Webtorrent: Streaming torrent client for the web

WebTorrent 

The streaming torrent client. For node.js and the web.

---

WebTorrent is a streaming torrent client for node.js and the browser. YEP, THAT'S RIGHT. THE BROWSER. It's written completely in JavaScript – the language of the web – so the same code works in both runtimes.

In node.js, this module is a simple torrent client, using TCP and UDP to talk to other torrent clients.

In the browser, WebTorrent uses WebRTC (data channels) for peer-to-peer transport. It can be used without browser plugins, extensions, or installations. It's Just JavaScript™. Note: WebTorrent does not support UDP/TCP peers in browser.

Simply include the webtorrent.min.js script on your page to start fetching files over WebRTC using the BitTorrent protocol, or import WebTorrent from 'webtorrent' with browserify or webpack. See demo apps and code examples below.

To make BitTorrent work over WebRTC (which is the only P2P transport that works on the web) we made some protocol changes. Therefore, a browser-based WebTorrent client or "web peer" can only connect to other clients that support WebTorrent/WebRTC.

To seed files to web peers, use a client that supports WebTorrent, e.g. WebTorrent Desktop, a desktop client with a familiar UI that can connect to web peers, webtorrent-hybrid, a command line program, or Instant.io, a website. Established torrent clients like Vuze have already added WebTorrent support so they can connect to both normal and web peers. We hope other clients will follow.

Features

• Torrent client for node.js & the browser (same npm package!)
• Insanely fast
• Download multiple torrents simultaneously, efficiently
• Pure Javascript (no native dependencies)
• Exposes files as streams
  • Fetches pieces from the network on-demand so seeking is supported (even before torrent is finished)
  • Seamlessly switches between sequential and rarest-first piece selection strategy
• Supports advanced torrent client features
  • magnet uri support via ut_metadata
  • peer discovery via dht, tracker, lsd, and ut_pex
  • protocol extension api for adding new extensions
• Comprehensive test suite (runs completely offline, so it's reliable and fast)
• Check all the supported BEPs here

Browser/WebRTC environment features

• WebRTC data channels for lightweight peer-to-peer communication with no plugins
• No silos. WebTorrent is a P2P network for the entire web. WebTorrent clients running on one domain can connect to clients on any other domain.
• Stream video torrents into a <video> tag (webm, mkv, mp4, ogv, mov, etc (AV1, H264, HEVC*, VP8, VP9, AAC, FLAC, MP3, OPUS, Vorbis, etc))
• Supports Chrome, Firefox, Opera and Safari.

Install

To install WebTorrent for use in node or the browser with import WebTorrent from 'webtorrent', run:

npm install webtorrent

To install a webtorrent command line program, run:

npm install webtorrent-cli -g

To install a WebTorrent desktop application for Mac, Windows, or Linux, see WebTorrent Desktop.

Ways to help

• Join us in Gitter or on freenode at #webtorrent to help with development or to hang out with some mad science hackers :)
• Create a new issue to report bugs
• Fix an issue. WebTorrent is an OPEN Open Source Project!

Who is using WebTorrent today?

Lots of folks!

WebTorrent API Documentation

Read the full API Documentation.

Usage

WebTorrent is the first BitTorrent client that works in the browser, using open web standards (no plugins, just HTML5 and WebRTC)! It's easy to get started!

In the browser

Downloading a file is simple:

import WebTorrent from 'webtorrent'

const client = new WebTorrent()
const magnetURI = '...'

client.add(magnetURI, torrent => {
  // Got torrent metadata!
  console.log('Client is downloading:', torrent.infoHash)

  for (const file of torrent.files) {
    document.body.append(file.name)
  }
})

Seeding a file is simple, too:

import dragDrop from 'drag-drop'
import WebTorrent from 'webtorrent'

const client = new WebTorrent()

// When user drops files on the browser, create a new torrent and start seeding it!
dragDrop('body', files => {
  client.seed(files, torrent => {
    console.log('Client is seeding:', torrent.infoHash)
  })
})

There are more examples in docs/get-started.md.

Browserify

WebTorrent works great with browserify, an npm package that lets you use node-style require() to organize your browser code and load modules installed by npm (as seen in the previous examples).

Webpack

WebTorrent also works with webpack, another module bundler. However, webpack requires extra configuration which you can find in the webpack bundle config used by webtorrent.

Or, you can just use the pre-built version via import WebTorrent from 'webtorrent/dist/webtorrent.min.js' and skip the webpack configuration.

Script tag

WebTorrent is also available as a standalone script (webtorrent.min.js) which exposes WebTorrent on the window object, so it can be used with just a script tag:

<script type='module'>
  import WebTorrent from 'webtorrent.min.js'
</script>

The WebTorrent script is also hosted on fast, reliable CDN infrastructure (Cloudflare and MaxCDN) for easy inclusion on your site:

<script type='module'>
  import WebTorrent from 'https://esm.sh/webtorrent'
</script>

Chrome App

If you want to use WebTorrent in a Chrome App, you can include the following script:

<script type='module'>
  import WebTorrent from 'webtorrent.chromeapp.js'
</script>

Be sure to enable the chrome.sockets.udp and chrome.sockets.tcp permissions!

In Node.js

WebTorrent also works in node.js, using the same npm package! It's mad science!

NOTE: To connect to "web peers" (browsers) in addition to normal BitTorrent peers, use webtorrent-hybrid which includes WebRTC support for node.

As a command line app

WebTorrent is also available as a command line app. Here's how to use it:

$ npm install webtorrent-cli -g
$ webtorrent --help

To download a torrent:

$ webtorrent magnet_uri

To stream a torrent to a device like AirPlay or Chromecast, just pass a flag:

$ webtorrent magnet_uri --airplay

There are many supported streaming options:

--airplay               Apple TV
--chromecast            Chromecast
--mplayer               MPlayer
--mpv                   MPV
--omx [jack]            omx [default: hdmi]
--vlc                   VLC
--xbmc                  XBMC
--stdout                standard out [implies --quiet]

In addition to magnet uris, WebTorrent supports many ways to specify a torrent.

