General
Why not just use YouTube, Vimeo, etc.?
How do I request access to Mediasite?
Help! A video embedded in my CMS website or VLE course is not working.
Why does my video take such a long time to upload?
Help! My video has uploaded, but it is taking a very long time to process.
Mediasite Desktop Recorder
What is Mediasite Desktop Recorder?
How do I get Mediasite Desktop Recorder?
What equipment do I need to create content/record a lecture?
Slideshow, screencast, audio and video – what do they mean?
Does slideshow mode record my mouse pointer?
How do I add a spotlight to my desktop recordings?
Help! Desktop Recorder says "Register to Sign In".
Help! Desktop Recorder will not upload my video to the server.
My Mediasite
Help! I've moved my video to a shared folder, but no one can watch it.
Help! When trying to watch my video, viewers are getting an error message.
How do I set my video to viewable?
How can I download my video/presentation?
I've deleted a video by mistake. Can I get it back?
Virtual Learning Environments
How can I add Mediasite content to Canvas?
Lecture Capture
How do I go about recording a lecture, seminar or event?
Won't lecture capture reduce attendance in class?
Legal Issues
Do I need permission to record other people?
Can I upload copyrighted content to Mediasite?
What if the presentation includes footage of people, or copyrighted material?
Mediator
How do I request access to Mediasite?
Note: Mediasite user accounts are currently only for staff members. Students do not need a user account in order to access content on Mediasite.
To apply for a Mediasite account, complete the online registration form. After submission, we aim to have your account up and running within 2–3 business days.
What are shared folders?
As a Mediasite user, you have your own drafts folder. Any content you create using Mediasite Desktop Recorder or upload to My Mediasite will be placed here. The drafts folder is private, and any content residing in it will be inaccessible to other users, unless you manually change security settings on each video.
To make it easier to set permissions on video content, and to provide central locations for content to be managed (such as for an individual teaching module), we provide shared folders. These are set up with the permissions required for the right people (e.g. only students and staff) to be able to view the content within. By moving your content to one of these shared folders and ensuring that the security permissions are "inherited" from the shared folder, you can easily:
- Make your content accessible to the right people;
- Keep track of and manage your content, e.g. teaching materials for different modules;
- Collaborate with other staff, where they have been given editor access to the same folders.
Shared folders can be created on request by the Mediasite admin team. To request access to an existing shared folder or to request the creation of new folders, file a ticket using the IT Service Desk. Make sure to provide your specific requirements, e.g.:
Folder for module ABC9999 in the School of EEECS
Viewing access: students and staff only
Editing access: myself, Joe Bloggs and Jane Doe.
Where are my shared folders?
Your "favourite" shared folders are shown on the left hand side of the My Mediasite interface. If you don't see your folder present here, click on the Shared Folders heading and you will see all of the folders to which you have access.
Clicking on the name of each folder will display the contents of that folder.
On the right of each listed folder is a button labelled Favourite. You can select/deselect whichever folders you wish and they will then appear in the quick list on the left side.
What is Mediasite?
Mediasite is a video and media platform managed and fully supported by Queen's University Belfast Information Services. It affords University staff the ability to create, manage and distribute video content, presentations and podcasts.
Mediasite integrates with learning environments such as QOL, Moodle and Canvas, and can also be used with the Content Managment System (CMS), WordPress blogs and SharePoint. It is a one-stop shop for all of your media content.
As well as providing a platform, Mediasite also provides tools (Mediasite Desktop Recorder and MyMediasite) which allow you to create, manage and share your own content, using your own devices. See the video below for more information:
General
Why not just use YouTube, Vimeo, etc.?
How do I request access to Mediasite?
Help! A video embedded in my CMS website or VLE course is not working.
Why does my video take such a long time to upload?
Help! My video has uploaded, but it is taking a very long time to process.
Mediasite Desktop Recorder
What is Mediasite Desktop Recorder?
How do I get Mediasite Desktop Recorder?
What equipment do I need to create content/record a lecture?
Slideshow, screencast, audio and video – what do they mean?
Does slideshow mode record my mouse pointer?
How do I add a spotlight to my desktop recordings?
Help! Desktop Recorder says "Register to Sign In".
Help! Desktop Recorder will not upload my video to the server.
My Mediasite
Help! I've moved my video to a shared folder, but no one can watch it.
