Real Player set up:

The classes are live streamed and archived using Real Producer. The codec we are using at this point is Real 9. The link to get the free download of this player is: www.real.com

Once you have installed Real Player you need to set the preferences. You will need to open real player and...

Under the Tools tab: Choose preferences. On the left side of this window is a Category column.

Click on Connection: Be sure that the Normal bandwidth for your internet connection is correct and the maximum bandwidth corresponds with what you have chosen for Normal bandwidth. (For instance a T1/LAN connection should correspond with 10Mbps LAN.) Under Network time-out, adjust these settings for your best reception on the computer that you are using.

Click on Playback Settings: Under Buffered play, specify buffer 30 seconds of the clip before playing.

Choose Proxy: Under Proxy: HTTP Proxy: choose: Use system Internet Connection Proxy settings or if your station is located behind a firewall, contact your site technician for the proxy settings.

Choose Hardware: Playback performance can be adjusted if your computer seems sluggish while playing files.

Make sure that your sound card and video card settings are correct.

Real Player at class time: To connect to the live stream for class, use Internet Explorer, NOT Netscape.

The Control Room staff will start the live stream approximately 10 minutes before class time. If you are having trouble receiving the live stream - call the control room number. We may need to trouble shoot with you at another time to find the problem.

The Real Player live stream is a multi rate stream of 28kbs, 56kbs and Corporate LAN. There is a 200kbs archived file available as well.

Real Player Common problems: All links for archived lectures should be accessed from  http://classarchives.mst.edu . Lecture slides should be accessed from the class web page or from the class Blackboard page. If the lecture slides link does not work, contact the Professor. If the live stream does not work from the "Class Schedules", contact the staff at vcchelp@mst.edu.

We will schedule a "Test the Live Stream Day" the week before the semester begins. On this day, you are invited to test your Real Player by clicking on the live stream in the "live stream test" page. We will be streaming all day and you can test at any time. If you have problems, this is the time to trouble shoot them. Call the Control room number 573-341-6490 and talk with one of the staff, or email vcchelp@mst.edu. If you need to test at another time, we'll arrange that for you.

Real Player Frequently Asked Questions

There are so many factors that come into play in producing a class that even the slightest thing can cause havoc. Equipment can have a glitch, a phone could be muted, the Professor doesn't hear you in time, the list goes on and on. If you have a problem, PLEASE call us. This is our trouble number: 573-341-6490. You can also email us at vcchelp@mst.edu.

1.Q: I kept getting the introduction playing over and over again. Is there a technical type person that I can contact and see if my link is working properly.

1.A: The live stream may not have been started for your class. We normally start the live stream approximately 10-20 minutes before class start time - if possible. If the live stream is not working 5 minutes before class time, call the VCC control room listed on the "Class Schedules" page for your class.

2.Q: I'm having trouble accessing the archived lecture. Has anyone else had this problem? Real Player keeps saying the file isn't there, so I'm curious if someone forgot to place the lecture archive on the website, or if maybe the file is corrupted in some manner?

2.A: We do our best to put the archived files on the server as soon as class is finished. Sometimes this is not done immediately because of time constraints. All files should be on the server by the end of the day that they are produced.

3.Q: I am unable to receive live or archived broadcasts of class lectures over the web when using my PC at work. The RealPlayer G2 Enterprise software times-out no matter which connection speed is selected. I've used several different PCs in my work area with the same result each time. Perhaps this has something to do with my working on the military side of the house.

3.A: You must have the Real One Player installed on your computer.

Check the preferences in the Real player As for the properties in Real player 8, you need to open a real player file and click on "view". "Preferences" which is toward the bottom of the list that comes up.

Under "Connection" set the Normal bandwidth that you are receiving and the maximum bandwidth should also be set at the optimum setting for your site. (Your Tech person should know this if you don't.)

Under "Performance" the slider should be set to best quality. Lowering this setting may help you to receive the file better.

If you have followed these set up instructions and are still having problems, try this:

Under "Preferences", then "Transport", set the RTSP and PNA settings to HTTP only. Set UDP port to: "Use specific UDP port(s)". The port is 7070.

Least, lets not rule out internet congestion which can slow or stop reception of files.

4.Q: I am not very happy with the quality of the video and audio to the class lately. Monday I missed twenty minutes of the video, Wednesday I was cut out of the class ten minutes early, today I have no video at all.

4.A: You should have the Real One Player installed and the preferences set to be compatible with your computer and location.

5.Q: I'm still getting the same error message: "Some components are not available to provide playback of this presentation on your system." I tried to get on yesterday also and was again denied access to the server. Can't say if it is my end or yours.

5.A: Install Real One Player and set preferences for your computer. Then check the "Transport" settings as described in 3A. (note: If you are running windows NT, load the latest version of Real Player for NT. Real Player 6.4 will not decode multi-streams over the Internet. They have to be downloaded to your computer.

6.Q: We need some kind of procedure for asking questions if we're going to use the 56kbs connection, because there's a significant delay (a couple of minutes). This is mainly a problem at the end of class - by the time we hear the end of the lecture, the professor (and whoever works the telephones) may have already left the room. Perhaps there won't be such a long delay for the 200kbs connection - if so, then maybe it won't be a problem when we get that working.

6.A: Yes there is a delay between the live phone conference in to the class and the live stream over the Internet. The delay is approximately 45 seconds to 1 minute. The professors know this and plan the questions to distance students accordingly. If you have a question about some point that the professor has made, ask your question, even if the professor has moved on to another point, he will answer student's questions.

7.Q: My RealPlayer version 8 (still the latest version available) at home thinks it needs an update to read the file, so it tries to contact RealPlayer to update itself. Strangely, I got the same problem at home when I tried to view the archived feed of the 200Kbs version. Is there something different they are doing with the format of the 200Kbs file?

7.A: The Real Player live stream is a multi-stream that is linked to the 200kbs link on the web pages. It can be viewed with the Real One Player. We are also live streaming on Windows Media. If you need that link contact us.

8.Q: How can I tell what speed my Real Player is receiving?

8.A: When Real Player is running, the speed that it is running shows on the bottom as a "sure stream" It is in green at the very bottom. kbps is Kilobytes per second. The speed that is encoded is usually slightly more than the sure stream. i.e. the 28/56 speed usually reads 34 kbps, the 200 speed reads 150 kbps.

9.Q: How can I see the Real Player file in a larger size?

9.A: Go to the view menu on the Real Player when it is running, Click on view and you can view double size, even full screen.

10.Q: My Real Player 8 at home does not work normally (jamming frequently, distorted sounds, non-animated and fuzzy pictures) regardless of connection speed. I do not know if this poor connection quality is caused by my Internet channel or the RealPlayer itself. I have already filed this complaint with my internet carrier but I don't think this is going anywhere.

10.A: It sounds like an internet problem, but you need to check a few things on your Real Player program first. In the view section, under preferences, connection tab, to be sure you are using the correct bandwidth for the modem and set the buffer for thirty seconds before playing. If this does not fix the problem then it is your provider or phone lines. Also under the Performance tab is playback performance settings and clip cache settings. These can be used to improve playback.

11.Q: I had the voice through the entire lecture, but the video stream was lost about half way through the lecture.

11.A: When watching the live lectures we have found that if the video image doesn't change, i.e. the same PowerPoint slide is shown for an extended time the video "locks up" and you get a black screen. To correct the problem, you need to restart the real player. This should correct the problem, if it does not, call the VCC control room, and we will trouble shoot the problem with you.

Other FAQs

Phone
Windows Media Player