"Streaming Video is Dead" (So You Would Think) (April 21, 2008)

A browser does not great presentation video make. Wow, that sounded like Yoda. Point is, if you look around a little, you’ll see that browsers are great for watching videos with one or two of your pals, but in a board room or lecture hall?? Not so much.

Just because “certain” software makes it hard to present web video, there’s no reason to think it useless. Streamed videos are online for a reason, they’re darned easy to watch that way. Problem is, they’re usually Flash (.flv to be exact). And even if you download the thing, it’s not so easy to use in a presentation. PowerPoint doesn’t want you navving away from its slides, and even Alt-Tabbing to that shareware .flv-player is awkward.

Enter Freepath 2.0. Remember, you can play all those other kinds of media, like PowerPoint slides right through Freepath. And if you want to go to a website, all you need is an internet connection, and who doesn’t have one of those these days. I mean even five years ago, I was checking my email from Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia right next to a guy sipping warm mare’s milk. What a world.

So Freepath. An internet connection, faster the better. You’re set. Drop the link to your YouTube movie or Hulu, Netflix, iBloks, or even slide.com into your playlist. Only one more step. Show it. You can even choose to click the “full-screen” option found on most of these sites.

So why do we think so much of web-based content? