theora - Sep 2007 - FOSS Codecs for Online Video: Usability, Uptake and Development - First Draft

Dear Theora/Xiph folk,
*
FOSS Codecs for Online Video: Usability, Uptake and Development - First 
Draft*
A review of available tools for the creation, playback and embedding of 
online video using Free and Open Source Software video codecs and a look 
at the most pressing areas for development to enhance their adoption by 
social change video projects on the web.
http://wiki.transmission.cc/index.php/FOSS_Codecs_For_Online_Video:_Usability%2C_Uptake_and_Development

I have been writing this report into FOSS Video Codecs for the last few 
months for the Transmission network of online video projects for social 
change.
http://transmission.cc

A version in PDF (see below) is also available for reading offline here:
http://www.engagemedia.org/Members/anna/FOSS_Codecs_For_Online_Video_1_1.pdf

I would rather have feedback into a second draft from the Transmission 
network before distributing the report too widely, to ensure the report 
benefits from all our knowledge and reflects the needs of the network. 
But I thought people on this list might like to take a look at the draft 
and let me know what is missing or pitch in with some different 
opinions. It is a set of practical recommendations for projects within 
our network and beyond, rather than an academic report.

The recommendations cover codecs and containers, player and transcoding 
software, server-side transcoding, embedded playback, support of FOSS 
codecs in popular CMSs and the development of a transcoder/uploader client.

The report PDF has some formatting errors and I'd prefer to distribute 
it in an open format - but I can't find a good solution for exporting 
from MediaWiki - please let me know if anyone has any ideas on this.

Cheers,
Anna

http://EngageMedia.org
http://Plumi.org

Hi Ken,

Thanks for that :) I had heard of JMF but really not the FMJ project. 
Sounds very interesting, I'll take a look.

I have added your notes to the wiki. There are a couple of places to add 
info - to the next version of the report or to the input page if you'd 
rather not have to format it / slot it in and I can do that for you.

Version 1.2 of the document on the wiki here to be added to:
http://wiki.transmission.cc/index.php/FOSS_Codecs_For_Online_Video:_Usability_Uptake_and_Development_1.2#Input

Input page here for notes and additions:
http://wiki.transmission.cc/index.php/FOSS_Codecs_For_Online_Video:_Input

This is where I've copied your text - I'll let you know if we need 
further details in particular or feel free to post them there (as goes 
for anyone else).

Cheers,
Anna


Ken Larson wrote:
> Anna -
>
> This is a fantastic summary of FOSS/Multimedia.
>
> I thought it might be worth mentioning the FMJ project, and its 
> subprojects ffmpeg-java and theora-java in your document.
>
> FMJ is an open-source implementation of the Java Media Framework 
> (JMF).  It is still under development and is not at the same level of 
> maturity of the of some of the other FOSS projects you mention.  But 
> nonetheless some basic playback, processing, RTP, and capture device 
> functionality is supported.
>
> It supports ogg/vorbis/theora via the jorbis, jogg, and jheora (jheora 
> is from the Cortado applet, and is LGPL) libraries.  It is possible to 
> assemble all of these components into an applet, we have a live demo at
> http://fmj.sourceforge.net/live_demo.php
> The functionality is not at the same level as the cortado applet.  
> However, development on the cortado applet seems to have reached a 
> standstill, and the FMJ project is still making progress.  To the 
> extent that you are making recommedations for development resources, 
> FMJ is always glad to have help.
>
> The applet is only one small part of FMJ.  I can give you any 
> additional details, if you are interested.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Ken Larson
> FMJ project, fmj.sourceforge.net
>
>
> anna@engagemedia.org wrote:
>> Dear Theora/Xiph folk,
>> *
>> FOSS Codecs for Online Video: Usability, Uptake and Development - 
>> First Draft*
>> A review of available tools for the creation, playback and embedding 
>> of online video using Free and Open Source Software video codecs and 
>> a look at the most pressing areas for development to enhance their 
>> adoption by social change video projects on the web.
>>
http://wiki.transmission.cc/index.php/FOSS_Codecs_For_Online_Video:_Usability%2C_Uptake_and_Development
>>
>>
>> I have been writing this report into FOSS Video Codecs for the last 
>> few months for the Transmission network of online video projects for 
>> social change.
>> http://transmission.cc
>>
>> A version in PDF (see below) is also available for reading offline
here:
>>
http://www.engagemedia.org/Members/anna/FOSS_Codecs_For_Online_Video_1_1.pdf
>>
>>
>> I would rather have feedback into a second draft from the 
>> Transmission network before distributing the report too widely, to 
>> ensure the report benefits from all our knowledge and reflects the 
>> needs of the network. But I thought people on this list might like to 
>> take a look at the draft and let me know what is missing or pitch in 
>> with some different opinions. It is a set of practical 
>> recommendations for projects within our network and beyond, rather 
>> than an academic report.
>>
>> The recommendations cover codecs and containers, player and 
>> transcoding software, server-side transcoding, embedded playback, 
>> support of FOSS codecs in popular CMSs and the development of a 
>> transcoder/uploader client.
>>
>> The report PDF has some formatting errors and I'd prefer to 
>> distribute it in an open format - but I can't find a good solution 
>> for exporting from MediaWiki - please let me know if anyone has any 
>> ideas on this.
>>
>> Cheers,
>> Anna
>>
>> http://EngageMedia.org
>> http://Plumi.org
>> _______________________________________________
>> theora-dev mailing list
>> theora-dev@xiph.org
>> http://lists.xiph.org/mailman/listinfo/theora-dev
>>

