Trouble streaming

[HomeschoolMom]

I have done about four of the live classes, and each time there have been issues with streaming. I keep tweaking it trying to find the best option, but I have yet to succeed. My workout room is the furthest room from our router, so I purchased a Wifi extender. Now signal gets to that room with good strength. I have been connecting an iPad (1st edition) with an HDMI cable. Today I chose the low quality hoping to have no glitches, yet the sound cut out twice, and the video froze once. Each time I had to either back out of the streaming fully and re-enter having to slide the bar to the time I was at or totally unhook the HDMI and re-hook it up again. I am considering investing in the Apple TV, but I wonder if that will make a difference. I hate to spend $100 and then find that the issues I experience aren't resolved. Any suggestions?

 

[SNM Videos]

Server issues Today

Right now we're having a server load issue on our end. I think this is related to our server move that is planned for later tonight. For some reason the syncing of files from our current server to the new server is causing something to go wrong on our current server. Engineers at the server company are looking into this right now. This problem affects everything on our site including OnDemand and our forums.

 

[HomeschoolMom]

Okay. So perhaps I should hold tight and not invest in the Apple TV just yet. I will see how things go next time I try a live class with my iPad connected directly with an HDMI.

I have seen on several other threads mention of a new way to stream possibly coming for the future. Do you know how long until this new way is implemented? I do have a Roku 1 and Roku 2, and I am hoping I may be able to use those devices rather than invest in an Apple TV.

 

[jcpolsky]

Mine was pixillated through most of the workout, yet the sound was fine. Could the server have caused this issue as well? Thanks!

 

[SNM Videos]

Denial of Service Attack

As it turns out we had a denial of service attack going on this morning and I wouldn't be surprised if this has been going on for the last several weeks or longer to a lesser degree.

We've recently hired an outside company to manage our servers instead of using the datacenters support team. The admins at the new support service are a much higher level than the data centers team and today proved their worth by stopping and blocking the denial of service attack. They will be moving our web site to a new and more powerful server they created just for Cathe.com later tonight.

Sorry for the problems today, but when you have a site with blogs and forums it attracts spammers and hackers. Hence the reason to move to a new server managed by experienced high level admins.

 

[Justinef]

Great news that you're migrating to a new server - I hope it all goes smoothly!
And I'm really looking forward to a new online workout blender. Being able to stream the OnDemand videos will be wonderful.

Good luck

 

[HomeschoolMom]

I assumed the switch to the new server was complete, so I gave Road Trip All Step another trial run. Started with my iPad (1st generation) and low quality. The sound cut out close to the beginning. I restarted it, and the sound cut out again a little further into it. I switched over to my iPod Touch (4th generation), still low quality streaming, and it is almost halfway through and no glitches so far. Perhaps my iPod has a faster processor than my iPad. Could this be a factor?

 

[SNM Videos]

Problem with streaming

We haven't switched servers yet (we rescheduled this for tonight), but I doubt it's going to make a difference for you as our current server is only one year old and pretty powerful. Your success with streaming comes down to what is known as the "last mile". This means most pauses and problems are either caused by a users download speed or their computer (or device) not having the sufficient resources to play streaming HD video. The problem we had during Thursday's live broadcast was on our end and due to a denial of service attack by spammers on our site, but it sounds like you're having additional issues.

The first thing you want to do is always test your download speed. We always suggest doing a speed test on sites like Speedtest.net by Ookla - The Global Broadband Speed Test This will tell you if your internet download speed is fast enough for HD streaming.

Your computer or device is also the other half of the equation. I would never recommend a 1st generation iPad for streaming HD. It's just too far out of date. Using a more up to date computer or device can make a big difference

 

[HomeschoolMom]

Download speed on my computer is about 19, but on my iPod Touch it is just about 5. I had tried hooking my laptop up with an HDMI, but I could only get the picture to come through the TV, not the sound. I do have an external speaker I could hook up, but I am not sure if the sound will come through the headphone jack to the speaker if the HDMI cable is plugged in.

Also, while I was doing a trial run of a class through my iPod Touch connected with an HDMI and using high quality, whenever I would get an email or a notification the video would get interrupted and pause. I plan to try airplane mode and turn off notifications next time to see if that helps.

It may take a bit more experimentation to find the best way to get the best streaming. I keep hoping you will add your own "Cathe" channel to devices like Roku. I have no trouble streaming from Netflix and Amazon on Demand.

Thanks for your help and input.

 

[SNM Videos]

News about Roku

We're in the process of adding our streaming channel to Roku, so that will be an option within the next few months if not sooner. 19 mbps should be ok for our downloads.

With the laptop did you try adjusting the audio on both laptop and the TV?

And yes, going to airplane mode will help, but you will also need to turn on wifi.