How we stream to mobile devices
The last two weeks we have tested out Ustream.tv for streaming to mobile devices. Every week we get the request from at least a few people who want to view our live feed on their iPhone or Android device. On a side note, we have yet to hear from someone on a Blackberry or other mobile device ask if we are going to stream to their hardware type. Let’s be honest, Blackberry, Windows Mobile and Palm users don’t do much more than email and basic social networking on their devices…these devices are behind the curve in terms of rich media and as a church we can’t put a lot of time and money into such a small demand.
The reality is that streaming to mobile devices is a no brainer with Ustream.tv. There is nothing to build or code, just plug and play. So there are not secret recipes here, I’ll just list out the work flow we have going and you can tweak it to your needs.
Here’s the signal flow:
Auditorium a/v feed > TriCaster Studio (switcher) > Canopus ADVC 110 > iMac > Flash Media Live Encoder > Ustream broadcast interface > Ustream Viewer
Our main feed for the live page of our internet campus gets encoded and fed to Limelight Networks from the TriCaster. There are two analogue outputs on the unit and we send one of them to the ADVC 110 which converts it to digital and interfaces with the iMac via firewire.
Flash Media Live Encoder is a free download and will recognize a camera or in this case the ADVC 110 hooked up via firewire. If you were going to livestream with one camera or come straight out of your IMAG switcher this would be the same setup you would use.
If you have livestreamed using FMLE with Livestream.com or other SMSP there is a slightly different workflow with Ustream in that you have to also use the Ustream broadcast control panel. To do this, you go into the advanced settings for your show and download the XML file for it. Then open this file in FMLE. This is nice because you don’t have to worry about getting long RTMP URLs correct. We tweak the settings to make it widescreen at this point. Once you’re set, fire off the feed and then launch the Ustream broadcast control panel. iPhone note: encode h.264 using AAC audio otherwise iPhones won’t work.
UPDATE: Here’s a screen shot of the FMLE settings we use. Except the source is the ADVC 110 rather than the iSight.
This is important, FMLE must be up and running before launching the Ustream controls (which you launch by clicking the ‘broadcast now’ button). At that point you click the button to make it live.
Like I said before this is counter intuitive if you have used FMLE before, because in most cases it’s all you need. I believe Ustream does this for monetization since the control panel contains ads.
That’s it on your end. Users need to install the Ustream Viewer app from the Android Market or the iPhone App Store. From there, they can search for your feed to watch it. Not the best workflow for discoverability …but it’s FREE!
Let us know how that works out for you.
Filed under Applications, Get Stuff Done, Internet Campus | Comment (1)Web camp rocked your face off
Web camp was everything I hoped it would be and a great start to this incredible endeavor we are starting. Here’s the notes from the wiki:
9:00 – Introduction and Spiritual Framework – Vince
- http://www.deltronecho.com/2009/07/24/church-on-the-internet-the-vision/
9:30 – Team Generated Discussion #1 – (RC – Targeting Profile | what does an internet citizen look like?)
http://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?R=1007184 – Why people go online
http://docs.google.com/present/view?id=ah8mk6j9scwh_37gxv3mk5m – Internet Citizen presentation
http://www.pewinternet.org/Infographics/Generational-differences-in-online-activities.aspx – Activities online by generation (short verion)
10:00 – Team Generated Discussion #2 – (Betty Blake Churchill – The Voice of Gateway)
- Church resources example – http://open.lifechurch.tv
- Attend | Connect | Serve | Grow | Lead
10:30 – ‘Front Door Spaces’ – Vince
“Front Door Spaces” – places to get people discusing religion online in meaningful ways, and eventually leading them to something deeper that has the same feel, specifically the Gateway Internet campus. Meeting people, engaging in their lives, and getting connected.
- themysteryisthetruth.com
- Podcasts
- Movie nights (probably once a month) – community experience (ala 24, American Idol, …)
- Next steps: gathering content, needs writers, how do you deal with moderation
- prayerlabyrinth.com
- Similar to the old style prayer walk, small actions that put significance into a prayer (e.g. throwing pebbles into a pool, adding a note to a bucket, etc)
- twelveeleven.me
- Developing for Rami as a platform.
- Others
- Servemob – flash mob for serving/giving to people – kiva/micro-loans
- Caringbridge/care calendar/relational tithe – being there to support people who are hurting, healing
- Goodhappened.com – anti-fail blog #goodhappened – photos/videos/updates of social good that happened in your life or around you
- Cross-linking to to servemob to get folks doing more when needs not 100% met
- How can build community frameworks for Gamers/Guilds/Rockband?
- Confession destruction – collect them (anonymously, like postsecret) and destroy them
- Layer VOIP on these sites in appropriate places:
- Group prayer as a station in the prayer labyrinth
- Mysteryisthetruth – weekly live QA, recorded, streamed, and available 24/7 as a podcast/audio download
- Positive version of F* my life – LMF – quick notes about positive things that happened in their life.
11:30 – Team Generated Discussion #4 – (Karin – Authenticity – What Does That Look Like For Internet Churches)
- Learning to ‘listen’ online
12:00 – Internet Campus Vision, Framework and functionality
- What does it mean to have ‘church’ on the internet?
- Launch schedule
- Leadership Roles
- Spiritual Growth Strategy
1:00 – Lunch
Filed under Get Stuff Done, Internet Campus | Comment (0)Twitter + work = get fired? Not anymore, SpreadTweet saves the day
With the massive pile of Twitter clients to choose from, here is yet another and it is genius. SpreadTweet looks just like an open spread sheet in your favorite spreadsheet application. Which is perfect for getting your tweet on at work.
Get Stuff Done | Xinha Here!
I love Xinha Here! because I am lazy and hate typing more code than I have to. Its a great tool for people like me who spend a lot of time working in CMS type apps and you keep the built in WYSIWYG editor turned off.
Filed under Get Stuff Done | Comment (0)
