by Patricia Ploetz, Instructional Technology and Multimedia Educator/Coordinator
Information Technology, University of Wisconsin Stevens Point

Abstract
In order to demonstrate the effect of music in video, a University of Wisconsin-Stevens
Point (UWSP) music professor needed to transport large numbers of video and audio
tapes back and forth to his class. In addition, for every tape (example) he wanted his
students to see or hear he would have to run up and down two sets of stairs to a
projection booth, located at the very top of the auditorium-like classroom, to insert a
new tape. Each interruption would break the mood he had worked so hard to create.
Could technology help? In the fall of 1998 with little, if any, fanfare UWSP streamed its
first audio for the Music in Video course. Six months later streaming video was added; all
audio and video for the course could now be accessed from the course web site. The
professor no longer carries tapes to class nor does he have to interrupt his class to change
a tape. With the push of a button his audio and video examples are instantly available as he
demonstrates how music in video creates an environment that affect how and what we see.

In retrospect, the activities leading to and from that event are momentous and have
influenced a number of exciting educational opportunities for faculty, staff, and students.
What began as an effort to utilize available technologies to increase faculty efficiency has
resulted in some unexpected consequences.

Introduction
As the Instructional Technology and Multimedia Educator/Coordinator for UWSP, I was
invited to attend a Music in Video class to better understand the classroom experience, in
order to make suggestions that would address logistical and educational problems. At the
end of that first class it was clear that what this class needed was a better way to bring
audio and eventually video into the physical environment. The classroom in question had a
computer and projector that were easily accessible, however, the VCR and audio cassette
player, which were critical to the success of the course, were not. Here was an opportunity
to utilize new steaming technologies to solve both a practical and educational problem. With
the push of a computer button streamed audio and video could be easily accessed through
the course web page, thus eliminating the need to bring audio and video tapes to class while
utilizing the room's resources in the best way possible.

The idea to utilize streaming audio was presented to the professor who was as excited as
we were about the possibilities of streaming technology. During the spring and summer
of 1998 a streaming server was installed and the professor learned how to "capture, edit,
and encode" selected audio clips. After a summer of hard work the course web site and
its streaming audio links were ready for face-to-face and ITV instruction. In spite of a
few bumps, streaming audio for the Music in Video course was a huge success and
streaming technology was on its way to becoming an essential part of UWSP's
technological offerings.

The next logical step for our Music in Video class was the addition of streaming video.
Capturing, editing, and encoding video was more complicated and difficult than audio.
However, the three of us (the faculty member, technical support person, and I) were a
committed team and by spring of 1999 had a process in place to stream both audio and
video.

Utilizing streaming video meant that faculty needed to understand video basics as well as
internet protocols and be able to work in several different software environments. Faculty
also needed to understand the limitations that both they and their students faced when
listening or viewing streaming technology outside the campus environment. We learned a
lot from these first attempts…and soon realized that while we could control what happened
on campus, off campus access to streaming technology was not always successful for any
number of reasons, most of which were beyond our control. As our "need to know" list
grew longer and longer our ability to synthesize and instruct became more and more
important; it wasn't the technology or the hardware that needed our attention, faculty
support would be critical to our success.

It wasn't long before our first "streaming volunteer" was presenting at a national conference
on the instructional use of streaming technologies. As more faculty become involved, staff
and students began to ask questions about streaming technologies as well. Could the student
radio station broadcast their content over the streaming server? Would a staff member be
able to videotape and then stream her TV program for placement on a web site? Would
UWSP be willing to serve streaming video to other campuses? These unintended
consequences challenged our abilities and moved us ever further into new and exciting areas.
We serve them all and continue to explore new opportunities to meet the streaming audio
and video needs of UWSP faculty, staff, and students as we look for new collaborations
between our sister institutions.

Description of Process
A quarter time multimedia technical support person and I immersed ourselves in streaming
technology and soon realized that we needed to address streaming from three perspectives:
1) physical support of the hardware, 2) human support of the hardware and software, and
3) faculty support. Funding our streaming venture was also an issue. While many are anxious
to use the latest and greatest technologies, it's often difficult to find financial support to test
these emerging tools. Therefore cost was an issue and would be a factor in the choices we
made.

Physical hardware support included the purchase, housing, and backup needed to maintain
our streaming server. Did we have sufficient space to add another server? Could we
maintain daily backups of server content? What hardware/software would we need to
support our venture? We started out small. Our first streaming server was nothing fancy
or exotic; in reality a repurposed staff workstation easily met our needs. Utilizing the free
streaming and encoding software made available through Real Systems' web site provided
us with a cost effective method for supporting limited streaming services. Limited in this case
meant the total number of persons that could access the server at the same time, not the
services themselves. Content backup would be handled by adding the streaming server to
the UWSP "server farm;" the streaming server would be included in UWSP's normal backup
regime. However, should the project flourish, additional backup tapes and another DAT drive
would need to be purchased.