Talks about WebTorrent

• Sep 2017 - Nordic JS - Get Rich Quick With P2P Crypto Currency
• May 2017 - Char.la - WebTorrent and Peerify (Spanish)
• Nov 2016 - NodeConf Argentina - Real world Electron: Building Cross-platform desktop apps with JavaScript
• May 2016 - SIGNAL Conference - BitTorrent in the Browser
• May 2015 - Data Terra Nemo - WebTorrent: Mother of all demos
• May 2015 - Data Terra Nemo - WebRTC Everywhere
• Nov 2014 - JSConf Asia - How WebTorrent Works
• Sep 2014 - NodeConf EU - WebRTC Mad Science (first working WebTorrent demo)
• Apr 2014 - CraftConf - Bringing BitTorrent to the Web
• May 2014 - JS.LA - How I Built a BitTorrent Client in the Browser (progress update; node client working)
• Oct 2013 - RealtimeConf - WebRTC Black Magic (first mention of idea for WebTorrent)

Modules

Most of the active development is happening inside of small npm packages which are used by WebTorrent.

The Node Way™

"When applications are done well, they are just the really application-specific, brackish residue that can't be so easily abstracted away. All the nice, reusable components sublimate away onto github and npm where everybody can collaborate to advance the commons." — substack from "how I write modules"

Modules

These are the main modules that make up WebTorrent:

module	tests	version	description
webtorrent			torrent client (this module)
bittorrent-dht			distributed hash table client
bittorrent-peerid			identify client name/version
bittorrent-protocol			bittorrent protocol stream
bittorrent-tracker			bittorrent tracker server/client
bittorrent-lsd			bittorrent local service discovery
create-torrent			create .torrent files
magnet-uri			parse magnet uris
parse-torrent			parse torrent identifiers
torrent-discovery			find peers via dht, tracker, and lsd
ut_metadata			metadata for magnet uris (protocol extension)
ut_pex			peer discovery (protocol extension)

Enable debug logs

In node, enable debug logs by setting the DEBUG environment variable to the name of the module you want to debug (e.g. bittorrent-protocol, or * to print all logs).

DEBUG=* webtorrent

In the browser, enable debug logs by running this in the developer console:

localStorage.setItem('debug', '*')

Disable by running this:

localStorage.removeItem('debug')

---

Download Details:

Author: Webtorrent
Source Code: https://github.com/webtorrent/webtorrent 
License: MIT license

#nodejs #javascript #streaming #webrtc 

Top 6 Best Youtube Live Alternatives for Video Streaming

Live streaming video has been among people in recent times and the future of the internet lies in video. When it comes to video streaming there is one platform that is well known to everyone and that is youtube. This platform service is very big as there are millions of users and views per day. Even Though live streaming Youtube live has some advantages it has some restrictions too. Businesses mostly prefer other alternatives than youtube for professional uses

Live video streaming has kept people more engaged than any other media content. Statistics state that in the next few years more than 75% of website traffic will be in the form of video. Live video Streaming content is being watched by 63% of people aged between 18-34 as it is expected to be above 80% in a few years. Nowadays anyone with a webcam and internet has the ability to broadcast live video content.

YouTube live streaming comes with benefits as it is a free and social platform. YouTube Live Streaming is used to maximize target audience reach. Users can easily post comments, like and subscribe. YouTube Live Streaming is suitable for B2C (Business-to-Consumer) users.

Youtube live streaming has restrictions on video monetization, content to be displayed and ownership of video content and one major drawback is that youtube is one of the most blocked websites in the world especially in educational institutions and businesses. Youtube being a google product collect the data to understand user behaviour so it is better to choose a youtube live alternatives to protect privacy and to have full control over the video

Webnexs Live

Webnexs Live is the best alternative live streaming platform to Youtube live as it is suitable for any users from beginners to professional broadcasters. It is being used by businesses for professional use such as conference meetings and live events. This platform offers solutions for both live streaming and Video on Demand.

Feature:

• Monetization of video content
• Advanced video analytics
• Broadcast monitoring
• Unlimited input source
• Low latency without any delay
• Video player customization
• Adaptive bitrate streaming
• 18*5 stellar customer support
• Content delivery network
• Compatibility to stream on any device

Flicknexs

Flicknexs is a live streaming solution that is also considered to be the best alternative for youtube live. This platform is suitable for any kind of business model and idea. Flicknexs provide end to end video solution with full control over the content

Feature:

• Adaptive bitrate streaming
• In-depth analytics
• Multiple device support
• Video player customization
• Video monetization options
• Both website and mobile app support

Muvi

Muvi is another great YouTube alternative live-streaming platform focused on OTT media. Muvi allows its users to multi-screen video and audio streaming, It allows users to easily monetize their videos and audios. This platform also focuses on Video on demand service
Muvi is a simple solution that does not require any coding knowledge and it provides an in-built Video CMS that is managed by Muvi’s end only.

