A look at QuickTime Streaming Server

Computerworld - One of the most powerful features of Panther Server 10.3.3 is the upgrade to the QuickTime Streaming Server and the new QTSS Publisher tool.
Enabling the QuickTime Streaming Server involves only checking the QTSS option during the server setup. The remainder of the setup can be done later using the Server Admin tool.
Architecturally, the server uses the open-standard Real-Time Transport Protocol/Real-Time Streaming Protocol (RTP/RTSP) and supports any media rate from dial-up to Gigabit Ethernet, limited only by the network interface card in the server -- which can be upgraded beyond Gigabit Ethernet if needed. The Mac OS X server also supports progressive downloads of any media content (Windows Media included), provided the Multipurpose Internet Mail Extension type is set properly in the Apache configuration.
There are three modes of operation to the QuickTime Streaming Server: live, simulated live and on-demand. The live mode is used with a real-time encoder such as QuickTime broadcaster that takes a live video feed, encodes it on the fly and then delivers it to the streaming server.
Simulated-live mode is like operating a TV or radio station: You have a playlist of media files that are broadcasting in sequential, random or weighted random order. The client can connect to the broadcast in progress at any point, but it can't interact. The playlist feature was available in the 10.2 version of the server but required command-line scripting to be enabled. Using the QTSS Publisher tool, the playlist feature now has an easy-to-use graphical user interface front end and expanded options.
On-demand operation occurs when you connect to a Web page or call up a streaming encoded file directly from your QuickTime player. The content streams to your client, and the playback can be controlled (scan back and forth or accessed at any point in the file).
Both the Server Admin tool and QTSS Publisher have a number of features to control and simplify the setup and operation of the server. Let's take a closer look. First up is the Admin tool.
The general tab in that tool is where you set the directory for your streaming media. This can be on the streaming server or on another location, such as a storage-area networking device. You can also limit the total number of connections and limit the throughput to ensure that resources are available for other services in the event that one of your broadcasts suddenly becomes wildly popular.


The access tab allows you to require a password for clients to participate in MP3 broadcasts (i.e., your "radio station"), which keeps the traffic limited to authorized users for copyright license purposes. The next option is, in my opinion, incredible: You can enable streaming directly from the user's home directory. In a university environment, this means each student can operate his own TV or radio station. For our Hunter College media students, this feature opens a whole new world of entertainment and journalism with which they can experiment. Service providers take note:This feature can simplify your administration while adding a revenue-generating feature.