RealServer Helix Server - Multimedia Web Hosting Services Business and Premium service accounts have support for a variety of streaming media formats including RealAudio and RealVideo content included at NO extra charge.  We are running the Helix Universal server from RealNetworks, which supports both streaming Audio and Video in a variety of formats (RealVideo 9, Flash 4, RealPix, RealText, SMIL, MPEG-1, MP3, MPEG-4, QuickTime and Windows Media).  See sample clips below. The content transferred is normally included as part of the overall data transfer limit established for your level of service.

Configuration Info

If you select the links at the top of this page you will get a short clip from our Helix Server, there are also clips below which serve as examples of the HTML to use in referencing your content. You can always use this page to confirm that our Helix Server is operational. You will need to download a Free Player to actually see/hear the content. IMPORTANT: Your media clips should be placed within a directory named "streaming-content"  (i.e. /pub/users/your-site-name/www/streaming-content/).  You must also run our "Streaming Media Identification" wizard under your Site Control Panel to synchronize your media content to our Helix servers. The .ram file referenced in the links at the top of this page, i.e. href="http://www.thebook.com/welcome.ram"  is called a Meta file and contains the actual link used to connect to the Helix Server. The file contents is simply one line, depending on the type of file you are serving: rtsp://audio2.thebook.com/thebook/streaming-content/welcome.rm If your subscriber name is "playland", your file contents would be: rtsp://audio2.thebook.com/playland/streaming-content/welcome.rm If you had an MP3 file you wanted to stream, your file contents would be: rtsp://audio2.thebook.com/playland/streaming-content/my-music.mp3 This assumes the content file (welcome.rm) is in the following directory, /pub/users/playland/www/streaming-content/welcome.rm NOTE: you must use the address audio2.thebook.com to connect to the Helix Server. More information about .ram files can be obtained from the Real Networks web site. NOTE: Previous versions of RealServer used pnm:// in place of rtsp://. To get the full advantages from the Helix Server, the pnm:// format is no longer supported. Another alternative:  Using the technique above, the link to the .ram file will reference a URL within your web site.  If you wish, you can use an abbreviated alternative which does not require generation of the .ram file -- http://audio2.thebook.com:8081/ramgen/thebook/streaming-content/welcome.rm   By using the word 'ramgen' in the URL path, the server will send the browser the correct content information automatically. Windows Media Format - this is also supported by our Helix Server.  Instead of a .ram file, you should create a .asx file for your content, i.e. href="http://www.thebook-demo.com/welcome.asx" It has the following contents: <ASX Version = "3.0"> <ENTRY> <REF HREF = "mms://audio2.thebook.com:554/thebook-demo/streaming-content/wmvideo.wmv"/> </ENTRY> </ASX> Another alternative: Similar to the above, use the following -- http://audio2.thebook.com:8081/asxgen/thebook-demo/streaming-content/wmvideo.wmv  Notice we have changed ramgen to asxgen. Consult the Real Networks home page for complete information and for any support on creating RealAudio/Video content. You will also be able to download a FREE player.

Sample Media Clips

The clips below allow you to see the variety of media currently supported. RealVideo 9 - provides the highest quality streaming media experience, from narrowband to broadband, with VHS quality for broadband viewers and DVD quality at 1 Mbps (.rm files). Play RealVideo 9 Sample. Flash 4 - Ideal for long-form animation and e-commerce applications, streaming Flash 4 from Macromedia provides bandwidth-efficient broadcasting and synchronization in SMIL presentations (.smi files).   Play Flash 4 Sample. (NOTE: this clip has intentional static/breaks, just like old time radio.) RealPix, RealText, and SMIL -  RealPix allows existing image formats like JPEG to be easily added to presentations, offering powerful transition effects and overlay capabilities. RealText allows both static and live XML-compliant text to be added to presentations with powerful effects like smooth scrolling, selectable fonts, and selectable colors. SMIL (Synchronized Multimedia Integration Language) enables the server to deliver and choreograph multiple live and pre-recorded events, graphics, ads, and text feeds into a single compelling presentation. The SMIL samples demonstrate the use of RealPix, RealText as well as RealAudio and RealVideo (.smi files).     Play SMIL Sample 1.     Play SMIL Sample 2. MPEG-1 - Helix Server delivers ISO/IEC 1172 compliant MPEG-1 Video and System Bit streams with the file extensions "mpa", "mpg", "mpeg", "mpv", "mps", "m2v", "m1v", and "mpe". The RealOne and QuickTime players are examples of players that can be used to view MPEG-1 streams (.mpg files).    Play MPEG-1 Sample. MP3 - Take advantage of streaming delivery for the popular MP3 format (.mp3 files).   Play MP3 Sample. MPEG-4 - Helix Server delivers ISMA compliant MPEG-4 bit streams with the file extension of "mp4". MPEG-4 files must be hinted before it can be streamed from the server. Playback requires an ISMA compliant player such as the RealOne Player with the EnvivioTV Plug-in (.mp4 files).  Play MPEG-4 Sample. QuickTime - Through proven leadership with the industry standard RTSP, Helix Server interoperates with other RTSP clients, broadcasting to QuickTime clients with QuickTime content. Play QuickTime Sample. When linking to a QuickTime file using a RTSP file reference, the developer will need to utilize the MakeRefMovie tool for creating a meta file.  This software will generate another movie file that is used to point to the .mov file on the server. Windows Media - Helix Server can deliver Windows Media content. Playback requires the Windows Media Player, v6.4 and above (.wma, .wmv and .asf files). Play Windows Media Sample.

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