Feature:

• White-label Streaming
• Analytics
• Video Monetization options
• Security options such as DRM Encryption technology
• Video CMS
• Content Delivery network
• Websites and apps support for both TV and Mobile

Brightcove

Brightcove was founded in 2004, is one of the oldest platforms in the live streaming market. Brightcove is an ad-free live streaming platform. It also supports video on-demand service
IT provides features such as monetization and global content delivery. Brightcove pricing packages are expensive. These platforms are mostly used by larger companies and especially by content writers. If you are willing to pay a higher amount to monetize your live streaming, then Brightcove is the best option

Feature:

• Global content delivery.
• Ad-free Streaming
• Transcoding feature
• Multi Bitrate live streaming

Dacast

Dacast was started in 2008, a YouTube alternative offers live video streaming and VOD solution. It is mainly used for professional use like live events and conference meetings. This platform offers secure live streaming with authorized password access. Provides customer support for premium users

Feature:

• Ad-free streaming.
• Encoding features
• Advanced Video analytics.
• Global content delivery Network
• Zoom live stream integration
• Low latency
• Multi bitrate streaming
• Monetization of videos

Panopto

Panopto is a leading YouTube alternative live stream platform for schools, colleges and universities. Panopto allows streaming, recording, sharing of video content. Its features and accessibility are best focused on educational institutes.

This platform is mainly used by professors for online lectures and for some businesses to conduct training courses. This platform mainly concentrates on e-learning. Therefore, they provide vital tools for generating “internal YouTube” and integration with learning management systems. It includes an option for video organization in the library

Feature:

• Global content delivery to end-users through Content delivery networks
• Analytics Dashboard
• Video customization
• White label streaming
• SSL Protection
• Compatible with any device

Conclusion

Even though youtube is the most popular live streaming platform but due to its limitation in some features and the availability of competitive and alternatives live streaming solution with advanced features such as monetization, security feature and full control over the video has made people shift to other video streaming platforms

#video #streaming #youtube #livestreaming #live #vod

What is VOD Streaming? Benefits of VOD Streaming

Video on Demand which is also known as VOD stream refers to popular videos that are published across global VOD platforms and made available all times to the targeted viewers. The key reason to name it as Video on Demand, is because in the past, consumers watched the TV sets in the scheduled times where the choices for end-users were quite restricted.

Therefore, it is said that in the VOD streaming market, this visual medium is made available which is in high-demand, anywhere, at any moment, on any device making it completely flexible.

How Come There’s A Spike In Subscription On Video On Demand Streaming?
We all know that a pandemic shift has positively impacted the VOD online streaming market & has been helping market players to widen their subscription services through the advent of digital advertising.

It doesn’t just stop there…
According to Google’s observation, when looked into video data watching habits, consumers who are aged between 13 to 64, watch numerous combinations of content that range from traditional to online video streaming media.

How Do VOD Streaming Providers Leverage This Factor?

Apparently, VOD streaming providers take this as a huge leveraging opportunity and tend to increase their pricing strategy for them to reach out to a larger consumer base.

What Is VOD Streaming?

Today, you really don’t have to check what is VOD streaming does! These days, it’s found everywhere right from the funny videos in facebook, be it your favourite Netflix show, any kind of promotional video watched on any business website it all implies the same. VOD streaming platform has flourished online content delivery & is the interactive future.

Some of the latest survey studies indicate that audiences prefer consuming content in the form of videos which are more relatable, rather than email communication, infographic advertising & informative blog articles.

How Streaming Service Worked During Crisis Hour & How Entertainment Releases Took

Over High To Showcase It Directly Via VOD Streaming??

The Internet is considerably quicker and more cheap today than it was a few decades ago. People are preferring to migrate to alternate internet-based entertainment sources such as VOD streaming platform, which offer far more freedom and variety in content. One of the examples like in-flight entertainment on long-haul destinations take the major attention of travellers.

What Streaming Services Are Popular In Recent Times?

Some of the popular streaming platforms that are pioneer and rule the premium VOD industry are Netflix, Disney+, and Hulu. These services, on the other hand, are provided by the network’s official partners for consumer-oriented entertainment purposes. These sites do not allow independent authors to own their revenue share completely using their creative content.

To Read Full Article: VOD streaming platform

#vod #streaming #solution #platform

Top 9 Video On Demand Platform Providers in 2021

The VOD platform has gained immense growth over the last couple of years. Owing to the advancement in technology and increased usage of the internet, the sector is currently booming.

Consumers are hooked to viewing video content. Whether it is a popular TV show on Netflix, scrolling through Instagram videos, or finding how-to videos on YouTube, there is constant consumption of video content across many VOD platforms.

The pandemic in 2019 only paved the way for more interest in the platform as VOD is convenient to watch from anywhere, at your own time, if you have an active internet connection. About 88% of Millennials and Gen Z in the US agreed that entertainment and distraction during the pandemic were the main reasons to watch videos.

Table of Content

List of Video on Demand Platform Providers

1. VPlayed
2. Brightcove
3. Contus VPlay
4. Vidyard 
5. Wowza
6. Kaltura
7. Uscreen
8. Muvi
9. Vixy Video

What is a VOD Platform?

VOD allows users to watch video content from a library of options at their own pace, without adhering to a broadcasting schedule. Videos can be played on any device such as smartphones, TVs, personal computers, and others.

With VOD, viewers can playback videos, pause, and rewind as per their convenience. Video-on-demand software is useful in helping the consumers browse through the list of options from the library and choose what to watch.

9 Top Players in Video On Demand Platform

By using a video-on-demand solutions provider, you save a lot of effort, time, and money included in starting from scratch. The VOD platform providers have an expert term that stays on top of trends in the industry and gives you valuable inputs to scale your VOD business. Here are the popular VOD solutions for VOD streaming platforms:

1. VPlayed - A Highly Secured VOD Platform

With over 150 streaming features and a mix of six monetization methods, VPlayed is one of the top choices in white label VOD platforms. You can find numerous features like powerful CMS, strong security integration, great marketing tools, and more to boost your VOD business. It also has reliable hosting and offers full ownership to grow your business as you deem fit.

2. Brightcove - Unmatched Reliable Video on Demand Solution

Brightcove is also one of the best video-on-demand platforms which promise high-quality video streaming, a 24/7 support team, and security measures for a seamless experience. Backed by innovation and technology, the provider offers flawless integration with video partners for great results.

