disk, CD-ROM or DVD. Your presentations can be created in your favorite graphics tools like Microsoft PowerPoint, Adobe Photoshop, Macromedia Flash, or Totally Hip LiveStage Professional. During a live broadcast, your viewers can collaborate with the presenter and other viewers using cast:stream's instant messaging feature and polling such as surveys and quizzes.
Q. What makes cast:stream different from other solutions?
A. There are a number of features that make cast:stream unique among eLearning systems. Most importantly, cast:stream is completely cross-platform, supporting both Windows and MacOS operating systems. It leverages QuickTime to add support for rich media content that can engage your audience, making presentations more compelling. Additionally, cast:stream's proprietary SyncSure™ and IntelliCache™ technologies synchronize slide media with the live video and audio stream, ensuring your viewers see exactly what you are broadcasting.
Architecture & Network
Q. How many computers do I need to run a cast:stream system?
A. We recommend a minimum of three computers for most implementations. One computer is required to digitize the video/audio stream that will accompany your broadcast; one computer is required to run the Moderator application that configures and controls your presentation; and one computer is required to run the cast:stream Server software to which your viewers connect.
For broadcasts that will have small numbers of viewers connecting, you could also use the cast:stream Server computer to host the slide media and run the QuickTime Streaming Server to reflect the video/audio stream. However, in most situations, we recommend a separate streaming server for the live video/audio stream reflection.
Q. Can I run cast:stream on my Intranet?
A. Absolutely. cast:stream is just as happy working on an internal Iintranet as it is over the public Internet.
Moderator & Preparing Presentations
Q. What does the Moderator do?
A. The cast:stream Moderator is used by the presenter to configure and control live broadcasts. Using the Moderator, the presenter sets up the IP address of the cast:stream server, and URLs that point to the slide media, live video/audio stream, and the Player banner graphic. During a broadcast, it communicates with the cast:stream Server, issuing instructions to change the slide media, and receiving chat messages from viewers.
Q. Can I use PowerPoint slides for my broadcasts?
A. Yes. You can create your slide media in a wide range of applications, including PowerPoint, Keynote, Photoshop and many others. In the case of PowerPoint, you can easily export your slides as a series of images that can be used with cast:stream. For more information, please watch our Designing cast:stream Presentations training session (cast:stream Player required to view).
Server
Q. How many broadcasts can one Server handle simultaneously?
A. The cast:stream Server supports up to five concurrent presentation broadcasts.
Q. How many people can watch a broadcast at the same time?
A. cast:stream ships with a license supporting 50 concurrent viewers of a live presentation, and this can be upgraded to as many as 500 viewers
Player
Q. Can I increase the size of the video and slide windows?
A. cast:stream offers two slide window sizes to accomodate media that is either 480x360 pixels or 320x240 pixels. It is advisable if your primary audience is modem users to use the small window size, while the large window is more appropriate for viewers with higher bandwidth connections. If you wish to incorporate even larger media into your broadcast you can take advantage of cast:stream's URL linking feature to display media in a web browser while the cast:stream Player continues to play video and audio in the background.
The video window is preset to 240x180. We have found this size to be the most appropriate balance between quality and bandwidth consumption for cast:stream broadcasts.
Q. Can I communicate privately with the Moderator or with other viewers?
A. If the presenter has allowed chat as a feature for a broadcast, then text you type into the instant messaging window will be seen by the presenter and all other viewers. If the presenter has turned off chat functionality, then you can still send messages, but only the presenter will receive them in the Moderator application.
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