Introduction
Overview
If you’ve ever clicked a link on a Web site that took you to a news story or movie trailer, or listened to a song snippet before ordering a CD from an online music store, then you’ve probably
experienced
streaming media. Streaming media is a new and continuously evolving medium that gets more interesting every day.
This book is a roadmap for setting up a streaming media system using Microsoft Windows Media 9 Series. What is Windows Media 9 Series? It’s a suite of tools that enables you to create, encode, distribute, and play
high-quality
audio and video content over the Internet.
Streaming media isn’t only for national retail chains with a large online presence. Nor is it only for Fortune 500 companies with global interests and
extensive
information technology (IT) departments. Rather, streaming media is for
anyone
who has an interest in making their music or movies available to others on the World Wide Web. So if you are thinking about using Windows Media 9 Series to create a streaming media system for a garage
band
or starting an Internet-only radio station, read on.
In this book, we’ll address three distinct scenarios in three different market segments, and we’ll explain from beginning to end how to implement these scenarios in your own environment. These scenarios were
chosen
based on our research into the most common streaming media
implementations
. While it would not be possible in a book of this
size
to cover all the
nuances
of each scenario, we do offer best practices where possible and offer suggestions for alternatives when it makes sense to do so.
Having explained what this book is, let’s take a moment to describe what the book is not intended to be. This book is
neither
a troubleshooting guide nor an
in-depth
examination of Windows Media tools and features. It does not attempt to compare Windows Media 9 Series to other products on the market today. While this book does contain a chapter on the basics of streaming media, it does not purport to educate you on the history or science of the medium.
Who Should Read This Book?
The
Windows Media Resource Kit
is intended for
anyone
who wants to learn about streaming media in general and Windows Media 9 Series in particular. It is also
meant
for business decision
makers
who are looking for a streaming solution either inside corporate walls or over the Internet. This book is also written for content
producers
who are looking for ways to put their audio and video on the World Wide Web. And finally, this book is written for IT professionals who are tasked with implementing a streaming media infrastructure in the commercial or enterprise market.
How to Use this Book
The
Windows Media Resource Kit
is broken into four main
parts
and some appendixes. The first section introduces general concepts and serves as a primer for both streaming media and Windows Media 9 Series. Each of the sections that follow describes the implementation of a specific scenario. If you’re new to streaming media, we recommend that you read the sections in order because each builds in complexity upon the the previous scenario. If you already know the basics and are familiar with Windows Media 9 Series, a quick scan of part I might be all you need before you skip directly to the part that most closely matches what you are trying to do. The appendixes and CD also provide reference material that you might find helpful.