3. Contus Vplay - A White Label VOD Streaming Platform

Contus Vplay is also one of the leading OTT and video-on-demand providers that offers 100% customization, on-cloud/on-premise hosting, third-party integrations, and more. The best cloud transcoding and encoding features guarantee a smooth streaming experience to build your audience and business. You can also manage your content supply chain with ease from anywhere.

4. Vidyard - Best Video on Demand Software

From easy video creation with recording your screens, webcam, and more to video analytics that help you make key business decisions, this is one of the top VOD platforms. You can also personalize your videos to each user for a better experience on the platform. The platform offers the best tools for video creation, management, sharing, and analytics for your business.

5. Wowza - Global Video Streaming & Distribution Platform

Wowza is a video-on-demand company that offers high-definition streaming to almost all devices. From creating VOD playlists to adaptive playback based on bandwidth, this streaming provider helps businesses scale in their VOD segment. Its other features include strict security measures, recording live streams, optimize video bitrate, and more.

To Read Full Stories: Top 9 Video On Demand Platform Providers in 2021

#vod #platform #providers #services #streaming #software

How Video Streaming Platforms Make Money

Have you ever wondered How Video Streaming Platforms Make Money? Streaming videos online is not just watching videos and inviting others to watch the videos; there are things much more beyond that. There are several ways of making money using online streaming platforms. Before getting to know how to make money. You must first learn about VOD and OTT platforms

VOD (Video on demand) is an online video streaming platform where viewers can watch videos wherever they want and at any time. Viewers can also pause, fast forward or rewind the videos and start watching the video from where they left. Viewers have complete control over the video. An example of Vod is Netflix.

OTT (Over The Top) is an online video streaming platform where viewers can watch videos over an internet connection rather than traditional forms of methods such as cable or satellite providers. In OTT, live streaming can also be done. An example of OTT is Amazon Prime.

VOD involves videos that can be downloaded and stored offline. Still, VOD does not feature video content that streams on a live schedule. Whereas in OTT, videos cannot be downloaded or stored but can stream live video content and podcasts. However, live content in OTT, if stored for future views, then it can be considered as VOD. VOD and OTT sometimes overlap in some contexts. Examples like youtube can be considered as both OTT and VOD.

Monetization of VOD

You have three options: SVOD(Subscription Video On Demand), TVOD(Transactional Video On Demand), AVOD(Ad-Supported Video On Demand)

SVOD (Subscription Video On Demand)

SVOD is a way viewers access the content by paying money regularly, maybe monthly or annually. It is one of the biggest profitable methods in the present as many viewers renew their subscription as long as there is quality content on the platform

TVOD (Transactional Video On Demand)

TVOD is a way in which viewers access the content on pay per view basis. There are two ways in TVOD: Giving access to content for an entire lifetime permanently on payment and another method is giving access to the content for a particular period with an amount lesser than the permanent purchase amount.

AVOD (Ad-Supported Video on Demand)

It is the method in which viewers need not pay money to access video content on this platform as it is free to watch videos on this platform. This platform aims to attract a greater audience. In this method, advertisers pay money to video streaming platforms. They place advertisements in between videos as viewers watch ads as they watch the content.
Whatever method you choose video platform must have quality content so that viewers could spend time watching videos

Monetization of OTT

On making money using OTT, firstly, you should have a broader audience and data about the audience so that advertisers pay money to online video platforms so that they get a return on investment.
You can use google ads or custom-developed tools specific to your advertising needs.
There are three methods, namely approaching advertising networks, direct advertising and acquiring sponsors.

Advertising Networks

Advertising Networks almost do all the advertising jobs for OTT platforms as they link Video Streaming platforms with marketers searching for ad space.OTT platform lose control as an ad displayed on the video, it sometimes hit badly on viewers if an ad is irrelevant as OTT are at some risk of losing viewers so if it clearly monitored with a relevant ad, advertising network are also good methods are making money

Direct Advertising

Direct Advertsing is the method in which you directly approach advertisers for their ads on your platform. Firstly for this process, you need a separate team and server to manage your custom ad on your platform. This method helps you earn more money as there are no other men involved as you set the rate for the ads.

Acquiring Sponsorship

Acquiring Sponsorship is another method in which brands pay money as they own the rights to display ads on your platform on a piece of content. You need to catch only a few sponsorships, which results in making money.

Conclusion

The first and foremost important thing about making money through video platforms is to have a broader audience. So to acquire a wider audience into your platform, initially you need quality content in the platform so that viewers spend time on the platform. We hope that you got some idea about making money through video platforms. To know more, check our*** Video Streaming Platform Services.***

#video #videostreaming #livestreaming #vod #ott #streaming

Streaming Video Downloader | Download Streaming Videos Fast and Easy

Is there a period you experience your #1 online recordings, and want to save it on your pc? Or on the other hand perhaps you are decidedly ready for the on-request show you are excited about, however your testy web doesn’t permit you to. In the entirety of the cases, there’s a way that can undoubtedly settle our issues to download the real time recordings.

Discussing downloading streaming videos, there are a considerable amount of approaches to do that. Clearly, you more likely than not realized that clients approach download recordings from different real time stages, like Netflix, YouTube, Amazon Prime Video, Hulu, HBO, Apple TV+, Disney+, Paramount+, and so forth Nonetheless, out of every one of those great many methodologies, which ones are useful and simple to utilize? This article is here to manage you to keep away from diversions, presenting three downloaders which are planned as utility apparatuses to download web based recordings for disconnected survey.

1.    DVDFab [Amazon Prime Video Downloader](http://www.dvdfab.cn/amazon-downloader.htm "Amazon Prime Video Downloader") 
   

DVDFab Amazon Downloader is a high level online video downloader permitting you to download motion pictures and TV shows from any of the provincial Prime Video destinations.

