Review how to preview your encoded video when using Broadcast Video.

Previewing the encoded video when using Broadcast Video is recommended before the live webcast to check that your encoder is working properly.

Note: The Broadcast Video option in Webcast Elite allows you to incorporate HD quality video into your live webcasts. It is available at an additional cost and will need to be enabled for your account. Contact your ON24 Account Manager for more information.

Previewing the Video

To preview your encoder, start the encoder and then click on the Preview link in Elite to open the preview console. It is possible to view the B side streams - to verify that they are active and routed correctly - by appending "&streamtest=y" without the quotation marks to the preview link. Add the &streamtest=y after the preview console loads. This will cause the preview console to display a console that lists the available playlist entries. The "Primary" entries are A side streams, backup entries are B side streams. It is always a good practice to confirm that both streams A and B are available and working. Hive or Kollective streams are appropriately labeled when the webinar is set up with those services.

The names used by ON24 in this view are pretty obscure - the "Primary" streams are A side streams, "Backup" are B side streams. Metadata is displayed when the streams are playing. The bit rate associated with the Audio and Video is reported; it changes as the adjustable bit rate functionality (ABR) causes video speeds to step up or down.

Tip:  The video media window in the audience console defaults to a 16:9 ratio. If you are using 4:3 video, be sure to go to the Console Builder and change the size of the video window to match the 16:9 ratio.