The
following information is presented to provide brief answers to some of the iDVSTM
questions that have been most often asked. Additional information can be
obtained by contacting bdunlap@e-Mod.com
Frequently Asked Questions
The
following information is presented to provide brief answers to some of the iDVSTM
questions that have been most often asked. Additional information can be
obtained by contacting bdunlap@e-Mod.com
The acronym iDVSTM stands for Interactive Digital Video System, which provides an Internet based “Store and Forward” distribution system for instructional videos for classroom use. Special software provides the capability to view videos “full screen” and most importantly, to add “annotations” to the video to create an interactive instructional classroom lesson or student based project. This innovative software system will allow students and teachers to search a web based video catalog and then download an image or video file over the Internet to the teacher’s desktop computer. The videos can be shown to an entire class by utilizing an LCD projector or large screen television connected to the computer, or utilized on all of the computers in a classroom or computer lab. Contact e-Mod at idvs7@aol.com or your local media center for further information.
Most existing school computers are able to run iDVSTM. The e-Mod/ iDVS™ Viewer desktop computer software is provided for both Windows and Macintosh computers. A PC computer with a minimum processor speed of 200MHz is required along with a minimum of 64 MB of RAM. Additional memory and a faster processor are strongly suggested. Apple Macintosh computers require similar performance specifications. Many educational video files are very large, in the range of 200-500 MB. Consequently, adequate free hard drive storage space is also necessary for the number of videos that may be locally stored at one time. The amount of hard drive storage space required is determined by the number of videos to be stored on the system. One Gig of hard drive space will store approximately one hour of MPEG video. PC computers require Windows 98 SE, Media Player 6.4 or later, and Internet Explorer/Netscape Navigator 4x or later. Macintosh computers require OS 8.6 or later, QuickTime 4.1 or later, and Internet Explorer/Netscape Navigator 4x or later.
The iDVSTM viewer software is available for Apple Macintosh as well as PC computers and may be downloaded from an iDVSTM web site. Refer to the previous question for specifics.
The iDVSTM viewer is the only software required to be installed on an end user computer to successfully utilize the system. The viewer is available for download in both PC and Macintosh versions on an iDVSTM web site. Refer to additional FAQ's for installation and configuration information. Contact your iDVSTM site administrator or e-Mod Technical Support for further information and software configuration details.
The iDVSTM viewer software is available for download from an iDVSTM web site server in both PC and Macintosh versions. After logging into the server, follow the "Download latest viewer" link in the "News" Box on the main screen. Choose either the PC or Macintosh versions and click on the download link to transfer it to a location on your computer, usually the desktop. Either file than may be installed on your computer. For the PC version, double click on the install file link and follow the instructions. Please note the additional configuration instructions listed for the MAC version of the viewer software.
After the PC version of the iDVSTM viewer is installed on the computer, log on to an iDVSTM web site and click on the "Options" link. Under options set the correct Universal (GMT) time. Eastern Standard Time is set at -5. Click OK. Return to "Options" a second time and click on "Helpers". Click on "Set Download Directory" and verify that the viewer is installed. Set the download directory (usually Desktop) and pick all three wizard radio buttons (bottom button) for Send, Publish, and Download. Click OK. If you delete cookie files from your browser, these settings will need to be reset.
The iDVSTM viewer utilizes standard digitized video media formats, such as “mpg”, “mov”, “avi’ or “QuickTime”. The viewer also provides the capability to view still images, such as “jpg” and “bmp” files. Other image formats may be utilized by converting to either "jpg" or "bmp" files. The e-Mod / iDVS viewer software will play Apple QuickTime video (.mov) files and Real Media video (.ram), as well as other formats. Be aware, however, that the quality is much reduced. In regular QuickTime, you get 10-15 frames per second (fps) and 160x120 resolution, compared to 30 fps and 320x240 resolution in MPEG1 format. QuickTime 3 format, improves to 15 fps and 320x240 resolution. As you can see, the MPEG1 format is still preferable.
Most iDVSTM web servers provide a complete catalog of digitized video and still image media files. In addition, files in the standard video and image formats listed above may be obtained from other sources, such as the American Memories Collection on the Library of Congress web site.
The iDVSTM viewer software provides four tools that may be utilized to "annotate" individual video frames or still images. They are the drawing tool, text box tool, sticky note tool, and sound recorder tool. These tools function much the same as tools available in word processing programs to change, edit, and format text and images in documents. The sound recorder tool is especially useful to prepare instructional materials for ESL classes or foreign languages. Contact an iDVSTM site administrator for information regarding available professional development programs that will focus on utilizing the tools to create lessons and student projects.
After a media file (video or still image) has been annotated, the annotations are then saved in a file that is separate from the original media file. In this way, the original media file, which may be copyrighted, is not altered in any way. The annotation file is keyed to the frame sequence of the original file and they are "played" by the viewer software at the same time. Save your annotation file in the same directory as the original media file and always use the same directory path. When you subsequently use your annotation file, open it into the iDVSTM viewer and it will automatically link to the original media file. PC computers will automatically utilize the file extension "anw" to identify an iDVSTM annotation file and Macintosh computers will utilize the file extension "anx".
Annotation files are quite small, when compared to the original video or still image files with which they are associated. The annotation files may be copied onto a "floppy disk", may be emailed to another iDVSTM user, or may be transferred across a school local area network. It is important that the proper "path" be recreated on all computers where the annotations will be utilized. It is recommended that a folder called "iDVS" be created on the root directory of the hard drive on which the annotations are created. All annotation and media files should be saved into that folder. Recreate this same path on each different computer that will be utilized with iDVSTM. In that fashion, annotation and media files may be used on many different machines.