With this product, it is feasible to pick video and sound quality as you need 720p and 1080p for video quality, and AAC 5.1 or EAC3 5.1 for sound. In addition, the downloaded H.265 recordings take just a large portion of the size of H.264 recordings of a similar length. Furthermore, the films’ captions and metadata data can be downloaded too. With the goal that you can sort or orchestrate your video library. Interestingly, every one of the scenes you’re watching can be consequently recognized and effectively group downloaded.

2.    DVDFab [YouTube Downloader ](https://www.dvdfab.cn/youtube-video-downloader.htm "YouTube Downloader ")
   

DVDFab YouTube Downloader offers the limit comfort to download the moving music or recordings from more than 1000 well known music or video facilitating/sharing locales, including yet not simply restricted to YouTube, Facebook, Vimeo, Instagram, and so forth

It saves you from experiencing similarity issues. Since every one of the downloaded recordings are saved as the first organizations. And furthermore the video and music’s quality does practically something very similar. The quality level is elective and up to 4K/8K for recordings, 320 kbps for sound and music.

Furthermore, portable application is accessible for this downloader, highlighting helpful foundation playback limits, which implies that you can make the most of your #1 music or melodies while perusing different site pages. No more interferences!

3.    DVDFab [Netflix Downloader](https://www.dvdfab.cn/netflix-downloader.htm "Netflix Downloader") 
   

DVDFab Netflix Downloader is a remarkable answer for download Netflix films and TV shows for disconnected watching. With this web based downloader, your recordings are saved as MP4 documents with a similar quality as the source and a goal as high as 1080p. While handling your download, you can deliver the captions straightforwardly inside the video. Moreover, the meta information will likewise be saved. This will make it simpler for you to sort out your recordings.

Furthermore, everything saw in program will be downloaded. What’s more, it will perceive the entire arrangement of the video you’re playing and you can bunch download them with a single tick! Another feature of this downloader is that it gives 2x downloading speed, a lot quicker than the conventional ones!

Knowing every one of the upsides of the above downloader, you may worry that will it be too hard to even consider utilizing the multifunctional programming? The appropriate response is a major NO! Every one of them is not difficult to download and work with their easy to understand interfaces. All you need to do now is simply pick the one you like and get down to it.

#streaming #downloader #video #multimedia

Stream your data using Kinesis data stream

We live in a world driven by data and every second we are processing a large amount of data, using it, analysing it, and transforming it. Data is very essential for businesses these days. Therefore the need for handling the Dynamically generating data is important. As the number, variety, and velocity of data sources grow, new architectures and technologies are needed. This is where the need for data streaming services is needed. One of these streaming services is AWS Kinesis data stream.

What is Kinesis data stream?

Kinesis data stream is a real time data streaming service from AWS. It is a highly scalable service which can stream gigabytes of data per second. It is a highly fast streaming service enabling us to collect data in real-time instantly.

Common challenges in data streaming:

• Complex setup
• Scalability
• Hard to achieve high availability
• Integration requires development
• Expensive to maintain.

Why choose Kinesis data streams?

There are different streaming services available on the market but why and when should we use Kinesis data stream? To answer this question let us look at some advantages of it.

• Easy to use: It allows us to rapidly develop applications by providing us AWS SDK, Kinesis Client library, connectors and agents which are. Easily process data with built-in integrations to AWS Lambda, Amazon Kinesis Data Analytics, and AWS Glue Schema Registry.
• Real-time performance: highly fast streaming service enabling us to collect data in real-time instantly.
• Elastic: Dynamically scale your applications. These data streams scale from megabytes to terabytes per hour, and scale from thousands to millions of PUT records per second.
• Low cost: It has no upfront cost, and you only pay for the resources you use.

#java #scala #aws #java #java8 #streaming

Video Streaming With Akka Streams

First of all, do not let the title deceive you — it will not be simple println(“Hello world”) but with Actor System. Today, we will implement your first (sorry if I assumed wrongly) video streaming service. Namely, I will use Akka HTTP and Streams to create a REST API capable of streaming a video file, in mp4 format, in a way that matches the expectations of HTML5 <video> tag. Besides, I will also add a few words about Akka and some components like Akka Streams to give you some theoretical background before you start coding. But first, one question.

Why Video Streaming?

There are three main reasons behind choosing video streaming as the topic for today’s article. The first one is that it is an absorbing and complex subject for me, especially on a large scale (like Netflix) and I have always wanted to learn more about it. The next reason is that it is a niche topic, so a project based around video streaming can be a great addition to anyone’s portfolio - this one is especially important for people who want to start their journey with Scala and Akka. Last but not least it is very interesting way to get familiar with Akka Streams, which in fact makes this whole operation much easier.

After this brief introduction, we can move to the first of the main topics for today.

What Is Akka And Is It Tasty?

In general, it is an open-source toolkit whose aim is to make the creation of multi-threaded and distributed applications easy and also provide runtime for such applications. Akka-based systems tend to scale very, very well. Akka is based around Actor Model and actor-based concurrency and draws lots of inspiration from Erlang. It is written in Scala but provides DSLs for both Scala and Java.

When it comes to the tastiness of Akka, if you prefer eating your source code then for sure it is very tasty. If you want to learn more about Akka I recommend starting from reading this.

Here most of the source code will be based around HTTP and Streams features and there will be almost no features from the standard Akka Actors package.

When we cover the absolute basics of Akka we can dive deeper into today’s text.

What Is Akka Streams?

Akka Streams are simply a package built on top of normal Akka Actors to help us with the processing of infinite (or finite but very, very large) sequences of data. The main motivation behind the creation of Akka Streams was problems with the correct configuration of actors in the actor system to achieve a stable flow of streamed data.

