November 21, 2005
Disappointed with OSTN
I am horribly disappointed that IPTV at Case is streaming over Windows Media. In order to view the content, not only do you have to be logged in to the Portal, but you need the most recent version of Windows Media Player and Windows installed. Mac users and Linux users are up the creek without a paddle. It is unfortunate that we didn't deploy this service with a more widely adopted format, such as Real, Quicktime, or VLC.
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...shaking my head :(
Maybe we can setup an intermediate server and rebroadcast...hmmm.
Windows Media Player is available for Mac OS X. VLC runs on (at least) Linux and Mac OS X, and it supports Windows Media video. The problem is not the video format, it's the DRM 'scrambling' that is applied to the video and which only the Windows version of Windows Media Player can un-scramble.
This is about as far from 'open' as it gets. "Closed Student Television Network" would have been a MUCH better choice of title.
I always say that if you can see it, you can record it and hence redistribute it. It is only a matter of time before the encryption is reverse engineered and made available for alternative operating systems. Where is DVD Jon when you need him?
CSTN is a much more appropriate title.
if you can see it, you can record it
At least until the MPAA gets its way and uncrippled analog-to-digital converter chips are outlawed. Yes, this is a real threat.
One person's downside is another person's upside. In our office, the IT person (Ben, you know who I'm talkin'bout) refuses to upgrade anyone to the latest version of WMP so that no one watches TV on company time.
I wonder how OSTN has been implemented at other universities?
The reason it is in the portal better not be that they wanted to force people to use the portal. The portal should be an aggregation of information, not a provider of information.
Well, they had a precedent. As far as I can tell, the portal is the only place to get critical information like class schedules, textbook assignments, and grade reports.
Advice to whoever runs the portal: if it were fast and easy-to-use, people would use it voluntarily and not because it's the sole source for important information.
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