That is totally awesome! It's not totally complete - I seem to be
missing xine and the OggCodecs windows tools. But it is a pretty
damned good report!

Cheers,
Silvia.

On 9/18/07, anna@engagemedia.org <anna@engagemedia.org>
wrote:
> Dear Theora/Xiph folk,
> *
> FOSS Codecs for Online Video: Usability, Uptake and Development - First
> Draft*
> A review of available tools for the creation, playback and embedding of
> online video using Free and Open Source Software video codecs and a look
> at the most pressing areas for development to enhance their adoption by
> social change video projects on the web.
>
http://wiki.transmission.cc/index.php/FOSS_Codecs_For_Online_Video:_Usability%2C_Uptake_and_Development
>
> I have been writing this report into FOSS Video Codecs for the last few
> months for the Transmission network of online video projects for social
> change.
> http://transmission.cc
>
> A version in PDF (see below) is also available for reading offline here:
>
http://www.engagemedia.org/Members/anna/FOSS_Codecs_For_Online_Video_1_1.pdf
>
> I would rather have feedback into a second draft from the Transmission
> network before distributing the report too widely, to ensure the report
> benefits from all our knowledge and reflects the needs of the network.
> But I thought people on this list might like to take a look at the draft
> and let me know what is missing or pitch in with some different
> opinions. It is a set of practical recommendations for projects within
> our network and beyond, rather than an academic report.
>
> The recommendations cover codecs and containers, player and transcoding
> software, server-side transcoding, embedded playback, support of FOSS
> codecs in popular CMSs and the development of a transcoder/uploader client.
>
> The report PDF has some formatting errors and I'd prefer to distribute
> it in an open format - but I can't find a good solution for exporting
> from MediaWiki - please let me know if anyone has any ideas on this.
>
> Cheers,
> Anna
>
> http://EngageMedia.org
> http://Plumi.org
> _______________________________________________
> theora-dev mailing list
> theora-dev@xiph.org
> http://lists.xiph.org/mailman/listinfo/theora-dev
>

On the topic "Future of Web Video"

You say:
"Mobile devices often use hardware decoders rather than software
decoders to playback video due to the relatively smaller capacity of
the processor."

"Ogg Theora/Vorbis does have the potential to be supported by mobile
devices using the software decoder, but it remains to be seen what the
degree of uptake of this will be."

Actually, we are developing a Theora Hardware decoder solution aimed
to mobile/embedded devices.
The solution already works using our open source hardware design
integrated with the LEON processor (an open source processor).

We are capable to decode Theora streams in real-time (20 FPS) up to
600 Kbps  running on an FPGA at 50 MHz.
The video resolution is still very limited, but we are hard-working to
improve the resolution using a different memory hierarchy in our
hardware decoder.

I believe that we will be able to decode high resolution video streams
in the near future, with a complete open source hardware platform.

The hardware theora source code are located on the Xiph SVN:
http://svn.xiph.org/trunk/theora-fpga/theora_hardware/


Cheers,
Felipe


On 9/18/07, anna@engagemedia.org <anna@engagemedia.org>
wrote:
> Dear Theora/Xiph folk,
> *
> FOSS Codecs for Online Video: Usability, Uptake and Development - First
> Draft*
> A review of available tools for the creation, playback and embedding of
> online video using Free and Open Source Software video codecs and a look
> at the most pressing areas for development to enhance their adoption by
> social change video projects on the web.
>
http://wiki.transmission.cc/index.php/FOSS_Codecs_For_Online_Video:_Usability%2C_Uptake_and_Development
>
> I have been writing this report into FOSS Video Codecs for the last few
> months for the Transmission network of online video projects for social
> change.
> http://transmission.cc
>
> A version in PDF (see below) is also available for reading offline here:
>
http://www.engagemedia.org/Members/anna/FOSS_Codecs_For_Online_Video_1_1.pdf
>
> I would rather have feedback into a second draft from the Transmission
> network before distributing the report too widely, to ensure the report
> benefits from all our knowledge and reflects the needs of the network.
> But I thought people on this list might like to take a look at the draft
> and let me know what is missing or pitch in with some different
> opinions. It is a set of practical recommendations for projects within
> our network and beyond, rather than an academic report.
>
> The recommendations cover codecs and containers, player and transcoding
> software, server-side transcoding, embedded playback, support of FOSS
> codecs in popular CMSs and the development of a transcoder/uploader client.
>
> The report PDF has some formatting errors and I'd prefer to distribute
> it in an open format - but I can't find a good solution for exporting
> from MediaWiki - please let me know if anyone has any ideas on this.
>
> Cheers,
> Anna
>
> http://EngageMedia.org
> http://Plumi.org
> _______________________________________________
> theora-dev mailing list
> theora-dev@xiph.org
> http://lists.xiph.org/mailman/listinfo/theora-dev
>

