Open Source Media Framework Blog

To help the new OSMF Marketplace get started with some terrific new content, we are having a contest. If you sign up as a publisher and submit an OSMF offering before the end of February 2011, you will be entered into a drawing to win a copy of CS5 Master Collection! Please go to the new OSMF Marketplace Contest page to see the details. The goal of the OSMF Marketplace is to help build a strong and vibrant community around the use of OSMF. We want to encourage developers to post their tutorials, code samples, skins, plug-ins and more. In particular we would like to encourage the creation and distribution of social media plug-ins. These will encourage sharing of videos across RSS feeds, blogs, twitter accounts, Facebook, YourTube, Vimeo and all the other places people love to look at video.

We have just launched the new OSMF Marketplace ! The structure of this Marketplace is based on the existing AIR and Photoshop Marketplaces, and the goal of this Marketplace is to help build a strong and vibrant community around the use of OSMF. We want to encourage developers to post their tutorials, code samples, skins, plug-ins and more. In particular we would like to encourage the creation and distribution of social medial plug-ins. These will encourage sharing of videos across RSS feeds, blogs, twitter accounts, Facebook, YourTube, Vimeo and all the other places people love to look at video.

If you have any questions about how to get started as a publisher, or how to post an offering, please contact me at kelmille@adobe.com.

We are pleased to announce the release of Flash Media Playback 1.5 and Strobe Media Playback 1.5!

Flash/Strobe Media Playback 1.5 include some exciting new features, including:

• Multicast support (IP Multicast, P2P Multicast, and Fusion Multicast)
• A YouTube plug-in for playing back YouTube videos in Strobe Media Playback
• A JavaScript API for creating player controls
• An exploratory HTML5 fallback player that has the same chrome as Strobe Media Playback
• Support for complex data structures in the XML config file

Flash Media Playback can be configured using the online setup tool.

The Strobe Media Playback swf and source are also available. In addition, Strobe Media Playback is now licensed under the BSD license. This should provide users more flexibility in using the source code.

• Source
• SVN
• Documentation

Be sure sure to check it out and let us know what you think!

Today Adobe released OSMF 1.5.

OSMF 1.5 supports all of the new Multicast features recently launched Flash Media Server 4, including:
• Native IP Multicast
• Application level Multicast (Peer to Peer)
• Multicast Fusion

OSMF 1.5 also supports stream reconnect so that if a network connection is lost, it will seamlessly switch to another available network.

Multiple partners already provide plug-ins for OSMF, including advertising, analytics, content delivery and platform services companies: Adap-tv, Akamai, Anvato, ComScore, Conviva, Edgecast, FreeWheel, Kaltura, KIckApps, Limelight Networks, MediaMelon, Omniture, Quantcast, Streaming Media Hosting, Tremor Media, TubeMogul and Videoplaza.

OSMF 1.5 is now available for free download at www.osmf.org

JibJab’s director of engineering, Chris Poe, told us recently why the company chose Open Source Media Framework (OSMF), Flex, and Adobe Flash Builder software to develop its next-generation, custom video player. According to Poe, they wanted to avoid reinventing the wheel and building on top of OSMF was a great way to get their project 90% of the way there as it’s a well-designed, open source media player framework with support from Adobe and the OSMF community.

Poe adds that Adobe Flash technology has always been great for delivering media via the web and that the ubiquity of the Adobe Flash Player and sophistication of the authoring tools made JibJab’s decision to put its money on Adobe Flash technologies and OSMF an easy one.

To read more about how JibJab is using Open Source Media Framework (OSMF), Flex, and Adobe Flash Builder software to develop a custom video player, click here: http://bit.ly/9X78OX

Lisa Larson Kelly has started up a new web site, with lots of great information about video, HTML 5, FMS and OSMF, check it out:

Learn from Lisa

She is gathering information people on how people use Flash based video, make sure you fill out her survey:

Lisa’s Survey

The OSMF User Group is getting back into the swing of things with a presentation tomorrow by Will Law on OSMF and HTTP Dynamic Streaming.  Here is the presentation description:

Learn how to stream video and audio over HTTP networks with HTTP Dynamic Streaming and Adobe Flash Player 10.1, helping you lower costs and reach a wider audience with your video content. This session will step you through the workflows for encoding, packaging, protecting, and delivering video using the Open Source Media Framework. Discover techniques to optimize the F4F file format, tweak the F4F file packager and live packager, and apply DRM with Adobe Flash Access 2. Learn how to set up your own HTTP Origin using Apache to work with popular content delivery networks.

The presenter for this session will be Will Law.  Will has been working with Flash video since FCS and now runs the client side Flash Engineering at Akamai. He co-wrote the “Open Video Player framework for Flash”, the HDCore framework, and is an OSMF contributor. He has spoken at Max on many video topics ranging from Synchronized videos, Multi-Bitrate HD Streaming, Flash Media Server security, and Open Source Media Framework. His new interests are HTTP delivery and Air for Android.

Go get the Connect session details at: OSMF October Presentation

The feature complete (FC) build of OSMF is now available!  As we near our ship date for OSMF 1.5, aka “Neon,” we have been focused on performance and bug fixing.

• Performance Pass: We ran a thorough performance pass, focusing on our minimum systems.  We’re pleased to share that OSMF performed well across the board!
• Bug Fixing: In this sprint alone, we have fixed 45 bugs!

Here are the links:

• Source ZIP
• Release Notes
• ASDocs

Strobe Media Playback has also added an exciting new feature with this latest sprint, a JavaScript API for creating player controls in HTML / CSS / JavaScript.  For web developers and designers, this provides a familiar mechanism for creating a control bar.  The JavaScript API also enables a portable set of playback controls that can be used with SMP as well as other video players, providing a seamless UI across multiple players.  This is particularly useful in developing things like HTML5 fallback that is undetectable to the user.

• Source zip
• JavaScript API specification
• Strobe Media Playback Sourceforge project site

Thank you for your continued support of OSMF and Strobe Media Playback!  If you have any feedback or questions, I encourage you to post to the forums or contact me directly at ckwon at adobe dot com.

We’re excited to announce that the first sprint release of OSMF 1.5 “Neon” is available!  We’ve been working closely with the Flash Media Server team to provide client-side support for some of the new FMS features.  Here are the highlights from this sprint release:

• Multicast Support.  OSMF now supports Multicast, a new feature in FMS 4.0, enabling publishers to reach audiences within and beyond their network without a CDN.  The feature includes support for Native IP Multicast, Peer-to-Peer (P2P) Multicast, and Native IP Multicast with fallback to P2P Multicast (known as Fusion).
• Stream Reconnect Support.  Stream Reconnect minimizes unnecessary playback interruptions by providing a grace period when the player loses its network connection.  The player will continue to play out the buffer while it attempts to re-establish a network connection.  Stream Reconnect is supported in FMS 3.5.3.

The release also includes a number of bug fixes.  We’ve also posted an updated version of Strobe Media Playback that uses the “Neon” Sprint 3 release. (Updated: The SMP ZIP includes OSMF 1.0.  We’ll be providing an updated version of SMP that uses the “Neon” drop in the near future.) Here are the relevant links:

• Source ZIP
• Release Notes
• ASDocs ZIP
• SVN: neon-sprint3-stable tag
• Strobe Media Playback links