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Video Streams

You can play video streams on the canvas. For example, you can display video streamed from a webcam or you can play a video running on an external computer.

You can add multiple video streams to a video stream widget, switch between video streams, and edit the video stream name and URL.

Note

Do not confuse incoming video streams with streamed video outputs (see section on Streamed Video Outputs).

Supported Protocols for Decoding Video Streams

MT Canvus supports an extensive range of protocols for decoding video streams, including HTTP, RTSP, RTP, and UDP. Specifically, MT Canvus uses tools and libraries in the ffmpeg framework to decode video streams. These libraries include the libavcodec library of decoders for AV codecs.

Run this command to see a list of supported codecs:

$ /opt/multitouch-ffmpeg2/bin/ffprobe -codecs

For full details about ffmpeg, including its tools and libraries, see www.ffmpeg.org.

Add a New Video Stream

  1. Open the Finger menu (see Finger Menu section).
  2. Tap the Toolbox button.
  3. Tap the Connect to a Video Stream button.
  4. When the video stream widget opens, tap the stream URL bar and input the url of your video stream. If no buttons are visible, tap the widget to display them.

  1. In the video stream address dialog, enter the URL for the video stream or webcam.
    • Example: This URL is for a video stream running on a network computer:
      rtsp://10.36.0.122:8554/presentations

Where:

: - rtsp specifies an RTSP video stream - 10.36.0.122 is the IP address of the computer hosting the video streaming server - 8554 is the port used to deliver the video stream - presentations is the source folder for the video stream

::: note
::: title
Note
:::

The Real Time Streaming Protocol (RTSP) is a protocol designed for controlling streaming media servers. RTSP is used to establish and control media sessions between endpoints.
:::
  1. Hit enter after entering the IP stream in the address bar to begin video streaming. The new video stream can now be accessed from any video stream widget open on the canvas.

Edit a Video Stream

Once you have added a video stream, you can modify its URL or choose to delete it.

  1. Open any video stream widget and edit stream URL

    ::: note ::: title Note :::

    The Real Time Streaming Protocol (RTSP) is a protocol designed for controlling streaming media servers. RTSP is used to establish and control media sessions between endpoints. :::

  2. From the list of available video streams, tap the Edit button for the stream you want.

  1. In the resulting dialog, you can edit the video stream\'s name or URL, or you can delete the video stream.
    • Edit: Tap the video stream name or URL. Then type the new name or URL. Finally, tap the Save button to save the changes.
    • Delete: Tap the Trash button to delete the video stream.

Switch to a Different Video Stream

To switch from one existing video stream to another:

  1. Go to the video stream widget and tap the Connection button (see .. newstream ).
    • If no buttons are visible, tap the widget to display them.
  2. When the list of available video streams appears, tap the one you want.
    • The widget now plays the selected video stream.