-- 
________________________________________
Felipe Portavales Goldstein <portavales at gmail>
Undergraduate Student - IC-UNICAMP
Computer Systems Laboratory
http://www.students.ic.unicamp.br/~ra023772/

Hi,

Thanks everyone for your input on and offlist, I have included these as 
notes on our wiki and will develop some info on each area in the coming 
weeks. I look forward to releasing another draft of the report with 
these and any other inclusions :)

Anna
>
> On 9/18/07, Felipe Portavales Goldstein <portavales@gmail.com> wrote:
>   
>> On the topic "Future of Web Video"
>>
>> You say:
>> "Mobile devices often use hardware decoders rather than software
>> decoders to playback video due to the relatively smaller capacity of
>> the processor."
>>
>> "Ogg Theora/Vorbis does have the potential to be supported by
mobile
>> devices using the software decoder, but it remains to be seen what the
>> degree of uptake of this will be."
>>
>> Actually, we are developing a Theora Hardware decoder solution aimed
>> to mobile/embedded devices.
>> The solution already works using our open source hardware design
>> integrated with the LEON processor (an open source processor).
>>
>> We are capable to decode Theora streams in real-time (20 FPS) up to
>> 600 Kbps  running on an FPGA at 50 MHz.
>> The video resolution is still very limited, but we are hard-working to
>> improve the resolution using a different memory hierarchy in our
>> hardware decoder.
>>
>> I believe that we will be able to decode high resolution video streams
>> in the near future, with a complete open source hardware platform.
>>
>> The hardware theora source code are located on the Xiph SVN:
>> http://svn.xiph.org/trunk/theora-fpga/theora_hardware/
>>
>>
>> Cheers,
>> Felipe
>>
>>
>> On 9/18/07, anna@engagemedia.org <anna@engagemedia.org> wrote:
>>     
>>> Dear Theora/Xiph folk,
>>> *
>>> FOSS Codecs for Online Video: Usability, Uptake and Development -
First
>>> Draft*
>>> A review of available tools for the creation, playback and
embedding of
>>> online video using Free and Open Source Software video codecs and a
look
>>> at the most pressing areas for development to enhance their
adoption by
>>> social change video projects on the web.
>>>
http://wiki.transmission.cc/index.php/FOSS_Codecs_For_Online_Video:_Usability%2C_Uptake_and_Development
>>>
>>> I have been writing this report into FOSS Video Codecs for the last
few
>>> months for the Transmission network of online video projects for
social
>>> change.
>>> http://transmission.cc
>>>
>>> A version in PDF (see below) is also available for reading offline
here:
>>>
http://www.engagemedia.org/Members/anna/FOSS_Codecs_For_Online_Video_1_1.pdf
>>>
>>> I would rather have feedback into a second draft from the
Transmission
>>> network before distributing the report too widely, to ensure the
report
>>> benefits from all our knowledge and reflects the needs of the
network.
>>> But I thought people on this list might like to take a look at the
draft
>>> and let me know what is missing or pitch in with some different
>>> opinions. It is a set of practical recommendations for projects
within
>>> our network and beyond, rather than an academic report.
>>>
>>> The recommendations cover codecs and containers, player and
transcoding
>>> software, server-side transcoding, embedded playback, support of
FOSS
>>> codecs in popular CMSs and the development of a transcoder/uploader
client.
>>>
>>> The report PDF has some formatting errors and I'd prefer to
distribute
>>> it in an open format - but I can't find a good solution for
exporting
>>> from MediaWiki - please let me know if anyone has any ideas on
this.
>>>
>>> Cheers,
>>> Anna
>>>
>>> http://EngageMedia.org
>>> http://Plumi.org
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> theora-dev mailing list
>>> theora-dev@xiph.org
>>> http://lists.xiph.org/mailman/listinfo/theora-dev
>>>
>>>       
>> --
>> ________________________________________
>> Felipe Portavales Goldstein <portavales at gmail>
>> Undergraduate Student - IC-UNICAMP
>> Computer Systems Laboratory
>> http://www.students.ic.unicamp.br/~ra023772/
>>
>>     
>
>
>