Viewing Streaming Video Broadcasts

Configuring Your Computer to Watch Live Webcasts (Streams)

Modern computers connected to broadband internet connections can be used to receive and view video streams. To watch a live or archived webcast you will need any recent Macintosh or Windows CPU, which is connected to the Internet with a fast connection. School Ethernet connections, cable modems, or ADSL  (broadband) connection should work, but a little preparation makes sense. Many broadcasts are streamed in Quicktime format, so make sure you have the latest version of QuickTime installed. If you do not have Quicktime installed on your computer, please visit the QuickTime Download page to download and install QuickTime 7. http://www.apple.com/quicktime/mac.html
You will be asked to enter your email and specify your operating system and then the download and install will take place. Please note that QuickTime Pro is not required to view these webcasts.

Testing your Connection

We highly recommend that you test that your computer is appropriately configured for QuickTime streaming by visiting a test stream page. If you can see the video and hear the audio then you will be able to watch both live and archived QuickTime streaming events.

If you are unsuccessful in viewing video and hearing the audio, please follow the steps below.

Check that you have a recent version of QuickTime installed (at least QuickTime 7) and visit the QuickTime Download page as described above id you do not.
If you still cannot see the test video, your local firewall is likely to be blocking the streaming video or audio. For those accessing from inside an organisation or establishment with a network in place you will need to contact your network manager.  Any good modern network will be capable of carrying a video stream, but some network managers purposefully block such traffic for 'security' and 'capacity' reasons. If you are unsure - ask.

If you are using Mac OS X, please follow these steps:

From the Apple menu, choose System Preferences.

From the View menu, choose QuickTime. The QuickTime preferences pane appears.

Look for a tab labeled either "Connection" or "Streaming".

Confirm that the setting labeled either "Connection Speed" or "Streaming Speed" is appropriate for the way the computer accessing the video is connected to the internet.

Now, look for a tab labeled either "Advanced" or "Streaming Setup". If the Transport Setup is set to "Automatic" or "Auto-Configure" then try adjusting the setting to be Custom and choose Transport Protocol: HTTP and Port ID: 80. If the setting is not "Automatic" or "Auto-Configure", then try adjusting the setting to whichever of those appears in your version of the OS.

If you are using a Windows computer to access the video, please review the following Tech Tip on "Changing Streaming Transport Preferences in Windows XP"

If you have followed the steps above and are still having trouble viewing the streaming content, you will need to talk to your network manager.
Many schools' firewalls are set up to block streaming video and the downloading of software. This should not be a reason to stop Quicktime streams, however, and a network manager can open the proper ports in your firewall. Be helpful. Make sure you give them all the information they will need to help you: the URL of the content that you want to view, whether or not you have been able to access the content from other locations (see below) and any other information about your particular situation that you think they need to know. For Apple streams they can email edcommunity@apple.com for further information. Apple will always help.

Making sure it is a Firewall Issue

You may want to attempt to access the streaming video from a variety of different locations; such as from other machines in aschool, a machine in your home, a library, from a wireless hotspot in your area, and/or by having friends or colleagues try from their own work or home locations. If all the machines in your work enviroment are unable to access the materials, but other locations can this is a strong indication that a firewall or other network device is the cause of the problem.  Your network manager should be able  to help.

I Can View the Video but the Quality is Poor

This is an indication your network traffic is interfering with the webcast. Reduce network traffic and make sure that only one CPU on the network is attempting to watch the webcast. It is also possible that the CPU you are using does not have the processing power required. Using a more recent CPU may improve the quality. Connect a computer projector and external speakers to this CPU for larger audiences to enjoy.