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Until recently, streaming media often entailed capturing footage, taking it to the edit suite, encoding it, and then sending it to a streaming-media service provider for final transmission to the Web. Talk about a long and winding road.
ViewCast, the company that produces Osprey Video capture and encoding cards, offers an alternative with the new Niagara GoStream portable streaming-media appliance. "Appliance" is a good word because the GoStream makes the streaming of high-quality video and audio a one-button-push affair.
At press time, ViewCast released the new GoStream Plus, which replaces the original product. The products are nearly identical, but the Plus version adds MPEG-4, QuickTime, and Apple Video iPod support. An additional difference between the original GoStream and the newer version is sheer processing power. The new Plus has the capability to output a full-resolution (640 x 480) Windows Media stream. According to the company, by the end of the month users of the original GoStream will be able to download a free update that will add these vital new features.
The Niagara GoStream is a small, steel box that is strong enough to support an adult's body weight. At 8lbs., the GoStream is easily portable. With an optional power pack and an Internet connection, you can stream from anywhere.
The GoStream encodes video and audio in realtime to Windows Media, RealNetworks' RealVideo, AVI, or Flash - and, with a new software update, MPEG-4, H.264, and QuickTime. The unit features composite and Y/C video inputs, two RCA unbalanced stereo ins and two XLR balanced inputs for audio, two USB ports (one front and one rear), and an innovative mobile video device dock on the front that allows Apple iPods and Creative Zen portable media players to plug in and download content for checking playback. (Support for other devices such as the Microsoft Zune will follow, according to ViewCast). For output and networking, there are two Ethernet ports:...