An important fact is that Akka Streams have a built-in back-pressure mechanism. Thanks to that one of the most complex problems in the streaming world, configuring the producer to react correctly when the consumer cannot keep up with load, is taken care of by a tool you use and you do not have to care about it too much.

Additionally, Akka Streams provides an API that is compliant with interfaces required by Reactive Streams SPI. As a side note, it is worth noting that Akka itself is one of the founding members of the Reactive Stream initiative.

Akka Streams checked so now we can jump to the next part of the theory.

What Is Akka HTTP?

Similarly to Akka Streams, it is a package provided by Akka creators. It is built on top of Akka Streams and Akka Actors and it helps you to interact with outside worlds via HTTP. It provides both sides of HTTP stack, so you can build a REST API and you can use it as HTTP client for sending requests to some external service.

So now, when you have some basic understating of tools which we will use to implement our backend, the last thing left to describe is the most important part of our application’s frontend.

Details Of HTML5

It is a new tag introduced in HTML 5 to replace adobe video player. As you may guess, its main responsibility is to embed media player, capable of playing videos, into an HTML document. The idea is very similar to plain old <img> tag.

Inside <video> tag you place <source> tag with two important attributes. The first one is **src **attribute used to point out video which we want to display. The second important field is type, responsible for keeping our video format

You can also write some text inside <video> </video> tags and it will be used as fallback in browsers that do not support the element. As for now, even Internet Explorer supports it so this scenario is almost impossible.

How Streaming With HTML

Although it sounds complex at the first glance, after some reading it becomes quite easy. Almost everything is ready and we only have to integrate different components.

On the backend side, most of the heavy lifting will be done by FileIO object, which will emit events chunked part of our file. Of course, the size of chunked elements is configurable. Moreover, the starting position is also configurable which will allow us to start playing our video from a certain point, not exactly from the beginning. All these, features are perfectly suited for <video> tag performing HTTP GET request with Range header to play video without downloading it first.

Examples of requests made by HTML video:

For anyone interested, request header – Range:bytes=x- is responsible for picking the starting position of our video. The first request will be send at the beginning of processing video while the second one can be sent when you decide to move to a certain point on the video timeline.

With this lengthy introduction, it is finally time for some coding. Are you happy?

Let’s Write Streaming Service

In the next few paragraphs, I will implement the backend of our streaming service and then I will create a simple web page in HTML to verify if it works correctly.

Because I like doing assumptions, I assumed that anyone interested knows some basics of Scala and SBT.

1. We will add all necessary dependencies to our **build.sbt **file, for this project we will need only 3 packages: akka-http, akka-actor-typed (in theory, package akka-actor is enough but remember to always type safe), akka-stream.

Scala

2. Now we can create the main class responsible for starting our application. I choose to extend App — for me, it is more convenient than creating main method. In the next step, we will put there Actor System and HTTP server starters.

Scala

3. After creating the main class we can add the code mentioned in previous step.

Scala

As for now, such configuration is enough. In the last step, we will add the call of bind method at the end to expose our REST API. The current configuration will run Actor System with name akka-video-stream and HTTP server on port 8090 of your local machine. Remember not to omit implicit keyword near Actor System definition, as such implicit parameter is required by signature of Http method.

4. Here we will finally implement REST API endpoint used to process requests from <video> tag.

Scala

As you can see, I have created an endpoint with URL “api/files/default”. It checks if **Range **header is present in request. If our server is able to find it, the client will get a response with code 200 (OK), otherwise, we return a response with code 416 (Range Not Satisfiable).

5. The fifth step is perfect for implementing the method which is the main course of the whole article.

Scala

Here I have done a few things:

• I have loaded the file I want to stream to the application, then based on the header from quest and file info I have calculated starting point of streaming and Content Range response header.
• With help of FileIO I have created a stream from the previously loaded file. Then I used this stream as data in HttpEntity.
• I have created HttpResposne with code 206 (Partial content), headers and responseEntity as body.

I also want to describe FileIO in more details as it is the most magical thing in this article. So, what exactly happened in this line: FileIO.fromPath(file.toPath, 1024, start) ?

It created Source (Akka Streams counterpart of Producer from Reactive Streams) from the content of file under the provided path. Each element emitted by the source will have exactly 1 MB of size. The first emitted element will be in the position marked by the start parameter, so if you set 0 as the start parameter value, the first emitted element will be the first MB of file under the provided path.

6. As we have implemented the main magic of today, we have to refactor our app to be able to use it.

We will start from changes in REST API definition:

complete(HttpResponse(StatusCodes.Ok)) => complete(stream(range))

So now instead, of simply returning OK, we call our stream method with range as a parameter and start streaming.

We have to remember that our API is still not exposed so we have to do the following modification to the fragment responsible for starting HTTP server.

Http().newServerAt(host, port) =>Http().newServerAt(host, port).bind(Streamer.route)

Et voila, now we have working backend and our REST API is accessible for anyone interested. Now we just have to test it.

#java #tutorial #scala #html #akka #streaming #streams

Stateful stream processing with Apache Flink(part 1): An introduction

Apache Flink, a 4th generation Big Data processing framework provides robust **stateful stream processing capabilitie**s. So, in a few parts of the blogs, we will learn what is Stateful stream processing. And how we can use Flink to write a stateful streaming application.

What is stateful stream processing?

In general, stateful stream processing is an application design pattern for processing an unbounded stream of events. Stateful stream processing means a** “State”** is shared between events(stream entities). And therefore past events can influence the way the current events are processed.

Let’s try to understand it with a real-world scenario. Suppose we have a system that is responsible for generating a report. It comprising the total number of vehicles passed from a toll Plaza per hour/day. To achieve it, we will save the count of the vehicles passed from the toll plaza within one hour. That count will be used to accumulate it with the further next hour’s count to find the total number of vehicles passed from toll Plaza within 24 hours. Here we are saving or storing a count and it is nothing but the “State” of the application.

