Adding presentation templates

You will use presentation templates to create presentations and schedules for recurring presentations. A template’s settings define how presentations are created, published and the media format types available.

     Although templates are not required to create presentations and schedules, it is a best practice to create a template for each course (or folder). When a template is present in a folder, new schedules and presentations are pre-filled with its settings, thus reducing the time and effort required.

Stream group considerations

When selecting a stream group for your template, consider the following:

     The streams you select will determine which server groups are associated with presentations created from this template.

     If you have multiple video streams, by default, Mediasite syncs the audio to play back from the lowest number video stream, which is the stream with the primary content. However, you can synchronize the audio with a different video stream, for example a video stream featuring the presenter talking, by selecting it from the drop-down list.

     To create audio-only presentations, you must select an audio-only stream group. Note that when you record an audio-only presentation, the Recorder will capture the video and allow you to monitor the recording sessions and preview the final presentation. However, the video will not be available for playback in Mediasite Player. 

     Once you add a stream group to a template, you can enable the following additional features:

OCR detection: You can enable OCR detection on video and slide streams. You will enable OCR detection to extract text from slides. When a presentation with OCR detection enabled is published to Mediasite, OCR detection is automatically done for its slides. OCR detection allows users to search a presentation's slide text by entering key words or phrases. Users can then use the search results to view the presentation at the times where the search term is found. In cases where OCR detection fails, Mediasite allows you to resubmit OCR detection.

Slide generation: When you enable slide generation on a video stream, Mediasite automatically generates slides from the video stream. In on-demand presentations, the generated slides are used in place of secondary video streams on mobile devices and are used in seek player views when using the MultiView Player.

To add a new presentation template:

1.  Right-click the folder to which you want to add the template, click Add > Template and specify the template’s settings.

Setting

Description

Stream group

Click Select a different Stream Group and select the stream group you want to use for the template.

Publishing Options

From the drop-down list, select how you want presentations published:

     Auto publish and make Viewable: Select to have recorded presentations automatically published to Mediasite and made available for viewing.

     Auto publish and make Private: Select to have recorded presentations automatically published to Mediasite. However, these presentations will not be available for viewing by other users. You will have to update a presentation's status later to make it available for viewing. This option is recommended for users who want to review and edit presentations prior to sharing them with their audience.

     Manual publish and make Viewable: Select to publish the recorded presentation manually to Mediasite using the Recorder. Once you publish a presentation, it will be made available for viewing.

     Manual publish and make Private: Select to publish recorded presentations manually to Mediasite using the Recorder. Once you publish a presentation to Mediasite, only you can view it. It will not be available for viewing by other users. You will have to update the presentation's status later to make it available for viewing.

Time Zone

Choose the time zone that will be used when new presentations are created.

 

TemplateAdd

Add new template, general settings

2.  On the Information tab, specify the following settings:

Setting

Description

Title

Enter a descriptive name for the template so that you will be able to distinguish it from other templates later.

Description

Enter a short description of the template.

Tags

Enter the tags that you want associated with schedules and presentations created using this template. For example, if this template will be used for a computer science class titled "CS150: Components and Design Techniques for Digital Systems," you might want to include the following tags: CS 150, digital design, computer science.

Presenters

Click Add New or Existing Presenters to add presenters. Use the search feature to find presenters that have already been added on Mediasite.

Links

Add hyperlinks that will allow your audience to view other websites or online documents. To add a link, click in the field and enter the link's name as it will appear in the Player and the URL for the document or website to which the link will point. Click Add.

Categories

Select categories for your template. When a presentation is published to YouTube™, the uploaded video is placed in matching YouTube categories.

Modules

If modules are available on your Mediasite, select one for your template. A module serves as an advanced integration point and maps to a course in a Learning Management Systems (LMS).

                                             

Add new template, Information tab

     For more information on modules, contact the person in your organization who is responsible for integrating Mediasite with your Learning Management system. For more information on categories, see Publishing presentations to YouTube™.

3.  Click the Delivery tab to specify the following settings:

Setting

Description

Audio Transcription

Select this check box to enable captioning for presentations and schedules created using this template. Select the appropriate audio transcription profile from the drop-down list. The audio transcription profile contains the credentials needed to connect to your automated captioning provider. You must already have an existing account with valid credentials.

Live

Select this check box to allow users to specify live broadcasts when using this template to create presentations and schedules. If you are using a custom live server or CD, make sure to enter the publishing point for each stream.

Podcast

Select this check box to enable podcasting. Select the quality (encoding rate) from the drop-down list. The higher the rate at which the MP3 files are encoded the higher the quality during playback. However, this also increases the size of the file.

Video Podcast (composite)

Select this check box to enable video podcasting. Select a video podcast project from the drop-down list.

  Video podcasts are available only in systems with a Mediasite Vodcast license. For more information, see Setting up video podcasting.