Help! When trying to watch my video, viewers are getting an error message.
How do I set my video to viewable?
How can I download my video/presentation?
I've deleted a video by mistake. Can I get it back?
Virtual Learning Environments
How can I add Mediasite content to Canvas?
Lecture Capture
How do I go about recording a lecture, seminar or event?
Won't lecture capture reduce attendance in class?
Legal Issues
Do I need permission to record other people?
Can I upload copyrighted content to Mediasite?
What if the presentation includes footage of people, or copyrighted material?
Mediator
What is Mediasite Desktop Recorder?
Mediasite Desktop Recorder (MDR) is an app which can be installed on your computer or tablet, by downloading from My Mediasite. It is also pre-installed on all centrally-bookable teaching room PCs.
MDR gives staff the ability to generate content on their own computer, with minimal setup and equipment required. These video/audio/slideshow presentations are automatically uploaded to My Mediasite, where the staff member can review the video, manage permissions, make basic edits if required and share with their audience (see What is My Mediasite?).
For more information on how to use Mediasite Desktop Recorder, see our Resources page.
See also:
How do I get Mediasite Desktop Recorder?
What equipment do I need to create content/record a lecture?
How can I add Mediasite content to Canvas?
Canvas is the new virtual learning environment (VLE) for Queen's. Mediasite is integrated into Canvas, so you can manage your Mediasite content and add videos to your courses without leaving the Canvas interface. It also has the benefit of not using up your limited storage space on the Canvas server.
For instructions on how to use Mediasite within Canvas, see the Mediasite in Canvas Guide on the Canvas team's blog.
I've deleted a video by mistake. Can I get it back?
If you contact us within 90 days of deletion of a presentation, it should be possible for us to retrieve it. File a ticket on the IT Service Desk with details (ideally the full title of the video and any other known information) and we will try our best to get the content back.
After 90 days, content that has been deleted will be permanently removed from the system.
Why not just use YouTube, Vimeo, etc.?
The Mediasite server is entirely maintained and supported by Queen's University. This provides the benefits of:
- Direct access to support when needed, via the IT Service Desk.
- Protection of intellectual property (IP) – all content is housed on servers within Queen's, with backup systems in place, so there are no issues with third parties obtaining your data, or for instance, unexpected changes to privacy rules or terms & conditions.
- Accessible to all Queen's (and subsidiary college) users around the world: for instance students and staff at China Queen's College (CQC), where access to YouTube has been locked down nationally.
- The Mediasite server authenticates directly via staff and student logins, making it easy to ensure that only the right people have access to content.
- Mediasite is integrated with Canvas, the virtual learning environment (VLE) at Queen's. See How can I add Mediasite content to Canvas?
- No advertising.
Additionally:
-
- Multiple streams
- The Mediasite player is capable of showing multiple streams at once, such as a slideshow alongside video of the presenter. This increases engagement for viewers and also improves accessibility for those that may have difficulty hearing or interpreting the presenter.
-
- Low bandwidth capabilities
- Slideshow content (such as that recorded in Desktop Recorder using the Slideshow format) is extremely low bandwidth compared to video, and is also searchable - so the viewer can type a keyword into the player and it will search the slides for the moment that the phrase appeared in the slides.
-
- New functionality
- The system, which is created by Sonic Foundry, is on a continuing development programme, meaning that every so often new releases are made which add improvements and further functionality.
What is My Mediasite?
My Mediasite is the online portal to which staff users have access. If you have signed up, you will find a link to the portal in your Queen's Online quicklinks.
My Mediasite is the centre of your Mediasite content management. Any videos you create (or which someone has shared with you) will be accessible here, to review, edit, set security access, obtain links and, if necessary, delete. Here is a detailed rundown of the main functions available:
Edit your presentations
- Perform edits to video content, such as cutting out sections or adding fades;
- Remove or replace individual slides (where the presentation has been recorded as a slideshow);
- Add "chapters", which aid the viewer in navigating through longer videos;
- Add a custom thumbnail to be shown wherever your video is embedded, such as on CMS or your VLE.
Manage access to content
- Allow or deny viewing access for groups, such as all students, all staff, the world at large, or custom groups (contact the Mediasite team for information);
- Allow editing access for individual staff members;
- Move content into shared folders (see What are shared folders?);
- Manage "channels" and "catalogs" (a kind of dynamic playlist) of presentations, which can be linked to folders;
- Share content by obtaining a direct viewing link (URL) or embed code to insert into CMS pages or VLE courses.
