Using LEADTOOLS to Make Windows Media Streaming Easier

LEADTOOLS can be used in the following two ways to stream Windows Media streams having video compressed with the H264 encoder:

1. Push video using the LEAD MMS Sink filter to the Windows Media Server and encode the video using the DirectShow® LEAD H264 Encoder (4.0)

2. Compress the video using the Windows Media Encoder and the LEAD H264 Encoder (DMO) (4.0).

Pushing video using the LEAD MMS Sink filter offers greater flexibility in controlling the compression parameters as well as the sources used for the video. Some of the advantages of using the MMS Sink filter that are not available when using the Windows Media Encoder are as follows:

• Use any source supported by LEADTOOLS Multimedia, including:

  • Many capture devices that are not supported by the Windows Media Encoder

  • Any input file format supported by LEADTOOLS Multimedia

• Restream live video as WMV on the fly (for example, RTSP video).

• Control H264 compression options by opening the encoder's property page

• Use dynamic profiles whose sizes match the sizes of the input video

• Use any encoder available (for example, DirectShow® or VFW). The Windows Media Encoder uses only DMO Encoders.

For more information on how to push video with the LEAD MMS Sink filter, see Using the LEAD MMS Sink Filter. Note that you can push video using Windows Media compressors with the LEAD MMS Sink filter. You still get the benefits of greater control over the compression process as described above.

For more information on how to use the LEAD H264 Encoder (DMO) with the Windows Media Encoder, see How to use the H.264 Encoder with the Windows Media Encoder.