UHI Video Streaming Service (

Transcription

1 UHI Video Streaming Service ( The University of the Highlands and Islands has a video streaming service, sometimes referred to as the Helix Media Library, which staff can use to store educational videos. These videos can be easily accessed from other UHI services - for example, staff wishing to bring video into learning resources in their Blackboard module should use the Helix Media Library Mashup. This document describes the process of uploading a video to the video streaming server and bringing it into a Blackboard module, or embedding it in a page on UHI-Mahara. Any person who enters into their browser will be able to view videos which have been marked as Public. Staff and students should use their UHI ID and password to log in. Staff can upload an educational videos for others to view and should ensure that they have the appropriate ownership rights to upload material into the Helix Media Library. UHI Learning and Information Services 1

2 Uploading a video Please note that the original uploaded file is not retained by this system and the content owner should maintain an offline copy of the material uploaded into this service. Select Upload in the purple panel at the top of the screen and you will be taken to a step-by-step guide to complete your upload. Details: Title: This will be the main title of the video uploaded and will be seen by others users; Category: Select the most appropriate category for your video; Description: Write a brief description of the video being uploaded so that viewers are more informed aboutthe contents; Contributor: If you are logged onto the website, your name will already be in the box. This is basically the name of the uploader An will be sent to you when the video is online and will contains links and embed code; Tags: Add keywords to enable you to easily locate the video at a later date. Especially important when bringing the video into Blackboard. Clicking the Save button towards the bottom right of the screen will take you to the next step. UHI Learning and Information Services 2

3 Choose file: Now you may select Upload Media which will enable you to browse your computer and locate the video file. Double-click the chosen file and it will automatically upload and then move onto the next stage of choosing a thumbnail. The file formats accepted are as shown in the image above (.mov,.avi,.wmv,.flv,.mpg,.mp4,.mp3,.wav,.wma). The output file format will be MP4. The upload quote for all users with permission to upload (staff) is 1GB per month. As a very rough guide, this would be about 20 minutes of video at a resolution of 1280x720. Thumbnails: Helix Media Library will select you a few individual frames from the video and you can select one to use as the thumbnail for the video. Occasionally, it may present the default image. The selected thumbnail is will be displayed in the Media Library. It is also possible to upload your own image from your computer clicking on the Browse button. Having located the image, which must be 320x204 pixels and in JPEG format, double-click the filename. When the image filename is displayed in the box, you then select Upload, followed by Next. UHI Learning and Information Services 3

4 Associated file: 1. Add caption file: Subtitles on videos are very useful to those who are hard of hearing or have language difficulty. A text file containing subtitles can be created using Notepad, Youtube Captions or a program such as Subtitle Workshop. An example of an SRT file is given as an appendix to this document. 2. Add associated files: Files such as Powerpoint presentations can be uploaded to accompany the video. If you have a script in the form of a PDF file or Word document, this can contribute towards meeting our responsibilty to enable all users to have a good web experience. Enter a descriptive title and then click Upload file to upload the file. If you do not wish to use any of these features, then you can simply skip this stage by selecting Next. Finished: Having successfully uploaded the video, you can now click Back to Library in the purple bar above. You will be sent a confirmation informing you that your video is officially online. It may take a while if the video is particularly large. Check your Junk Mail folder in Outlook if you feel it s taking too long. The will include a link to the video along with embed codes for inserting into UHI-Mahara and other websites. Helix Media Library has a building block for Blackboard. UHI Learning and Information Services 4

5 Linking a video to a Blackboard Module A Mashup has been installed in Blackboard to enable easy access to videos from the Helix Media Library. Within your Blackboard module, go to Learning Resources and hover over the Build Content button. A menu will appear and the Helix Media Library is the last item (see the image below). In the box that appears on the following screen, enter a keyword that was used when uploading the video. When you click on the Search button, all the videos with that keyword will be displayed. In this example, only one video was found with the keyword lync. The Preview button enables you to check the content of the video and you would use Select to embed the video in your module. UHI Learning and Information Services 5

6 Embedding a Video in UHI-Mahara If you wish to embed a video which is stored in the Helix Media Library in UHI-Mahara, you will need a copy of the embed code. Log onto the UHI video streamer ( and find the video in the Library. 2 x 1 Select the size you wish to display (see number 1 in the image above). Then click anywhere in the textbox with embed code (2 above) to select the code and copy it. UHI Learning and Information Services 6

7 Go to your page in UHI-Mahara and drag the Text building block from the General category onto your page. Video embedded from Helix Media Library Click on the HTML button in the toolbar, paste the code into the building block and click the Update button. Save the building block and continue editing the page as normal. UHI Learning and Information Services 7

8 Appendix 1 Sample Captions File in the SRT Format 1 0:00: > 0:00: This video introduces the use of the touchscreen console 2 0:00: > 0:00: when videoconferencing at the University of the Highlands and Islands. 3 0:00: > 0:00: If you come into the VC room and the console is black, 4 0:00: > 0:00: just give it a tap with your finger and then press the VC Mode button. 5 0:00: > 0:00: The screens will come on and the camera will swing around to face you. 6 0:00: > 0:00: The console is now at the home screen. UHI Learning and Information Services 8