[bcab] Re: YouTube alternatives?

Hi Leonie, depending on the format of the original video there are a number of 
options.  If it is in
AVI or MPG Format, you can convert it to WMV (Windows Media Video) using the 
free accessory program
"Windows Movie Maker" that comes with XP.  The nice thing about doing this is 
that a WMV video clip
can easily be put onto your own webspace, as a "linked to" resource rather than 
an embedded one,
guaranteeing it's accessibility.

Most video sites like youtube are actually using Windows media for the video 
format, however they
then use an inaccessible embedded flash player and something like SQL to serve 
it to the web.   This
does enable them to mask the URL of the original resource file, thus protecting 
their content -
videos can be streamed but not downloaded - however it also means that it's 
extremely hard for a
screen reader user to get to the video controls.    I don't think their 
strategy of using autoplay,
is a fair one, as mouse users have the definite advantage of being able to use 
play/pause/rewind
controls etc.

If you converted your video to WMV using Movie Maker and uploaded it, then 
created a hyperlink to
it, when a screen reader user followed that link the video would open in 
Windows Media Player
standalone, where they would have full play controls.  They could also choose 
"save target as" via
an application menu on the link, enabling them to download the resource & view 
it offline as well.

Anyway, should this method suit you here are the steps to convert a video to 
WMV using Windows Movie
Maker.

1. Press Windows key, then P for Programs menu, then W till you hear Windows 
Movie Maker.  Then
press Enter.

2. Press "CTRL I"  (shortcut for import into collections).  Then shift tab & 
browse as normal to
your original video file.  Then press ALT V to make sure the "create clips for 
video files" checkbox
is NOT checked. Then press enter.

3. Select your video clip within the program by presing space bar, then choose 
ALT D  (shortcut for
add to timeline).  Then press CTRL P (shortcut for save movie file).  This 
brings up the "Save movie
file wizard".

4. When you hear "My Computer" as the destination press enter for next.   On 
the ensuing dialog type
in your required video clip name, then press tab to set the location where you 
wish to save it.
Lastly press enter for next again.

5. In the ensuing dialog box press down arrow to change the radio button 
selection to "other
settings" then press tab for the combo box where you have a number of options 
related to the output
quality of the video.   These include "dialup modem", "ISDN" and "broadband" 
settings.  "512k
broadband" is a good setting to start with.  Once you 've chosen, press enter 
again.  Movie maker
will then start creating the new video, which may take some time.

6. Once the video has been made, upload it to any webspace where you can easily 
create a web page
link to it afterwards.   You can then test it online  - and get others to! - 
via your web browser.

The only downside of doing it this way rather that on a hosted community site 
is that it does use
your own bandwidth.   However the files are usually not much larger than MP3 
audio, and most UK ISP
webspace gives you unlimited bandwidth anyway.

The plus side is playback accessibility, plus if you get into Windows Movie 
Maker a bit you'll find 
that it's also accessible to perform a whole range of operations, such as 
splicing the video, adding 
custom titles, editing the sound track separately, and more.

Hope this is helpful info.

Leon Gilbert
Editor, www.vipnews.org.uk

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Léonie Watson" <tink@xxxxxxxxxx>
To: <bcab@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Sunday, September 30, 2007 5:01 PM
Subject: [bcab] YouTube alternatives?


Afternoon,

I'm looking for an accessible alternative to YouTube. Essentially,
I'm looking for a website that will enable someone to host a short video for
people to access freely.

The catch is that the player must be accessible. YouTube quite
naturally is nothing of the sort. If anyone has any bright ideas, I'd be
interested to hear.

Alternatively, does anyone know of a good player that can be
embedded into any website, rather than going down the route of a commercial
platform like YouTube at all?

Regards,
Léonie.


-- 
http://www.tink.co.uk/



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