General administration
- Rename content and add further descriptions;
- Provide bio details of presenter(s);
- Add links to related material, to appear alongside the presentation.
For more information on how to use My Mediasite, see our Training and Support page.
General
Mediasite Desktop Recorder
Virtual Learning Environments
My Mediasite
Slideshow, screencast, audio and video - what do they mean?
In Mediasite Desktop Recorder, you can produce recordings in the following modes:
-
- Audio only
- Records only the feed from your microphone. This could be used to create podcasts.
-
- Slideshow & Audio ** preferred format
- Records audio from your microphone, as well as an area of your screen (taken as a series of static images). This is ideal for a PowerPoint presentation, but can also be used for any situation that doesn't involve on-screen video content.
- When uploaded to the server, any text in the screen images is automatically made searchable, which adds functionality and accessibility for viewers.
-
- Screencast & Audio
- This is similar to Slideshow & Audio, however instead of taking static images, your screen is recorded as a continuous video. This should only be used if you have video content in your presentation, as it provides less functionality to the viewer than Slideshow & Audio.
-
- Video only
- Records only a camera feed, e.g. from your webcam, and audio from your microphone.
-
- Slideshow & Video ** preferred format
- Records a camera feed, e.g. from your webcam, and audio from your microphone as you deliver the presentation, as well as a series of static images from your screen.
- When uploaded to the server, any text in the screen images is automatically made searchable, which adds functionality and accessibility for viewers.
-
- Screencast & Video
- This is similar to Slideshow & Video, however instead of taking static images, your screen is recorded as a continuous video. This should only be used if your presentation contains video content, as it offers fewer features to the viewer than Slideshow & Video.
See also:
Does slideshow mode record my mouse pointer?
Help! Desktop Recorder will not upload my video to the server.
The first thing to check is the top left corner of the Mediasite Desktop Recorder (MDR) window. Does it show your staff number? If it doesn't, this will show the words "Register to Sign In" – see the screenshot below:
If your staff number is not shown, the software is not registered to you as a user. You just need to:
- go to My Mediasite in your browser
- click on Add Media (top right of page):
- click on the link that allows you to register Mediasite Desktop Recorder:
You may see a few security messages from your browser, checking that you want to open up the link using Mediasite Desktop Recorder. You can allow these.
If MDR still fails to upload your presentation, contact us through the IT Service Desk.
The Mediasite team also provides the following additional services:
- As a media server, Mediasite is able to host audio podcasts (such as this one) and provide an RSS feed to allow these podcasts to be fed seamlessly to iTunes, Spotify and other podcast clients. Get in touch with us if you'd like to this to be set up. Expected lead time is 1 week.
- We can record and/or live-stream special lectures or events, using Mediasite technology (for instance capturing a video of a presenter as well as their onscreen slideshow presentation). with us if you'd like to book us or to find out what is available. Notice required before the event is 4 weeks, depending on required technical setup and staff scheduling.
Finally, Mediasite is entirely capable of managing and automating campus-wide lecture capture, when integrated with a number of other systems in the university (such as room bookings, teaching modules and the VLE). However this currently requires investment, not only in these systems, but also in the teaching room audio and video recording infrastructure acros the campus. The long-term goal of the team is to realise this capability by working with other sections of the university and provide a robust lecture capture solution across Queen's and its subsidiary colleges.
What equipment do I need to create content/record a lecture?
To generate content using Mediasite Desktop Recorder you need:
- a microphone connected to your PC or Mac. This could be connected by USB or by the computer's microphone port.
For maximum functionality, we recommend additionally:
- [optional] a webcam (some computers and screens include a built-in camera which would suffice) to record video of yourself;
- [optional] a second (i.e. extended) computer screen, allowing you to record one screen, while keeping the recording controls accessible on the other.
For more detailed information, see the Equipment page, or raise a ticket and ask us for help.
See also:
How do I go about recording a lecture, seminar or event?
It depends on what you want to record:
- If you're happy to just record the presenter's voice and an on-screen presentation, use Mediasite Desktop Recorder (see What is Mediasite Desktop Recorder?).
