Keep it on the Download

As college students we are constantly using different forms of media and streaming all the time. We do this for educational purposes to watch videos online or listen to podcasts and download content. We also like to sit back and relax and enjoy music and videos for our entertainment from a variety of different services. Streaming media is a form of media that begins to play right when the data begins to “stream” which means when the data transfers over to the browser. Pseudo steaming is another name for Progressive downloading. This type of streaming allows for content to be play while it’s being downloaded. Downloadable is opposite of this because the browser needs store all the media before it can play. These three different media types all have their own advantages and disadvantages like anything else. Downloadable media allows users to view files numerous times, however with large files the download times are lengthy and it takes up a lot of space on devices. Streaming allows the option to play a portion of the file but its bandwidth requirements are high. Pseudo streaming is great for accessing content while it downloads but similar to downloadable the files are large and require a long time to download.

http://www.onlinevideo.net/2011/05/streaming-vs-progressive-download-vs-adaptive-streaming/. This article by Jan Ozer an online video expert, author, discusses the different media types and breaks them down in detail. https://www.brightcove.com/en/blog/2009/03/progressive-download-versus-streaming. The article here also discusses between steaming and progressive download delivery methods. There is no clear cut winner on which method is the best because of the advantages and disadvantages of each, they are very situational. Streaming Media however seems to the most dominant form of media today. With streaming services like Netflix, Hulu, Amazon and so on. I have personal experience using both Hulu and Netflix and love the features of them both. I can’t speak to using them on a mobile device but I have loaded them both from my Xbox and through the app on a smart TV. I use my laptop and phone to stream music through YouTube and Spotify, I don’t notice any major differences between devices. I watch videos through YouTube on different devices like my phone and laptop. Viewing the content on different screen sizes doesn’t seem to affect the quality. In some cases it may more enjoyable to view a video on the big screen. Bandwidth definitely plays a key role in any of these media types. The bandwidth is in the same conversation as internet connection. One with a larger bandwidth is able to data quicker like downloading a file or loading a video. I know for myself I don’t like waiting on things like video game updates to download or waiting on a video to load. I’m sure most student would agree on this as well and can share the same experiences. The issue can also be present when trying to download files or load content for class and projects.