Might be it seems very simple, but in a distributed system it is very hard to achieve stateful stream processing. Stateful stream processing is much more difficult to scale up because we need different workers to share the state. Flink does provide ease of use, high efficiency, and high reliability for the**_ state management_** in a distributed environment.

#apache flink #big data and fast data #flink #streaming #streaming solutions ##apache flink #big data analytics #fast data analytics #flink streaming #stateful streaming #streaming analytics

What is the HLS Streaming Protocol and How Does it Work?

HTML5 live streaming solutions have become more popular lately. One of them is the HLS protocol. There are some reasons why this is so popular, the most important of which is that RTMP lost its support by the end of 2020.

In 2017, Adobe announced that it will no longer support RTMP after the end of 2020. After this date, the question of what is HLS gained more importance. Adobe’s RTMP protocol is now a thing of the past.

However, will it be beneficial for viewers and broadcasters to switch to HLS and therefore HTML5? We mentioned one of the most important reasons above. HTTP-based protocols deliver the best video quality and viewer experience possible regardless of the connection, software, or device.

But, it is necessary to plan this change process well. Although HTML5 protocols are exciting technologies, the transition to HTML5 protocols requires time and effort. As we mentioned, HTML5 standards deeply affected the live streaming world.

In this blog post, you will find the answer to the question of what is HLS streaming, learn the advantages of HLS and its technical information, and at the same time, you will see why you should switch your live streaming solution to HLS.

Let’s dive into the definition of HLS!

What is HLS Streaming Protocol (HTTP Live Streaming)?

So, what is HLS? HLS stands for HTTP Live Streaming. HLS is an adaptive HTTP-based protocol used for transporting video and audio data from media servers to the end-user’s device.

HLS was created by Apple in 2009. Apple announced the HLS at about the same time as the legendary device iPhone 3. Earlier generations of iPhone 3 had live streaming playback problems, and Apple wanted to fix this problem with HLS.

Features of HLS video streaming protocol

• Closed captions
• Fast forward and rewind
• Alternate audio and video
• Fallback alternatives
• Timed metadata
• Ad insertion
• Content protection

HLS Technical Specifications

• Audio Codecs: AAC-LC, HE-AAC+ v1 & v2, xHE-AAC, Apple Lossless, FLAC
• Video Codecs: H.265, H.264
• Playback Compatibility: It was created for iOS devices. But now all Google Chrome browsers; Android, Linux, Microsoft, and macOS devices; several set-top boxes, smart TVs, and other players support HLS. It is now a universal protocol.
• Benefits: Supports adaptive bitrate, reliable, and widely supported.
• Drawbacks: Video quality and viewer experience are prioritized over latency.
• Latency: HLS allows us to have 5-20 seconds latency, but the Low-Latency HLS extension has now been incorporated as a feature set of HLS, promising to deliver sub-2-second latency.

What is Low-Latency HLS?

Here’s how Apple explained Low Latency HLS:

Low-Latency HLS extends the protocol to enable low-latency video streaming while maintaining scalability. The new low-latency mode lowers video latencies over public networks into the range of standard television broadcasts.

What is a Protocol?

Yes, HLS is a live streaming protocol. But, it is useful to explain this term protocol, which we constantly hear. So, What is a streaming protocol? A streaming protocol is a standardized method of transmitting video or audio content between devices over the internet.

A video streaming protocol sends “chunks” of video or audio content from one device to another device. The method of converting these “chunks” into replayable content on the player device is called the “reassembling” method.

For a successful process, the end device must support the protocol used by the sender. Otherwise, it will not be possible to play the broadcast. Another important point is that the protocol is thought to mean the same as the codec.

What is a codec?

Codecs are compression technologies with two components; an encoder to compress the file in the first device and a decoder to decode the file when played by the end device(viewers)

HLS supports many popular codecs such as:

• Audio: AAC-LC, HE-AAC+ v1 & v2, xHE-AAC, Apple Lossless, FLAC
• Video: H.265, H.264

#hls #streaming #video-streaming #html5

Predicting and Visualizing streaming Data through Python

Predicting pedestrian traffic and visualizing on a map

**Introduction to the Objective**The skill to train a model on the batch/static data is quite important to have but so is the ability to apply that model on streaming data. In today’s fast world people/organizations want the responses/predictions to their queries in real-time as everyone is quite busy in their own worlds and frankly we would all agree there is a lot to do. So this post is dedicated to the group who is trying to imbibe the skill of real-time prediction. This post is in continuation to my last post where we trained the model using Apache Spark.As already briefed in the first paragraph, by now you would have gotten some idea as to what we would be discussing in this post and yes you are correct we would be working on deploying the earlier created model in real-time and then see how we can visualize the result on the map as the sensors are deployed on certain ‘locations’. For the sake of convenience, I would again share the structure of the data in this post. so that you do no have to go to the last post again.Its always good to follow a proper way, so again we would address some basic questions about the problem to solve like last time.**Which tools would be used to handle the real-time streaming?**As per this blog the tools used would be Apache Kafka for real-time data simulation and Apache Spark. The programming language used would be Python.

#python #streaming #spark-streaming #kafka #predictions

What is the HLS Streaming Protocol and How Does it Work?

HTML5 live streaming solutions have become more popular lately. One of them is the HLS protocol. There are some reasons why this is so popular, the most important of which is that RTMP lost its support by the end of 2020.

In 2017, Adobe announced that it will no longer support RTMP after the end of 2020. After this date, the question of what is HLS gained more importance. Adobe’s RTMP protocol is now a thing of the past.

However, will it be beneficial for viewers and broadcasters to switch to HLS and therefore HTML5? We mentioned one of the most important reasons above. HTTP-based protocols deliver the best video quality and viewer experience possible regardless of the connection, software, or device.