- If you would like to record video of the presenter while delivering the lecture/seminar/event, and the presenter will be standing/sitting in one place throughout, you might want to think about using Mediasite Desktop Recorder with a webcam (see What is Mediasite Desktop Recorder?).
- If you would like a more professional recording of a presentation, the Mediasite team can record this for you using a camera and tripod, or larger setups if required. Book us early in the planning process, so that we can ensure availability and equipment requirements. Go to the Contact page.
- If you want a more "produced" video, such as promotional material from an event, interviews or other documenary-style content, this is not within the remit of the Mediasite team – speak to our colleagues in Video Production. However once completed, the video can be uploaded to Mediasite and treated like any other streaming content.
See also:
What equipment do I need to create content/record a lecture?
Do I need permission to record other people?
What if the presentation includes footage of people, or copyrighted material?
Lecture Capture
Do I need permission to record other people?
The short answer is yes, you do. To obtain proof of this permission, get the participants in the recording to sign a release form. This is available from Video Production.
In more detail:
- If you record only yourself, and only content that you have created (i.e. your presentation contains no copyrighted content) you do not need to sign a release form.
- If a member of staff is recorded while in the course of their duties (i.e. teaching), permission is not specifically required as the content they create is owned by the university as standard educational practice. However it doesn't hurt to obtain a release form if uncertain.
- In all other situations, such as students, visiting lecturers/business people, or where a presentation is to include copyrighted material, a release form is required.
Groups of people / audiences:
- It is best to avoid filming groups of people, as it can be difficult to obtain permission from them. However, where people may be caught on camera, such as in an audience at a filmed event, at minimum it should be made clear to all people present that the event is being filmed, and that if they have an objection to being on film they should make themselves known to the person in charge of filming.
If you have any legal queries regarding content, contact the Video Production team.
See also:
What if the presentation includes footage of people, or copyrighted material?
Jisc (formerly the Joint Information Systems Committee) has produced this detailed guidance: Recording lectures: legal considerations
Can I upload copyrighted content to Mediasite?
No. Unless:
- this material is covered by (and used within the restrictions of) the university's Educational Recording Agency (ERA) licence (see Broadcast Content for Education)
or
- express, written, signed permission has been obtained from the copyright owner and passed to the Mediasite team. This must include:
- details of the specific content being uploaded;
- allowed usage of the material.
Copyright is an important issue. The term 'educational use' unfortunately is not a license to use any content you like, and while some content may be available for review and critique purposes, is by no means a catch-all solution. This applies to many kinds of media, including still images, video footage and audio recordings.
If you need to find content for use in your presentations that can be used legally and featured in recorded videos on Mediasite (or elsewhere), a wealth of media can be found online under the Creative Commons (CC) agreements. Still images, for instance, can be found through the Creative Commons image serach, as well as Google's advanced image search, Flickr and many other sources that categorise media by their CC agreements. It is worth noting that some agreements require you to attribute the content to its original creator, which can be done easily and discreetly in your presentation, and is generally good practice anyway.
If wish to use existing media such as infographics, diagrams, music, video etc. that are not published under CC agreements, quite often a simple email to the owner, seeking permission for their use, may be all that is required.
If you have any queries, contact the Video Production team.
See also:
British Universities Film and Video Council runs courses on this area
Quick guide: Intellectual property rights in a digital world (Jisc)
Legal Issues
What if the presentation includes footage of people, or copyrighted material?
It is up to the presenter to ensure that they have written permission from:
- any people whose images are included in a presentation;
(see Do I need permission to record other people?) - the copyright holder of any intellectual property, such as film/TV clips they have used in the presentation.
(see Can I upload copyrighted content to Mediasite?)
It is up to the person recording to ensure that the presenter has signed a release form which outlines where permission has not been obtained for copying and showing the recorded presentation elsewhere. This is available from .
In some cases, permission may only have been obtained for a closed group of people to be able to watch the presentation after recording – in which case, the presentation will require specific security settings on the Mediasite server. File a ticket on the IT Service Desk if you need support with this.
If permission has not been obtained for the above, or if there is any uncertainty, edit out or add a watermark to obscure the sections in question, using the My Mediasite web video editor.
Won't lecture capture reduce attendance in class?
