Multicast Applications

1. Multicast Applications Bob Riddle – Technologist 27 September 2004

2. What’s different about Multicast? What if your home telephone were multicast instead of unicast? • Anyone old enough to remember when your home phone was a “party line”? • Anyone old enough to remember TV before cable TV & satellite TV? • “Broadcast” to local area • cable/satellite TV kind of like “multicast”, lets you tune to a non-local “broadcast” channel Multicast – learn the language, acronyms, the protocols • IGMP (v1, v2, v3) PIM, MSDP, RP, BSR • You can either become a network engineer or find some useful tools

3. Some useful tools … See if you’re on a multicast-capable network http://detective.internet2.edu http://dast.nlanr.net/Projects/Beacon/ If Multicast Capable: Yes – things will likely work just fine

4. Do a little bit of network testing Make sure you can get from here to there without multicast • Detective – E2E bandwidth test • Use old-fashion tools: ping, traceroute, ftp Try a simple multicast application • Vic, rat, sdr - http://www.openmash.org/ • Listen to some multicast stream - http://people.internet2.edu/~bdr/dvguide.html If all this works for you – you’re ready to run ConfXP, the AG, … whatever

5. Is multicast a “good” thing? • Think about “bigvideo” streams: • DV/IP: 30 mbps stream, for “broadcast” events the unicast client/server model won’t scale on your network • HDTV Compressed with MPEG2 is about 20 mbps • It’s an alternative to the MCU • Moves “session” management to the network layer • You don’t need the investment in an MCU • You (most likely) will need a “bridge” (http://if.anu.edu.au/SW/rcbridge.html)

6. Access Grid – Multicast Application • provide a sense of presence, of “being there” where distributed people could interact as if they were sharing the same “room”. • using readilyavailable collaboration technology that was affordable • integrate with existing security services and available network capabilities

7. Access Grid – Multicast Application • support platforms that your faculty, researchers, students were comfortable using • Windows XP/2000 • Linux variants (RedHat, Slackware, Fedora, Debian, …) • Mac OS X (in the future) • support existing environments to allow people to collaborate where they are • Room – Shared Display, Multiple Video Streams, Single Audio Stream • Desktop – Desktop Monitor, Multiple Video Streams, Single Audio Stream • Laptop – Laptop Display, Single Video Stream, Single Audio Stream

8. AG looks something like this • Large-format displays • Multiple audio and video streams • Shared applications (PowerPoint) • http://www.accessgrid.org/community/nodes/nodes.html (over 200 nodes)

9. ConferenceXP – Microsoft Learning Sciences & Technology Group • “AG-like” Goals: • Single-machine architecture capable of scaling to handle large, group-to-group-to-group conference scenarios • Simple software installation and hardware configuration, No conference session operator is required • Cameras, microphones and other peripherals are configured for a ‘best fit’ default configuration • Rich, immersive collaboration environments require that audio and video streams are delivered with high quality and low latency • Collaboration venues provide the virtual equivalent of meeting and gathering places • A simple, configurable archival system enables individual participants to record and playback conferences

10. ConferenceXP Application Custom UI RTDocuments UI Audio/Video UI Conference API Custom Capability Viewer Capability Sender RTDocuments Capability Viewer Capability Sender Audio/Video Capability Viewer Capability Sender RTDocuments API DirectShow Network Transport Rtp API IETF 1889 RFP Protocol Multicast & Unicast UDP/IP ConferenceXP Services Venue Reflector/Gateway Archive/Playback Diagnostics ConferenceXP Architecture

11. ConferenceXP Client • Provides a high bandwidth, low latency audio and visual capability • Utilizes Windows Media High Quality Audio & Video Codec's, DirectShow, and a custom low latency networking stack (RTP). • The ConferenceXP UI is integrated The Edge, an MSR Learning Sciences and Technology project focused on building a UI for learning web services • The conferencing architecture supports: • Full screen video at 30 fps, with 250 ms latency • FireWire cameras to enable high quality, efficient video capture • Five way conferencing < 2 Mb/s Venue Service • Provides the services necessary to create and manage ‘collaboration and learning venues’ • Venue Service interfaces are exposed as Web Services http://www.conferencexp.net

12. DVTS: What if you could use your HandiCam for Video Collaboration? you could send & receive High Quality A/V • It doesn’t require funny, expensive machines • It doesn’t require involve IP issues (royalties) • It doesn’t require funny, expensive cameras • It does require a network capable of 30 mpbs all you need is a capable Network and … • a DV capable camera (HandiCam, DVCAM, DVCPro) with IEEE1394 (firewire) capability • DV receiver (DV Player, TV) that is firewire capable • Or an analog/digital converter(s) if using a non-firewire capable camera/receiver

13. DVTS: It looks like this:

14. DVTS: How can I get started? DVTS • Software encoding/decoding using the PC processor, NIC, etc. • Runs on number of platform, though Windows XP has the best GUI and uses PC monitor for display • Requires a firewire card if you are a “sender” (and receiver for non-WinXP) • Provided by DVTS Consortium & WIDE project http://www.sfc.wide.ad.jp/DVTS CometDVIP • Hardware implementation from Fujitsu Labs • Allows a “blackbox” like device to support DV/IP • Current video conferencing tests have been remarkable

15. where does DV/IP live in the video “neighborhood”? • H.323 – How is it different? • Multicast use removes need for MCU • Higher quality, lower latency a/v streams • Access Grid – can I use it with my AG? • Current integration work underway (APAN/ANU) • MPEG2 – why not just use mpeg2? • No “IP” encumbrance, Higher quality, lower latency a/v streams • HDTV - why not just use HDTV? • Lower latency than compressed (20mbps) HDTV stream • Lower bandwidth than uncompressed HDTV stream • “Sweet spot” – if you have the bandwidth

16. … in the wings … Pocket Video … • test, experiment, develop and integrate various interactive video technology on handheld devices over the Internet. • allow those who possess such devices to participate in existing collaborative sessions, such as AG, SIP, and VRVS conferencing.  • exploit Handheld device capability in ways that extend the research & teaching missions of universities while taking advantage of readily available and affordable technology.  

17. … in the wings … Pocket Video … • test, experiment, develop and integrate various interactive video technology on handheld devices over the Internet. • allow those who possess such devices to participate in existing collaborative sessions, such as AG, SIP, and VRVS conferencing.  • exploit Handheld device capability in ways that extend the research & teaching missions of universities while taking advantage of readily available and affordable technology.  

18. … in the wings … Pocket Video … The following projects are currently proposed: • explore use of AG tools on iPaq using Familiar Linux • http://internet2.motlabs.com/ipaq/ • http://familiar.handhelds.org/ • explore VRVS 3.0 on iPaq under WinCE • http://www.vrvs.org/Documentation/pocketVRVSguide.html • explore Microsoft Portrait work done by Microsoft Research • http://research.microsoft.com/~jiangli/portrait/ • explore Palm Pilot resources available to support collaborative, interactive applications

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