Video-on-Demand

Project Summary:

Purpose of this project is to develop a searchable video-on-demand system, which consists of video clip database server, video server and video clients. This system will allow user to search database, choose a video clip and play it and also will provide easy VCR-like user interface to play, stop, pause and seek operations.

Technology Used in this project:

• TCP/IP - Protocol for communication between video server and video clients

• HTTP - Protocol for communication between database server and video client

• ActiveMovie - An architecture that controls and processes streams of mulitimedia data. It is also a runtime used by Windows 95/NT video client to allow users to play digital movies and sound encoded in various formats.

• Video for Windows - a multimedia architecture for Microsoft Windows preceding ActiveMovie architecture, used in Optibase MPEG hardware decoder video client

• H.263 - a video source coding format, which is a hybrid of inter-picture prediction and transform coding. ActiveMovie video client is capable of viewing clips encoded in this format

• ADPCM - adaptive sound compression technology, Intel/DVI algorithm is used by video client to play audio associated with H.263 stream (as H.263 standard is video compression only)

• Software components:
  • Database Server - HTTP server managing video clips data
  • Cheetah - video server running on Windows NT platform
  • Optibase MPEG hardware decoder client - video client capable of playing MPEG-1 compressed, high-quality, full-screen video
  • ActiveMovie video client - client that can play MPEG-1, AVI, QuickTime and H.263 compressed movies
  • SGI MPEG video client - MPEG-1 playing client running on SGI platform
  • SGI H.263 video client - H.263 playing client on SGI platform

Sample pictures

1. Search interface for video material. An end user performs a category and keyword query on available video clips.

   

2. Search results: a list of video clips starting with matching keywords in the close caption. The end user can choose a movie and request to start playback from any position in the movie related to the keyword.

   

3. Close caption text associated with each clips in a Web browser. Links on the HTML page initiate seeking to a particular position in the movie. The Video Client displays ActiveMovie OLE control with a video window (right lower corner). ActiveMovie Control Properties window provides an extended interface to the Video Client (right upper corner).