Numerous studies have looked into the link between lecture capture and attendance. Some, like Nordmann, Calder, Bishop, Irwin & Comber (2017), found “no evidence for a negative effect of recording use, or that attendance and recording use were related” while others such as Edwards & Clinton (2018), found that the “availability of lecture capture is associated with a drop in attendance”. It should be noted that the latter study was over a three-lecture setting, while the former was a four-year study.
What most studies agree on, however, is that:
- Attendance is key to high attainment – thus, reliance by students wholly on recorded lectures rather than attending live, is detrimental to grades. Students should still be encouraged to attend in order to gain the best learning experience at the university;
- There are far more benefits to be considered in lecture capture and (related topics such as blended learning) rather than the binary issue of attendance. Such as:
- Far increased accessibility for those with hearing, vision and learning difficulties, as well as those with physical disabilities which may preclude them from classes.
- Enhanced ability for students to revise the subject by review lectures later during term, or before exams.
References:
Nordmann, Emily & McGeorge, Peter. (2018). Lecture capture in higher education: time to learn from the learners.
Nordmann, E., Calder, C., Bishop, P., Irwin, A., & Comber, D. (2017). Turn up, tune in, don’t drop out: The relationship between lecture attendance, use of lecture recordings, and achievement at different levels of study.
Edwards, M.R. & Clinton, M.E. High Educ (2018). A study exploring the impact of lecture capture availability and lecture capture usage on student attendance and attainment.
Help! Desktop Recorder says "Register to Sign In".
Note: Mediasite Desktop Recorder (MDR) can only be used by a Mediasite user account holder.
When MDR runs for the first time on a computer, it needs to register with your user account via My Mediasite, the online portal. This ensures that you are authenticated, and that your content is uploaded to the correct folder. If your computer setup changes, or if it is a shared computer which regularly wipes user data (such as on centrally-booked teaching room PCs), this will need to be repeated, but on private computers this should only be required once.
Assuming you have a Mediasite account, follow the steps in: Help! Desktop Recorder will not upload my video to the server.
If MDR is still failing to register you as a user, contact us through the IT Service Desk.
Help! I've moved my video to a shared folder, but no one can watch it.
The most common reasons for a video/presentation not being visible to other people are where:
- the presentation is set to private instead of viewable (see How do I set my video to viewable?);
- the URL (web link) that you have shared with viewers is incorrect (see Help! When trying to watch my video, viewers are getting an error message.);
- security settings are incorrect (for videos in shared folders, these should normally be set to "inherit").
To set the security settings on a video to inherit from the shared folder:
- Go to the details page of the video.
- Scroll down to the Security section on the right hand side. Click on the Edit Security button.
- On the Security window, tick the box that says "Inherit permissions from parent folder".
- Click on the Save button at the top right.
See also:
How do I set my video to viewable?
Note: When a presentation/video is set as "private", this setting overrides all security settings. So no one will ever be able to watch the video if it is set to private, regardless of your security settings or whether it is in a shared folder.
By default, when content is uploaded, it is set to private. This is to avoid making content visible before you have reviewed it for errors. To ensure that the video is available for people to watch, you need to set it to viewable. There are two ways to set this in My Mediasite:
- On your list of videos, you will see that each thumbnail has some icons along the bottom of it. One of these icons is a padlock:
The padlock shows the current status of the video. - – closed: the video is currently private.
- – open: the video is currently viewable.
- On the details page of each video, if you scroll down you will see a section labelled "Visibility":
If you change the dropdown from Private to Viewable it will make the video viewable.
Help! When trying to watch my video, viewers are getting an error message.
The two most likely errors are:
- This appears when the security settings are not correct on the video (see Help! I've moved my video to a shared folder, but no one can watch it.)
- This appears when the URL (web link) provided to users is incorrect.
The URL, or web address, that you share with your viewers is a direct link to view the video. It should look like:
https://mediasite.qub.ac.uk/Mediasite/Play/[ID number]
If it does not look like the above link, it is incorrect. For instance, you might have mistakenly copied the My Mediasite URL from your browser address bar. This would only send a viewer to the editing/details page for the video, and is inaccessible to anyone without a Mediasite user account.
The correct link can be obtained from My Mediasite by doing the following:
- Go to the details page of the video in question;
- Go to the Share section on the right hand side;
- Click on the Share Presentation button:
- Beside the Quick Link field, click on the Copy button.
The link can then be pasted into an email, a website, or whatever media you are using to propogate the video.
