Glossary

Bandwidth: The total amount of data a network connection is capable of sending through its system per second. This determines the length of time it will take to transmit data. For example, a file that takes 10 minutes to transmit across a modem with a speed of 28,800 bits per second (bps) might take only one minute to transmit over a DSL line because the DSL line has a larger bandwidth, which can pass more bits through per second.

Buffering: Media players assimilate the incoming data and present it to the viewer, as audio and/or video. During network congestion, this data is not sufficient for the media player to continue playback and therefore, the player must pause to receive more data before resuming playback. This process is called "rebuffering". To help avoid "rebuffering," the media players buffer a certain amount of data on reserve in the beginning before playing the clip.

Caching or Cache: Data that is frequently accessed is often stored in the computer's memory so that it may be re-accessed at a quicker rate than if this data was stored on the computer's hard disk drive. The process of storing this data is called caching. The type of memory that stores this data is called the cache.

Capture Card (Video & Sound)
Sound cards are required for all streaming presentations. PlayStream recommends using an analog video capture card for streaming video. Windows Media supports many cards, including those made by Viewcast (Osprey), Winnov and Pinnacle.

Dedicated Internet Connection (DSL, T1 etc.)
A connection from your computer to the Internet. We recommend a connection that is not being shared and can be dedicated just to the purpose of delivering the feed from your encoder. We don't recommend using an analog modem.

Digital Rights Media (Management): This is a term that refers to qualifying the end-user prior to allowing the end-user to view or listen to the media file. It is a term usually referring to the software that enables Internet 'Pay-Per-View' (see 'Pay-Per-View').

Digitizing and Encoding: Digitizing refers to the process of capturing original media (film, video, sound recordings, etc.) into a digital format inside a computer. Encoding refers to the process of converting this digitized file into a streaming format.

Dynamic Symmetric-When-Optimal Routing: When a user requests information over the Internet, the request for that data usually travels down a different path than which the data is returned. This non-symmetrical form of routing often leads to latency. For Web page content, latency is seldom a problem. However, for streaming media, latency can lead to rebuffering (see "rebuffering") and delayed start-times. InterNAP's "symmetric-when-optimal" routing is a process that attempts to eliminate or reduce this latency by attempting to delivery data back through the same carrier from which the request for that data came.

Hops or Hop-Count: As data travels over the Internet, it passes through routers (or switches) which interpret the incoming data and decide on the best route for the data to travel. Data traveling over the Internet may pass through as many as 30 routers before arriving at its final destination. Each router, or switch, that this data passes through is called a "Hop." Thus, "Hop-Count" is the cumulative total of switches that the data passes through over the Internet en route to the end user.

IP Address
The IP address can either be static (a numerical Internet address that does not change) or dynamic (one that is given and changed periodically by your provider). If you use a dynamic IP address, you will need to get a static domain.

1. To establish a domain name, go to DomainSearch.
2. Contact DEWIT at supportstream@expos4products.com, 818-886-3394 or 866-858-1174 (U.S. only) and give us your new host name.
11. Once we have your new host name, PlayStream will set up your account to our servers.

ISP: Internet Service Provider. Companies that offer access to the Internet to subscribers. Examples include Earthlink, AOL, Verizon, etc.

Latency: Delay of transmission of data. Refers to time it takes for a switch or router, upon receiving a packet of data, to determine which switch to forward the data to next.

Load-Balanced: A single computer is only able to transmit a fixed amount of data. If the computer receives too many requests for data at the same time, a bottleneck forms causing a delay in transmission of data. Load balancing refers to the process of assimilating multiple computers together to act as one single system as a method to minimize risk of this type of delay.

MP3: Digital format specifically designed for music.

Network Congestion: Situation that occurs when the amount of data being transmitted exceeds the capacity of the network. This results in data transmission delays and possibly lost data. If a router or switch becomes overloaded, it will discard data (permanently) as a last resort to manage the volume of data transmission.

One-Hop Connectivity: Refers to the number of "Hops" (see "Hops") data travels through before connecting to the Internet. One-Hop refers to one router or switch. The fewer switches or routers data travels through to access the Internet, the lower the risk of encountering network congestion.

Pay-Per-View: Comparable to pay-per-view events on television, this refers to streaming media which viewers must pay to see on their computer.

Peering: An agreement between Internet backbone carriers to exchange equal amounts of data at specified points along the Internet. Peering agreements enable competing companies to utilize cable laid by one another, thus reducing costs and duplication of cable routes. As the data is exchanged freely between the carriers, there is no economic incentive for one carrier to manage the incoming data of another carrier. Should one carrier submit data in excess of the "peering" agreement, the other carrier will usually discard the excess data. Thus, 'peering' connections on the Internet have often been associated with bottlenecks of Internet data transmission.

Port Number
Think of a port number as a radio frequency between your computer and our servers. The port number is given to you by PlayStream once you have added your static IP address or static host name to our servers. You can use any port number as long as you have communicated it to us.

Public Exchange Point: Located in Santa Clara, CA (known as MAE West) and Washington, DC(known as MAE East), these are government-established peering points that offer free access to the Internet. They are the two largest peering points on the Internet, with the majority of carriers interconnecting into these exchange points to exchange data. As a result, they are often the two most congested points on the Internet because they are designed without any economic incentive to regulate or manage the flow of data.

QuickTime: Digital media software created by Apple Computers, that can be streamed over the Internet.

RealPlayer: Streaming media software created by RealNetworks for the Internet.

Redundancy: Systematic approach to eliminating single points-of-failure in a network or data storage system.

Router (or Switch): A switch is a hardware device used throughout a network that receives incoming data and determines the route for that data to travel in order to reach its intended destination. A router is a switch with built-in capabilities than enhance its functions and performance.

Scalability: The ability to expand capacity of an existing data storage system or network without requiring replacement.

Streaming Media: Like television and radio for the computer, streaming media technology converts other mediums (audio and video) to digital formats that can be played back instantly by computers. It is comparable to the process that enables one to turn on a TV set and instantly see a program, or turn on a radio and instantly receive sound. The general term 'streaming media' incorporates all the formats created specifically for transmitting audio, video and multimedia over the Internet.

Webcast: A live streaming media event broadcast for the Internet.

Windows Media: Streaming media software created by Microsoft.

Windows Media Encoder
This software encodes your media files. You can download this application from the following site: http://www.microsoft.com/windowsmedia/download/