Review: ViewCast Niagara GoStream

The Interface
The GoStream uses the Niagara user interface, which is divided into encoder setup pages, system configuration pages, and status pages. These pages are available from drop-down menus along the top of the interface. We’ll start off taking a look at the encoder setup pages.The main page of the Encoders section allows you to create and manage your encoding profiles (see Figure 2). The default install comes with preset profiles for Flash, Windows Me-dia, and Real encoding. You can easily modify these presets by clicking the Edit link next to each of them. You can also delete presets, or add new presets by clicking the Add Encoder link at the top right.

Figure 2 (below). The GoStream uses the Niagara user interface, which is divided into encoder setup pages, system configuration pages, and status pages. The main page of the encoders section (shown here) allows you to create and manage your encoding pro-files.

Click the Add Encoder link and up pops a small window that offers you AVI, Flash, Windows Media, and RealMedia encoding options. Select your format of choice, click the Add button, and a new encoding profile is created.

To edit a profile, click on the Edit link on the left. This opens up the Encoder Properties screen. At the top of the Encoder Properties screen, you’re offered the standard Osprey 230 video and audio settings options, allowing you to set which audio and video inputs you’re using, as well as the type of video input (NTSC/PAL), the video proportions, and the video resolution. The rest of the encoding options offered depends on the encoding format you’re using.

The Flash encoder offers a minimal set of options, allowing you to set a frame rate and bit rate for the video, and a format and bit rate for the audio. The Real format offers a lot more encoding options, allowing you to set the video quality, the audio codec, whether or not you want to use any filter processing, and all the other settings found in RealProducer. You can select from 45 different audience profiles offered, but there is no mechanism to create your own custom audi-ence profile.

The Windows Media Encoding options are similar, in that you can select a capture profile, but again there is no mechanism for customizing the encoding settings. You can do push or pull en-coding, output to a file, and even use DRM, though this option appears grayed out at the moment (see Figure 3).

Figure 3 (below). The Windows Media Encoding options allow you to select a capture profile, but as with all the formats the GoStream supports, there is no mechanism for customizing the encoding settings. You can do push or pull encoding, output to a file, and even use DRM, though this option appears grayed out at the moment.