What happened to Mediator?
Mediator was formerly Queen's University's video streaming server, and the predecessor to the current Mediasite service. The Mediasite server was introduced in 2015, and Mediator was eventually decommissioned in 2018.
Any files still on the Mediator system were backed up by the Video Production team before decommissioning. If you have videos/media that were on the Mediator server and need to be retrieved, contact Video Production.
Mediator
Help! A video embedded in my CMS website or VLE course is not working.
Try the following suggestions:
How do I set my video to viewable?
Help! When trying to watch my video, viewers are getting an error message.
Help! I've moved my video to a shared folder, but no one can watch it.
I've deleted a video by mistake. Can I get it back?
If your content is not hosted on Mediasite, but was on the pre-2018 server, Mediator, see:
If you have not found a solution here, contact us via the IT Service Desk.
Mediasite FAQs
Frequently Asked Questions
Do we already have the answer to your question?
How do I add a spotlight to my desktop recordings?
Some recording software, such as Camtasia, and hardware such as the Logitech Spotlight presentation remotes, allow "spotlighting" an area of the screen, to focus the viewer's attention on a detail – as shown in the example below:
Mediasite Desktop Recorder does not include this functionality at present, however there are other ways to achieve this (such as with the Logitech pointers mentioned above). In the absence of a pointer with this function, there are some software packages available.
We have successfully tested SwordSoft Mousetrack to work with Mediasite Desktop Recorder in both screencast and slideshow modes. It is free to use (with some limitations) and can be installed on your computer by anyone with administrator privileges. Full functionality can be purchased from the website for a small cost. The above screenshot was created using this software.
To use Swordsoft Mousetrack, install it on your computer, and then open the control panel from the Start menu. Set the following options:
- Choose a desired keyboard shortcut to toggle spotlight on/off
(we recommend choosing a key that is not regularly used, such as F1) - Uncheck "Show Mouse Click"
- Uncheck "Show Keystroke"
Thereafter every time you press F1, you will toggle a spotlight over the mouse pointer.
NB: Alternatively you can enable the control bar to allow you to toggle the spotlight with your mouse.
See also:
What equipment do I need to create content/record a lecture?
Does slideshow mode record my mouse pointer?
Sometimes a presenter may wish to point to particular areas of the screen using the mouse, to focus attention on a particular detail. Mediasite Desktop Recorder's slideshow mode does not record mouse movement, however there are alternatives to perform this functionality, which will be picked up by MDR.
A spotlight (where the whole screen is darkened except for a "spotlight" over the mouse) provides instant focus on a small area of the screen. Here is an example of a this:
There are a number of ways to achieve this; see How do I add a spotlight to my desktop recordings?
See also:
How do I access Mediasite?
Note: Mediasite user accounts are currently only for staff members. Students do not need a user account in order to access content on Mediasite.
If you have a Mediasite user account, you should see an icon in your Quick Links in Queen's Online, like the one below:
This will take you to your My Mediasite portal.
See also:
How do I request access to Mediasite?
Why does my video take such a long time to upload?
Slow uploads could be caused by a number of different things.
Broadband connection
The most common reason will be the speed and/or quality of the internet connection to your location. If you find that it takes a very long time to upload from home, but a much shorter time in your office, then most likely your home internet connection isn't quite up to providing fast video delivery. We recommend uploading in a place that you know has a good connection.
Wi-Fi or Mobile signal
If you are on Wi-Fi or mobile networks, your upload speed will be slowed down if your signal level is poor; i.e. there are too many walls, electronics or other obstacles between your device and the Wi-Fi router or signal provider.
Video file size
If you are uploading a video file to MyMediasite (i.e. which has not been created on Mediasite Desktop Recorder), you may need to consider the size of the video. Practically any video file you upload will be compressed to a certain degree, using a form of encoding or codec. Most video software provides default encoding options for different usage, such as home viewing, presentation, or use on the web. Where possible choose a "web video" or similar option when exporting your video content. Standard file sizes for a video encoded for web shouldn't need to be more than approximately:
|
Video length |
File size |
|---|---|
| 3 | 30 |
| 10 | 100 |
| 60 | 600 |
*using a video encoding rate (bitrate) of 1.2Mbps
If your video is much larger than the above, we recommend that you re-encode to a smaller bitrate.