Thumbnail Generate Option

From the drop-down list, select how you want to generate thumbnail images. If you have selected a stream group, you will see each of the streams in the drop-down list.  When you select a video or slide stream, Mediasite captures its first frame as the thumbnail image.

Servers

Verify the servers listed are the ones you want. If they are not, click Wrong servers? Select a different Server Group and locate the server group you want to use for this template.

 

Add new template, Delivery tab

 For users to be able to download podcasts and vodcasts, they must have permission for the “Download Mediasite Content” Portal resource.

     For more information, see “Assign permissions to Portal resources” in the Mediasite Configuration Guide.

4.  Click the Player tab to specify the player used for the template as well as the features available in the player:

Setting

Description

Player

Select a player from the drop-down list. Use the search feature as needed to locate the player you are seeking. If you want to add and select a new player, click Quick Add and specify the player’s details. Click Save.

Maximum Connections

Enter a number if you would like your presentation to only be viewable to a certain number of concurrent viewers. The default value is unlimited connections.

Use Q & A Forum

Select this check box to allow audience members to ask questions during live and on-demand presentations using Mediasite Player

Enable Presentation Sharing

Select this check box to allow users to share this presentation using the Player.

Enable Polls

Select this check box to use polls in the presentation. Polls allow you to interact with your audience during a presentation and receive direct feedback. Select the type of polls you want to use in your presentations:

     Use Mediasite Polls: Select this option to add polls to your presentations using Mediasite.

     Link to External Polls: Select this option to use a third-party survey system and then enter the URL for the poll.

Play Cover

Select the check box next to the features you want to make available in the presentation’s play cover:

     Enable Live Countdown to Presentation Date: Select this option to display a countdown that ends the day of the presentation.

     Delay Live Indication Until Presentation Date: Select this option so the live broadcast indicator does not appear until the date presentation goes live.

Enable DVR Playback

Select this checkbox to allow users to use the DVR feature when watching a live broadcast. DVR playback allows users to seek within the DVR window or pause a live broadcast. Specify the DVR Buffer settings:

Media Duration + __ minutes: Specify the duration of the DVR window in the Player. This maps to the buffer time. When the live broadcast has ended, the Media duration + buffer is the window available for viewing the "live" broadcast.

And not to exceed __ minute: Specify the maximum value for the DVR window.

 

Add new template, Player tab

5.  Click the Folder Overrides tab and select the Override Folder Permissions for New Presentations check box to assign permissions to presentations created using this template that will override their parent folder's permissions.

6.  Select the Enable Review/Edit/Approve Workflow check box to include presentations created using this template in the content approval workflow. When this feature is enabled, users (with the appropriate permissions) can take presentations through an iterative review, edit, and approval process before making them available to an audience.

7.  Click Merge with existing permissions to choose how you want to override folder permissions:

Setting

Description

Merge with existing permissions

:Select to have only assigned permissions updated. For example, if you leave the Write check box empty, the write permissions for the selected items will remain the same.

Replace permissions

Select to update all permissions with new values. Unassigned permissions will replace the current corresponding permissions so that they become unassigned.

 

8.  Assign permissions as needed by entering a name, email, or group name, clicking Add and assigning permissions using the check boxes or by selecting a job from the drop-down list. When you select a job, the corresponding check boxes are selected.

9.  To update permissions at any time, select a role or profile, click Update Permissions and make your updates using the check boxes or the drop-down list.

 

 

Add new template, Folder Overrides tab

  For more information on assigning permissions, contact your Mediasite administrator or see the Mediasite Configuration Guide.

10. Click Actions > Schedule new action to schedule the following actions for presentations created using this template: update visibility, remove adaptive bitrate (smooth streaming) content, and send the presentation to the Recycle Bin.

Add new template, Actions tab

  When you schedule actions on templates, all schedules and presentations created using them will inherit those actions.  However, you can update or remove these default actions as needed.  For more detailed information on scheduling actions on templates, schedules, and presentations, see Scheduling actions.

11. Click Save. Once you save the template, additional player settings become available that allow you to customize the presentation’s player.

12. On the template’s summary page, click the Edit tab.

13. Click the Player tab and navigate to the bottom of the page where you will find the new General Layout and Graphics settings.

14. From the Background Style list, choose the option you want. Additional options will appear based on your choice.

Color

Select this option to change the background color from the default color (black). Click the color preview swatch to the left to choose a color in the color grid or enter the color code (hex) in the field.

Image

Select this option to use a custom image as the background. When the Background Image setting appears, click Select to file to navigate to and select the file containing the 1920x1080 image you want to use. A preview of the selected image is displayed below. If you select the wrong image, use the drop-down list to select Delete and remove the file.

 

15. Under the Graphics > Top Banner settings, click Select a file to navigate to and select the file containing the 480x60 image you want to use.

16. In the Top Banner URL field, enter the URL of the website you want users to go to when they click on the banner.

Template summary page, Player settings

17. Click Save.