WEB VIDEO.

The Internet's Next Tidal Wave

Web video is coming on fast and furious, like a storm that will not be denied. The logjam up to now has been the transmission signal bandwidth, which to the end users at home means the speed of their Internet connection. No doubt about it, video pushes the envelope merely in the amount of data it requires for Web transmission.

However, everyday more and more people sign on to DSL, cable and satellite Internet-delivery systems. At the same time, ingenious engineers keep coming up with other ways to get around the bandwidth limitation.

Today, the Web is loaded with all kinds of video and audio, from live concerts to garage-band music videos, Sports Illustrated Swimsuits to Uncle Charlie's home movies. Web video is truly in its infancy and is on a course to change the face of multimedia entertainment as we know it.

Streaming Or Otherwise

The buzzword with Web video today is "streaming," the act of sending data a little bit at a time in a constant flowing stream to the recipient's computer. Video is a linear element, with a timeline that has a beginning, middle, and end. Streaming technology was developed so that a computer connected to the Internet could process just enough information for a program to begin, then the computer's media player to continue taking in additional data as it plays back the video and audio in a sort of real time.

The other major technique used for Internet-delivered video is the download method. Here, the video is downloaded in its entirety to a computer's hard drive or to a dedicated video playback device making it available to be viewed at any time. When a friend sends a video as an attachment to an e-mail, which you then open and watch from your computer, you …