VIUTube Video Streaming



VIUTube is a media solutions platform powered by Kaltura which facilitates the sharing of video and audio online. Faculty, staff and students may upload media content to VIUTube where the content is converted and optimized for streaming in a web browser or on a mobile device. VIUTube is very similar in functionality to the popular video sharing site YouTube, except all of the content is stored locally on VIU servers and authentication is linked to VIU user accounts.

Access VIUTube: http://viutube.viu.ca/public/

VIUTube Primer handout

Sharing content in VIUTube
The content that you upload to VIUTube is not password protected, but it is not made visible to other users of the system unless the link to the video is shared explicitly. If you have shared video on YouTube before you may be familiar with the concept of 'private links', which means that content is only accessible by only those who have the specific web address. The responsibility to distribute web address of a piece of content falls on the owner of that content. If the location of that content is made available to persons not warranting access, the only way to correct this is to delete it and resubmit the media.

How could you use our new video server VIUTube?

 * Try out the flipped classroom - have your students watch the lecture on their own time and come to class for discussion
 * Upload video resources to share in your Desire2Learn course
 * Have your student submit video assignments
 * Create an audio or video welcome message for your students using a webcam or video camera
 * Have your students introduce themselves to other member of the course with a webcam or video camera

Including students in video
If you are using students in your video it's good practice to have them sign a video release form. For individuals you can use the form provided by Communications and Public Relations. For larger groups you can use class waiver which allows for multiple signatures.

Converting CD/DVD/VHS content to VIUTube
While it's technically quite easy to extract audio/video from a CD or DVD and put it on our media streaming server VIUTube, it’s illegal to change the format of the media from CD/DVD to streaming media. The Copyright Act prohibits breaking a digital lock (ripping the CD/DVD) even for educational uses that are otherwise permitted by the Copyright Act.

If you would like to upload something from a commercial CD/DVD/VHS you will need to obtain permission from the publisher or copyright holder. We have developed the following form which explains the process to the copyright owner and requires them to provide written consent.

Copyright Permission for Streaming Media form

VIUTube Analytics
A number of analytics are available on video in VIUTube which may help inform your practice. For a full list of available analytics please see the wiki page on VIUTube Tracking Analytics. Contact CIEL for more information on video analytics.

Adding audio and video to VIUTube
Adding audio/video files to VIUTube (PDF) Creating a webcam recording (PDF)

Embedding Media from VIUTube
Embedding VIUTube media into your D2L Course (PDF) Embedding VIUTube media into your D2L course using the course builder (PDF)

Linking directly to VIUTube
Linking to VIUTube media in your D2L Course (PDF) Linking to VIUTube media in your D2L course using the course builder (PDF)

Embedding VIUTube Videos on VIU's Wordpress sites
Embedding VIUTube Videos in a Wordpress post or page

Supported Source Formats
Kaltura accepts many different types of video and and audio formats.

The following source video formats are supported and can be ingested by the Kaltura platform: FLV/F4V, MOV/MP4/QT/M4V, AVI, 3GP, ASF/WMV, MPG/M1V/M2V, MKV, Ogg, RM, WEBM.

Input Video Codecs
Dvix (Div3/4/5)/DX50, DV, H263, H264/AVC, MPEG-4 Visual, MPEG-1/2, MJPG, MP42/3, IV40/50 (Indeo codecs), RV30/40, RMVB, FLV1/4, VP3/5/6/7/8, SVQ1/3 (Sorenson), XVid, Theora, WMV1/2/3, VC1, VP8, ProRes 422, ICOD, DVCPRO. PXLT

Input Audio Codecs
MP3, MP1/2, AC3, AAC, Vorbis, AMR, PCM, WMA7/8/9, WMSpeech, FLAC, QDM2, RA, Nellymoser, Cook, GSM, SPEEX.

Documentation
http://knowledge.kaltura.com/page/kaltura-products-and-services-documentation http://knowledge.kaltura.com/best-practices-multi-device-transcoding

Frequently Asked Questions
Q. '''Can we get an address where we can access this resource? I don't have time to take a workshop, but I'd love to play around and see what the service can do.'''

A. The link to VIUTube, where faculty, staff and students may upload media content is here: http://viutube.viu.ca/. One can login with a capitan or discovery account and begin uploading immediately. When logged in users have access to their ‘My Media’ collection which they can manage. Videos are kept private by the user and will only be shared by using embed codes or sharing the direct URL to the video, like private links in YouTube. Videos are not made public on VIUTube by default, but can be if requested through learnsupport@viu.ca.

Q. Does VIUTube use up space on my personal U drive?

A. No VIUTube uploads are not linked to your U Drive account. If you have video currently taking up space on your U Drive we would encourage you to consider moving it to VIUTube which is a more optimal environment for sharing video on the web.

Q. Can I use a mobile device such as an iPad to capture and upload video?

A. A mobile device can be used to capture video. Unfortunately as most mobile devices do not support flash, you will need to transfer the video file to a laptop/pc in order to upload the video to VIUtube. We recommend iExplorer (http://www.macroplant.com/iexplorer/) to extract files off an iOS device.