See also:
Help! My video has uploaded, but it is taking a very long time to process.
Help! My video has uploaded, but it is taking a very long time to process.
The Mediasite service processes videos in the order in which they are received. So, if you happen to be uploading content at the same time as a lot of other people, then you may have to wait longer than you would expect. We recommend that users bear this in mind when working to time constraints.
However, there are ways that you can speed up processing time:
- Use Mediasite Desktop Recorder to create your content.
Content created using Mediasite Desktop Recorder is geared directly to the Mediasite system and provides far quicker processing time that videos created on other sources and uploaded to Mediasite. - Use Slideshow recording instead of Screencast (see Slideshow, screencast, audio and video – what do they mean?)
- For videos created elsewhere - stick to the following encoding settings:
- MPEG-4 (.MP4) file format
- H.264 video encoding
- AAC audio encoding
- Constant frame rate
- Keyframe interval of 6 seconds or less
- Mono or Stereo audio (more than 2 channels are not supported)
- Up to 3 megabits-per-second (Mbps) quality/bitrate
If the above approaches have not been adhered to, then normal processing time can be a little longer than real-time; i.e. a 45 min video could take an hour, even without a queue of videos.
If you have waited for longer than this and the video is still marked as "processing", file a ticket on the IT Service Desk and we will investigate this for you.
See also:
How do I get Mediasite Desktop Recorder?
Mediasite Desktop Recorder (MDR) can be installed on any PC or Mac. It comes installed by default on all podium PCs that are in centrally-bookable teaching rooms.
To install on your own computer, or a podium PC that is not in a centrally-bookable teaching room, you will need administrator priviliges; if you do not, you will need to either obtain admin privileges, or request that the software be installed by the administrator responsible for the computer.
Note: As well as QUB computers, the Mediasite licence allows staff members to install MDR on their own computers - so if you often work away from your desk, you could for instance install it on your laptop.
Obtaining the installer:
MDR can be downloaded from the My Mediasite portal. On any page within the portal, simply click on the Add Media icon at the top right of the page:
On the next page, click on the link to download the Mediasite Desktop Recorder. Follow the instructions to download the installer to your computer. You can then run the installer to install Mediasite Desktop Recorder software on your computer.
Registering MDR:
When in use, MDR needs to know which Mediasite user is recording content, so that when it uploads to eh server, it will know to place the content into your folder. So, on first use, it will tell you that you need to register the software from the my Mediasite portal. You can either do this from the download page if it is still open in your browser, or otherwise go back to the Add Media page and click on the second link:
You may be prompted by your browser to open the link using MDR. Agree to this:
Once completed, you will see your staff number appear at the top left of the Mediasite Desktop Recorder window; this means that the software is registered to your user account. If using a personal computer, you shouldn't need to re-register the software again. If using shared computers such as podium PCs, it is possible that the setting will be wiped by the computer after use; if this is the case, you'll need to register again next time you use the software.
See also:
What is Mediasite Desktop Recorder?
How can I download my video/presentation?
Requirement for download
Firstly, have a think about whether you need to download your presentation or not. It may be that simply sharing a link to your presentation on Mediasite (or embedding it) will be better for you. The advantages of just sharing or embedding your Mediasite presentation from the server, include:
- Playback of multiple streams simultaneously (i.e. camera and screen);
- Always up-to-date, so that any video edits, changing of slides, alterations to information, are always reflected in the playable link;
- Collaborative access, so that other members of your team (if they have been given access) can work together and make alterations as needed;
- Subtitles, if they have been applied.
There are also a few points to note about the downloadable format. When requested, Mediasite generates a static video file, which is referred to in Mediasite as a vodcast. This is in an easily transferable format, for you to download. Because this is just a single video file:
- If your presentation has multiple streams (e.g. camera and screen), they will be combined into a single standard-resolution video, with borders surrounding the streams. As a result this will be a lower viewable resolution (video quality) per stream than the format displayed on the server;
- There is no browseable slide file generated (such as a .pptx or .pdf); only the video file, which will display the slides as a video stream.
If you are downloading in order to transfer to YouTube or similar video service, please see Why not just use YouTube, Vimeo, etc.?
So, in general, we recommend against downloading the presentation where possible, but we do recognise that in some circumstances you may wish to do so.