We had no idea how much human support would be required to take care of the server
hardware and software. Again by starting small we were able to get an estimate of staff time
devoted to this endeavor. Once we had the server up and running and determined how it
would be managed (faculty would maintain their own server space and the content on it,) we
found that the server itself required minimal human support.

Most of our preparatory time was spent pre-testing various codecs and streaming formats.
Identifying what video looked best under what streaming conditions helped assure us that
our recommendations would result in the best possible videos. Faculty were urged to visit
our test web site to compare codecs and streaming formats.

Faculty support was the critical issue. How could one instructional technology support
person meet the needs of so many? Faculty would need to learn how to capture, edit, and
encode video, they would also learn how to upload and maintain their own content on the
streaming server, and be able to insert a web page link to their streamed content as well.

"If you tell me, I might forget. If you show me, I might remember. If you
involve me, I will understand." - Chinese Proverb

With these guidelines in place and a philosophy in which to work, I set out to determine
what faculty needed to know and how to simplify the process so that faculty would not have
to become technology experts to create streaming video unless, of course, that is what they
were interested in doing. The following outline identifies topics for instruction, or what faculty
"needed to know."

Pre-Streaming Instruction

• What is Streaming Video?

1. Definition
2. TCP/IP vs. RTSP
3. What are Streaming Protocols?

• Is Streaming Video Right for You?

1. Video Mediums - The advantages and disadvantages of each.
2. How does your choice to stream course content affect your students?

• Do You Have a Plan?

1. Does your streaming video support your educational goal, is its use pedagogically
   sound. Does it demonstrate, dramatize, provide visual proof or create a mood.
2. "An Ounce of Storyboarding is Worth a Pound of Production." By exploring how
   and where your video is going to be used you save time and effort. Knowing exactly
   what role your video clip will play in your instruction will also help you identify video
   requirements.
3. Determine your video display requirements, length, screen size, and frame rate, etc.

• What Video Resources Need to be Gathered?

1. Pre-recorded ( tape or computer)
   a. Copyright
2. Recording your own or having it done
   a. Use resources available to you (avoid duplication)
   b. Quality ( GIGO)
   c. Basic Videography
   d. Limit complexity - the more complex the video the more resources are needed

The "How To" of Streaming:

• Creating Streaming Video

1. Video Capture, Editing and Exporting
   a. Capturing video
   b. Editing video
   c. Exporting or "standardizing" video
2. Encoding
   a. What does an encoder do and what encoder should I use?
   b. How do I know what codec will work best?
3. Publishing
   a. Creating the Web Page
   b. Uploading your media to the Real Streaming Server

Video workshops are offered in half day increments, with the first half of the session
devoted to "Pre-Streaming" Instruction and the second half the "How To" component.

Results
While no formal studies have been completed we view the results of our streaming efforts
as positive:
• Each semester new departments are added to the list of those using streaming technology
in their instruction: Music, Dance, Communication, Communicative Disorders, Business,
Economics, Geography, and Geology are among them. Our early adopting "faculty
volunteers" have become "streaming experts" supporting their peers as they enter the video
streaming arena.
• Streaming video workshops continue to draw large audiences, casting an
ever wider net of technological expertise across the campus.

In retrospect, the activities leading to and from our first streaming venture have influenced
a number of exciting educational opportunities for faculty, staff, and students. What began
as an effort to utilize available technologies to increase faculty efficiency has resulted in
some unexpected consequences:
• The use of video streaming technologies has helped support the acquisition of a
multimedia lab where students capture, edit, and stream class projects.
• Student video work can now be viewed on the web, made possible by streaming
technologies.
• Video streaming technologies have expanded to include staff usage as well. A number
of UWSP staff are now using streaming video to promote campus activities.
o Collaborations with other campuses continue to promote and expand streaming
technologies across the state.

Lessons Learned and Tips
• Start small, keep your project as uncomplicated as possible.
• Don't expect everyone to jump on the new technological bandwagon along with you.
Plan to wait a year or two for the majority of faculty to become involved.
• Streaming web content forced us to confront copyright and copyright issues, proving
how important it is to include copyright as a topic in the instructional process.
• Becoming involved in new technologies can be fun and you never know what can be
done until you try!