hi,
i'd like to ask this question,
How do i add video files to my web page?
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hi,
i'd like to ask this question,
How do i add video files to my web page?
can you be more specific what the extension of your video?
flash or what..?
sorry, a .DAT File..
thanks
Huh... you sure. Never used a .DAT file for video???
If it's anything other then Flash you'll need to make sure your host has options for you to "stream". If not, you could possibly just show a thumbnail pic of a screenshot of the video with a hyperlink to the actual file. Could be cool, say you had 20 videos, use css to shadow and highlight when you scroll over them.
A .DAT wouldn't be recognized though, I don't think (as I don't recognize it as a video file myself... it's usually just a file related to storing specific data about other files that actually do something).
There is no "official" way within html itself to embed a video. You must use a plugin of some kind.
Here's a summary of videos on webpages:
1. Flash:
This is the most interactive approach, because you can use flash to embed a working playing on your page and even customize the player. As an example, consider youtube.
The downside is that it's also difficult to setup (if building your own-- easier if you just find a prebuilt player, though finding one for free might be somewhat difficult, depending on what you need).
The downside here is that it requires the user have flash and some people don't (like iphone users can't). Also, some people (like me) don't like Flash, just because it is a complex way of embedding a file and it gets in the way of uploading, downloading and all that. However, if you want to have some attempt at hiding the file itself so people can't just steal your stuff (easily), then it's about the best way. But if you DO want to allow downloads, it will get in your way.
The typical use for flash is for low quality videos that you want playing on the page. For high quality videos it's better to let the user download them, especially because they might take a long time and if the connection is interrupted, Flash won't start it up again, whereas a download manager, etc., could.
2. Embed a clip of another format:
You can have a real movie clip that is just embedded with some fairly simple html (no other programming required), sorta like an image tag. The html will vary by format, so google for what you want. Also, this typically then requires a plugin from the site, or, for more obscure formats, something you build yourself or at least download by the user if they haven't used the format before.
Some typical formats:
Quicktime: originally a mac format, but easily supported by anyone who downloads the free player (and most people who watch videos online have it). You can use simple html to embed it and it'll use the player they already have (or send them to the apple site to update). Best option, in my opinion. You can then use any format within the quicktime file, but best to stick with something most people have on their system, so I recommend H.624 & AAC audio for high quality files (but requires QT7), or you can use something like Sorenson3 & IMA audio, which will be bigger files but backwards compatible through at least QT6 which is all you'd realistically need to worry about.
AVI: originally a windows format and somewhat limited compatibility with other systems especially with some (even popular) codecs. Not sure what the best method is for embedding it, but you could try a windows media player plugin (also for .wmv, but I wouldn't recommend that).
RealPlayer: The only really popular third party app (QT for Mac, AVI for windows), and it's annoying to deal with. The player now attempts to download adware and few people have it installed any more. It used to be quite popular back in the days of dialup, though-- I guess it was a good way to keep file sizes down at one point. It's like the others, with a plugin player for the page if you want.
Specific formats: Generally within "avi", there are a few notable formats you can attempt, like divx, xvid, etc., which are codecs that are theoretically cross-program compatible. These sometimes offer their own embedding plugins too.
Mpeg: though entirely outdated, mpeg has an advantage over the other formats: it will play in literally anything (QT, windows media player, RealPlayer, etc.). Filesizes are bigger and encoding can be a pain, though.
3. Here's the easy option: skip the embedding, just offer a link. It isn't flashy, but it's really the best way to go if you just want to deliver your files to people for their enjoyment, and they can save them to rewatch whenever. If you feel you must have some content directly on the page, you could try embedding a preview clip with download links to the real files below.
On the site for my short films I just offer download links (and if a visitor wants, they can just click the link and the quicktime file will play in the browser like a webpage, or they can right click, save as and get the file). I've thought about adding something fancier, but it's really the most direct and compatible solution, and it'll also save bandwidth-- it won't load every time each visitor goes to the page, just once when they choose to download it. That's a nice bonus.
A summary:
Use Flash if you need the most control and want to deal with setting it up, and with the occasional unhappy visitor who can't see your movies. Plus: difficult to save the file, for better or worse.
Use an embedded .mov for easiest embedding of a "real" format that should work on most systems.
For distribution of higher quality, larger files, just offer direct links.