Streaming Technologies

The links below will help you compare and select from the 5 most popular streaming technologies.

QuickTime

QuickTime website
The official Apple QuickTime website to obtain QuickTime components and preview samples
soundscreen.com
Popular how-to site for Quicktime streaming users and general QuickTime features
Strengths & Weaknesses of QuickTime

Real Media

Real Media website
Download the free Real Media player, see demos, access news, music and more
Real Server Platform
Learn about Real 12, Real's latest version of the server that launched the technology.
Strengths & Weaknesses of Real Media

MP3

Mp3 on Wikipedia
Learn everything there is to know about this most popular audio file format
mp3_tech.org
A site dedicated to the MP3 standard. You will find information about MP3 as well as other resources
shoutcast.net
Source for mp3 live broadcast plugin and server software (DoIT hosts a Shoutcast server)

Windows Media

Windows Media Site for Content Producers
The official Microsoft website to learn more about the Windows Media format and preview samples
Microsoft Silverlight site
The official site for Silverlight, Microsoft's browser plugin technology that enables Windows Media content to be accessed cross platform
Strengths & Weaknesses of Windows Media

Adobe Flash

Adobe Flash Video Technology Center
Learn about the new Flash Video technology, view galleries of examples, learn about players and download templates.
Fabio Sonnati's Flash Video Blog
This site provides information on the latest trends in Flash video streaming and encoding.
Strengths & Weaknesses of Flash streaming

Additional Resources

Click here to compare media clips using different bandwidths and streaming technologies

Streaming Terminology
Learn the ABCs of Streaming
Streaming Recommendations
Common questions you should ask yourself before beginning your streaming project
Digital media & file sizes
Digital media takes up a lot of space. Learn more about the importance of file size.
Strengths & Weaknesses of Streaming Media
Why use Streaming Media? What problems could arise in its use? Learn more here.