But, it is necessary to plan this change process well. Although HTML5 protocols are exciting technologies, the transition to HTML5 protocols requires time and effort. As we mentioned, HTML5 standards deeply affected the live streaming world.

In this blog post, you will find the answer to the question of what is HLS streaming, learn the advantages of HLS and its technical information, and at the same time, you will see why you should switch your live streaming solution to HLS.

Let’s dive into the definition of HLS!

What is HLS Streaming Protocol (HTTP Live Streaming)?

So, what is HLS? HLS stands for HTTP Live Streaming. HLS is an adaptive HTTP-based protocol used for transporting video and audio data from media servers to the end-user’s device.

HLS was created by Apple in 2009. Apple announced the HLS at about the same time as the legendary device iPhone 3. Earlier generations of iPhone 3 had live streaming playback problems, and Apple wanted to fix this problem with HLS.

Features of HLS video streaming protocol

• Closed captions
• Fast forward and rewind
• Alternate audio and video
• Fallback alternatives
• Timed metadata
• Ad insertion
• Content protection

HLS Technical Specifications

• Audio Codecs: AAC-LC, HE-AAC+ v1 & v2, xHE-AAC, Apple Lossless, FLAC
• Video Codecs: H.265, H.264
• Playback Compatibility: It was created for iOS devices. But now all Google Chrome browsers; Android, Linux, Microsoft, and macOS devices; several set-top boxes, smart TVs, and other players support HLS. It is now a universal protocol.
• Benefits: Supports adaptive bitrate, reliable, and widely supported.
• Drawbacks: Video quality and viewer experience are prioritized over latency.
• Latency: HLS allows us to have 5-20 seconds latency, but the Low-Latency HLS extension has now been incorporated as a feature set of HLS, promising to deliver sub-2-second latency.

What is Low-Latency HLS?

Here’s how Apple explained Low Latency HLS:

Low-Latency HLS extends the protocol to enable low-latency video streaming while maintaining scalability. The new low-latency mode lowers video latencies over public networks into the range of standard television broadcasts.

What is a Protocol?

Yes, HLS is a live streaming protocol. But, it is useful to explain this term protocol, which we constantly hear. So, What is a streaming protocol? A streaming protocol is a standardized method of transmitting video or audio content between devices over the internet.

A video streaming protocol sends “chunks” of video or audio content from one device to another device. The method of converting these “chunks” into replayable content on the player device is called the “reassembling” method.

For a successful process, the end device must support the protocol used by the sender. Otherwise, it will not be possible to play the broadcast. Another important point is that the protocol is thought to mean the same as the codec.

#hls #streaming #live-streaming-video #good-company #html5

Flink: Join two Data Streams

Reading Time: 3 minutes

Apache Flink offers rich sources of API and operators which makes Flink application developers productive in terms of dealing with the** multiple data streams**. Flink provides many multi streams operations like Union, Join, and so on. In this blog, we will explore the Window Join operator in Flink with an example. It joins two data streams on a given key and a common window.

Let say we have one stream which contains salary information of all the individual who belongs to an organization. The salary information has the id, name, and salary of an individual. This stream is available at port 9000 on the localhost.

#apache flink #big data and fast data #flink #java ##apache flink #big #big data analytics #fast data analytics #flink streaming #joins #streaming #streaming analytics

Netflix / Video Streaming website using HTML, CSS & jQuery | Complete One Video Website

https://youtu.be/UErm8KX362k

#html #css #netflix #video #streaming #website

Migrating To Serverless Video Streaming Platforms like AWS Elemental

A growing number of businesses are shifting to serverless tech solutions, allowing them to remain completely focused on their platform by eliminating the need to manage server software and hardware.

Serverless architecture, also known as serverless backend or serverless computing, is a software design concept in which all applications are hosted and managed by a third-party resource. The external service comprehensively maintains the server hardware and software, leaving the platform operators free to devote their resources to the platform itself. Typically, the related applications are divided into individual functions, allowing for exceptional flexibility and scalability, while centralized hardware and software management improves efficiency while reducing the hosting cost incurred by platform owners. The third-party service handles server provisioning and maintenance while being responsible for managing scaling, capacity planning, and execution.

Is Serverless the Right Choice for Your Video Platform?

Many digital businesses can derive extraordinary benefits by switching to a serverless computing model. Serverless deployment allows companies to execute and scale functions in immediate response to fluctuations in market demand. The greatly enhanced flexibility for expansion allows the developers and IT operations team to increase their focus on critical business tasks.

The list of media & entertainment companies that are advantageously using serverless infrastructure is vast, including SoundCloud, Spotify, BBC, Newsweek, and many more. By allowing for scalability and fluctuations in traffic without the need for in-house resource allotment, combined with robust computing capabilities and third-party management of hardware and software, serverless architecture provides an efficient and affordable infrastructure with the flexibility to seamlessly expand as a platform’s demand grows.

The typical use cases that most often call for a serverless environment include:

• Event-triggered Computing: Platforms involving multiple devices requesting access to a range of file types benefit from the core algorithm library hosted by a third-party service.
• Multimedia Processing: The massive quantity of data involved in multimedia processing requires significant computing resources. Serverless architecture provides exceptional scalability and loads flexibility in these scenarios.
• Live Video Broadcasting: Serverless architecture provides the capability to collect audio and video streams from multiple sources, which are subsequently synthesized and presented to viewers in a single view.
• Fluctuating Demand: Many platforms experience significant fluctuations in demand. A serverless environment allows for massive shifts in traffic volume without the need for platform owners to invest in additional in-house computing resources to handle the load.
• Infrastructure Costs: Serverless infrastructure is typically billed on the pay-as-you-go basis: less content – lower the bill and vice versa.

#serverless #streaming #aws