| If you want to capture a session but there is no need for an immediate live broadcast, choosing the Capture Audio or Video option enables the Windows Media Encoder to capture and encode the session for future playback. This option can be used to capture training or conference sessions, press releases that will be broadcast at a later time and date, or organizational activities such as parties. The captured content can be stored and played back either on a scheduled broadcast basis or on demand. Preparing for a Captured Session To prepare for a captured broadcast, a Windows 2000/Windows XP workstation, a Windows 2000/Windows 2003 server with compatible camera and microphone, or a system with a video/audio capture card must be configured and tested for basic functionality. The camera and audio devices should be able to capture and record video and audio content at the desired level of quality. Once the remote system is working properly, a session can be captured. Capturing a Session for Future Broadcast To capture a session, Windows Media Encoder should be launched on a system that has a camera, microphone, and enough disk space to capture the content. Once launched, follow these steps: 1. | Select Capture Audio or Video and then click OK.
| 2. | Select the video and audio device source that will be capturing the event. Refer to the "Choosing the Bit Rate(s)" sidebar for more details on choosing the capture options. Click Next.
| 3. | Enter a name for the file to be saved. Click Next to continue.
Note Don't worry about adding an extension to the filename. A .wmv file extension will be initially created for video files (Windows Media Video), and a .wma file extension will be initially created for audio files (Windows Media Audio). | | | 4. | Choose how you want to distribute your content. Your choices are Windows Media Server (Streaming), Web Server (Progressive Download), Windows Media Hardware Profiles, PocketPC, or File Archive. Click Next to continue.
Choosing the Distribution Content Method When given the option of choosing the content distribution method, the various options determine the options given on the next screen of the wizard. When the Windows Media Server (Streaming) option is selected, the capture of the media will have multiple bit-rate options because Windows Media Servers support variable bit rates, and multiple users can receive a different media stream based on their connection bandwidth. When the Web Server (Progressive Download) option is selected, a recommended option is selected because Web servers only support a single bit-rate distribution. Typically, the Web server option chooses a lower bit-rate option to take the variable bandwidth capabilities of Web users into consideration. The Windows Media Hardware Profiles option provides the option of choosing a single video and audio bit rate at a higher bit rate than the Web server option. When a Windows Media hardware profile has been defined on the system, a specific bandwidth and quality can be generated. PocketPC devices typically have limited cache, buffer, and storage space, so a lower bit-rate option is recommended. This becomes the lowest common denominator for media capture and playback. Lastly, the File Archive option creates the smallest captured file. However, the quality of the video is typically poor, although the audio is of good quality. The assumption on this setting is that the audio information is more important than the video information. Choosing the right method of recording produces better results for the system playing back the content. |
| 5. | Optional information can be added to the captured file, such as title, author, copyright, rating, and description information. Enter the desired information and click Next to continue.
| 6. | The next screen gives you the option to begin the capture when the Finish button is clicked, or to simply finish the configuration and start the session later. Make the appropriate selection and click Finish.
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Because a live session is not being viewed, sometimes it's hard to know what the resulting quality of the captured video and audio will be. Testing the various capture methods and fiddling with the bit rates can confirm whether the resulting video and distribution of the video content will be acceptable. |