When the iDVSTM viewer annotation tools are utilized with a media file and the resulting annotation file is saved, it becomes a file separate from the original media file, which is not altered in any way. Consequently, the copyright attached to the original media file is not infringed. Current copyright laws allow for the fair use of copyrighted material for instructional purposes within the school setting. Using the iDVSTM annotation tools simply creates a separate annotation file and does not interfere with the original copyright at all. Contact your media center director for specific information regarding utilizing copyrighted material in the classroom.
The iDVSTM project feature creates a "workspace" in which various individuals can share in the creation and viewing of teacher and student instructional material. This creates an environment in which individuals with access to an iDVSTM server, from any location, can collaborate on the development of lesson/project content. For example, a teacher could create a lesson "project" and assign activities to students in different locations. Those students could then download the project material, add their own enhancements (comments/annotations) to the project, and upload it back up to the server for others to view and continue the enhancement process. Contact your iDVSTM site administrator of e-Mod for additional information regarding professional development activities designed to provide guidance in utilizing this innovative iDVSTM feature.
Media files may be scheduled for future download from an iDVSTM server, which are then sent on the date you choose. Many digitized video files are quite large (200 - 500 MB) and can take a long time to transfer, especially over a slow Internet connection. Consequently, iDVSTM contains a "Download Later" feature that sends the files to your computer overnight, on the date you choose. This helps eliminate congestion on the school's Internet connection and school Local Area Network during the school day and preserves important Internet connectivity for other instructional uses. When looking at a catalog entry for a media file on an iDVSTM server, click on the "Info" button. That will take you to the download page. You have a choice to download the file immediately, which is not recommended, or schedule it for download later. Choosing "Download Later" gives you the option to pick the delivery date. Enter an appropriate date (mm/dd/yy) in the scheduling box. The selected file(s) will be downloaded to the computer from which the order was submitted between 6:00 pm of the evening before the selected date and 7:00 am of the selected date. A download "box" appears on the screen when the file(s) is ordered, which "counts down" the time until the delivery is to take place. This box may be minimized but must not be closed. The computer must remain powered on and cannot be turned off or disconnected from the Internet during the time until the download is completed. As long as the download box is still running on the computer (minimized not closed) the computer may be utilized for other tasks. When the appointed download time is reached, the scheduling system will be activated and the file will be downloaded.
Bandwidth refers to the speed of an Internet connection. In non technical terms, it measures how fast a file of a given size can be transmitted over a specific connection. The more bandwidth that is available, the faster the data will be transmitted. One common example frequently utilized is to compare the amount of water flowing through a garden hose and a large fire hose. The larger the hose, the more water will flow. The same is true with the "size" of an Internet connection. More data can flow through a larger "pipeline". A typical "dial-up" home Internet connection will connect at a maximum of 56,000 (56K) data bits per second (bps). A typical computer network, such as might exist in a school may transmit data at 10,000,000 (10MB) or 100,000,000 (100MB) bps. Most network Internet connections are not nearly as fast. Although inside a school network data may be transmitted at 10MB or 100MB, the typical Internet connection may be only 128K to 1.54 MB. That means that the Internet connection will produce a significant bottleneck if too many users access the Internet at the same time. Transmitting large media files uses large quantities of bandwidth and can measurably slow down Internet access for other network users. Consequently, the iDVSTM software includes a scheduling system that allows files to be transmitted between 6:00 pm and 7:00 am, when school Internet traffic is usually not as congested. That saves the important daytime "bandwidth resource" for traditional instructional utilization.
Download a media file refers to sending the file over the public Internet and then saving the file on a local computer. Once the file is saved locally, it can then be utilized as often as needed without tying up the school's Internet connection. Video streaming refers to transmitting a file over the public Internet in real time and viewing the file as it is transmitted. In most cases, streaming video systems do not provide the capability to locally save the file so it can be utilized more than one time. Consequently, video streaming requires a significant usage of a school's Internet connectivity during the school day and may slow down Internet access for other network users. Using iDVSTM, large video files are transmitted only once, at night, and then can be used as many times as necessary on the local computer, without further impacting the school's Internet connection.
Instructional staff members may utilize the e-Mod / iDVSTM Viewer Software to prepare materials at home. The site license included with iDVSTM allows staff members to install the viewer software on any computers that will be utilized for instructional purposes. That includes the staff member's personal computer utilized at home for lesson preparation. The software may not be shared, however, with others who are not included in the distribution area of the e-Mod / iDVSTM license area.
The e-Mod / iDVSTM management software may be installed on a readily available general purpose network server. A server with at least one 900 MHZ processor and 1GB of Random Access Memory (RAM) is required. Dual processors and 2-4GB of RAM are strongly recommended. The amount of required hard drive space is a function of the number and length of the video files that will be stored on the server. A "rule of thumb" is that one hour of video requires approximately 1GB of hard drive storage space. A hard drive configuration of at least three 36GB drives is recommended and more storage is strongly suggested. The drives must be configured using a RAID 5 system, so additional storage is strongly suggested. The computer must have Microsoft Windows NT 4.0/2000 server and Microsoft Sequel Server 7/2000, as well as Symantec pcAnywhere software. Other needed software components will be provided by e-Mod.com. A robust Internet connection is also needed. A minimum of a T1 connection is recommended.
Additional information about iDVSTM may be obtained from your local iDVSTM site administrator of directly from e-Mod.com. Contact your site administrator or Robert Dunlap, e-Mod.com CEO at bdunlap@e-Mod.com or 609 518-0651.