Streaming live video over the web, any ideas?

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darkage

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Okay, ive googled and done what little research I could find on this subject.

But to the point, does anyone know a program that I could use to capture video and stream it over the internet, im hoping for not a 3rd party website application. (Recap - record/stream video, using a on location webserver, pc application please)
 
With the way you worded it, it sounds sorta confusing as to what you are asking for.

Let me try and get this straight...

You want to stream live footage of your PC, but you want your computer to be the host and not a website such as Justin.tv, livestream.com, or own3d.tv?

One more question, would it matter if this program costs money? (If yes, what is your budget?)
 
Okay, heres the chain I want.

Camera - PC - Webserver - Internet - Your computer

And I want it to record so I can keep the videos for future viewing. All without going through another website.

And price I would like to keep under $500
 
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Well, live streaming isn't any simple task by any means. I do wish I could help you out from personal experience, but all I have is a great reference to give you if you don't mind reading:

http://www.pcworld.com/article/213034/screencast_live_how_to_make_your_own_web_tv_show.html?tk=hp_fv

- It's an article that Day[9] (StarCraft II commentator) released that talks all about live streaming. Do note, the method he shows is how to live stream a camera and desktop in one, there are other methods.


I tried live streaming before, but my computer and internet can't handle it.

EDIT: For recording it, most live streaming providers have a feature to record while streaming and later upload it to YouTube or other video hosting site. Even though that sounds fancy/easy, from what I've been told you would not be able to edit the video. So I would recommend for recording, getting something such as FRAPS or equivalent.
 
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I have also tried the streaming stuff and I find that the quality is terrible (if you don't want lots of lag). If you want good quality, you would probably need a dedicated pc with a capture card (not cheap)...... here is what I have found to have the best quality. Demo - fraps - divx compress - youtube (total cost is bout 40 dollars).

If you really want to try live stream stuff, I can help get get you set up with some of the stuff I find to have better quality.
 
I probably should have included this earlier...

I found that having a great processor (quad or hexa) and 6-8GB of RAM really helps to stream, record and play at the same time. I'm not too sure how much of a toll this would place on the graphics card, I'd say medium to high range would do just fine.

For just streaming alone, a cable or fiber optics internet connection is a MUST (DSL is terrible bandwidth).

Also, having other people on your internet connection (such as through a router) really hurts bandwidth because you're uploading content to a streaming server.

thebigrobbyrob said:
-Snip-
If you want good quality, you would probably need a dedicated pc with a capture card (not cheap)
-Snip-
Click to expand...

I've never heard of needing a dedicated capture card for streaming unless you want it to look professional (as in 1080-P).
 
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Mr.Game said:
I probably should have included this earlier...

I found that having a great processor (quad or hexa) and 6-8GB of RAM really helps to stream, record and play at the same time. I'm not too sure how much of a toll this would place on the graphics card, I'd say medium to high range would do just fine.

For just streaming alone, a cable or fiber optics internet connection is a MUST (DSL is terrible bandwidth).

Also, having other people on your internet connection (such as through a router) really hurts bandwidth because you're uploading content to a streaming server.



I've never heard of needing a dedicated capture card for streaming unless you want it to look professional (as in 1080-P).
Click to expand...
Dedicated capture cards are more for streaming consoles and things like that, not your PC.

But yeah, streaming through your own webserver would require you have your own streaming software built into your website that broadcasts what you are sending, which you cant buy, it would require coding. That's why there is websites out there that help you do it. Things like Justin.tv auto-record for you, so you don't need to have them saved.

Another thing to check out instead of FME (which is insanely taxing on your CPU) is http://www.xsplit.com/. It's new, and seems to take a lot of load off. Not sure why your opposed to using a website, you pretty much have complete control over your channel, website never interferes, can set a password etc. www.justin.tv works really well.
 
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Mr.Game said:
I probably should have included this earlier...

I found that having a great processor (quad or hexa) and 6-8GB of RAM really helps to stream, record and play at the same time. I'm not too sure how much of a toll this would place on the graphics card, I'd say medium to high range would do just fine.

For just streaming alone, a cable or fiber optics internet connection is a MUST (DSL is terrible bandwidth).

Also, having other people on your internet connection (such as through a router) really hurts bandwidth because you're uploading content to a streaming server.



I've never heard of needing a dedicated capture card for streaming unless you want it to look professional (as in 1080-P).
Click to expand...

Yeah, good Hw does make a difference in lag caused by streaming but i still think it makes the game unplayable. the only things i have found that have decent quality and dont really affect gameplay are DUB (the program justin.tv says to use......which after 15 broadcasts costs 50 bucks to use) and Livestreams Procaster (which is really kinda nice cause because of the in game overlay........but live stream is really expensive above the free subscription and is riddled with ads).

I talk about the dedicated PC because.....well im a perfectionist :P and if I was really serious about streaming PC in HD thats how I would do it (I almost have all the parts for an extra PC)
 
Can I ask what the purpose of doing it live would be?

Why not just record, then upload afterward? Unless you're wanting real-time feedback from your audience or something.
 
Ph?bus said:
Can I ask what the purpose of doing it live would be?

Why not just record, then upload afterward? Unless you're wanting real-time feedback from your audience or something.
Click to expand...

The people im helping want live video for people who arent able to make it to the location.

What I was really looking for is flash media live encoder, which mr game's link was able to provide.

What it does it takes my video from my camera(Or any incoming video from just about any source)/audio in And streams it out, I can then stream it to the webserver using flash media server software, or if nessicary to down my personal bandwith, use a 3rd party server.

I can use another program to record the incoming video onto the pc for archiving and future viewing.

I really appreciate all your help
 
Well, there's Xfire, which is pretty popular for the gaming world of streaming, but for things outside of games or games that Xfire doesn't support (or even games on other platforms) there's always alternatives.

http://www.xfire.com/
http://www.ustream.tv/
http://www.justin.tv/
http://www.livestream.com/

There are others, but I can't remember them all right now.

I would suggest livestream or xfire, as they're probably the simplest to use from what I've seen.

I wouldn't recommend broadcasting unless you have at least a dual-core CPU and a decent internet connection.

On a side note, I wonder if Steam will ever implement a broadcasting feature?
 
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