To make a presentation downloadable:
- Browse to (or search for) your video in My Mediasite.
- Click on the video thumbnail or title to enter the presentation summary page.
- Click on Edit Details, at the top right of the page navigation.
- Browse to the Delivery tab, below the video preview.
- Select the Vodcast checkbox.
- Choose a Vodcast project. These are different settings by which to encode the downloaded video. The following selection will be available:
Choose the option which best suits your presentation or video, Slides & Audio, Single Video or Multi Video.
Note: All options will have a watermark (QUB logo) added to the video. If you require a downloadable file without a watermark, please apply to the Mediasite team by opening a support case (go.qub.ac.uk/itsupport). - Click Save.
- Depending on server load when you make the request, it will take time to create the downloadable file. Under normal conditions, the time taken will be around the same length as the original presentation itself.
To check the processing status of a vodcast:
- Return to the presentation summary page.
- Browse to the Delivery tab.
- Under Video Podcast (composite), the processing status will be visible.
To download the vodcast file:
After waiting for the vodcast file to be generated; from within My Mediasite:
- Return to the presentation summary page.
- Scroll to the bottom of the page, and click on Download to Computer at bottom right.
- Select your vodcast file.
- How do I grab subtitles from an MS Stream recording?
Download subtitles or captions
If you have uploaded a subtitle or caption file, or autogenerated a caption file, you can download the WebVTT file from the Update video details page.
If you need to make changes to the autogenerated transcript / caption, you can download the caption file and edit it in a text editor of choice before uploading it back to Stream, or you can edit the transcript directly in Microsoft Stream in the transcript window.
Get just the text from a transcript
At times you may want to get a copy of a video's transcript without any time codes, metadata, and extra lines.
ADD MORE INFO?
Microsoft Stream doesn't have a built in way to do this, but you can download the transcript (as listed above) and use a simple web utility to extract the transcript text from your downloaded VTT file. This web utility allows you to pick VTT files from your computer and get a copy of the text portion of the VTT file containing just the transcript.
Web utility: Microsoft Stream transcript VTT file cleaner
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- Why when working with Stream do I sound like a chipmunk?
Without going into too much technical detail, MS Stream converts downloads to
8 Frames a second (Video) at 52 kps, 16 Khz (sound).
See this image below from an MS Stream recording, and note the numbers in the two key areas below.
- In Frame rate - this is how often a picture or frame is displayed per second on your screen), more frames per second = smooth video.
- In Audio rate - let's look at the sample rates here. Audio sample rate 16khz is the number of times per second your audio is sampled at, or how many times a second it measures what the note of the sound is, higher sample rates, smooth clear sound 'less jumpy' as it moves through the pitch if our voices, or otherwise sounds like the Cher auto-tune classic "Do you believe in love" . Bit rate is the amount of information stored about that sound, this gives the sound a rich warm feeling, vs a tin-y sound.
Image1- Stream
Let's compare that to 'normal video', which is around 25 frames a second for video (like you see in films / cinema) with audio above that around 128kps (cd quality warm sound) and 44khz samples (less jumpy in the changes in notes).
Image2 - Normal Video
What does all this mean?
Well if you convert from Mediasite > Stream, you get a much-reduced video experience (as it squeezes the file) and these extra frames and audio are dropped (lost) in the reduction of the video itself. They can't be gotten back, they are gone.
If you then try to move from that highly squeezed version of your recording back into Mediasite (which has a base set for quality) well the MS Stream version doesn't meet that baseline, so you may note the sound is "sped up" making you sound like a chipmunk or a smurf!
This in effect is Mediasite taking the small rubbishy version of the audio and trying to get it to its base quality setting, by playing it back at the expected speed of 100 kps 48 Khz, which is double or more the speed of the MS Teams recoding. We cant fix this, unfortunately, the extra detail it needs to playback smoothly is missing due to the MS Stream compression.
Wait! I need it for subtitles!
You can download the subtitles from the MS Stream version, and attach these to the edited version of the Mediasite video, you don't need to download from MS Stream and then re-upload again to Mediasite. Just leave the video on Mediasite, and take only the subtitles from the MS Stream version.
Apart from that you cannot mix between the two platforms, as the MS Stream version of video delivery serves a reduced version of that video.
How do I get just the subtitles from the MS Stream Version?
Follow this link to our FAQ on the matter to learn more.
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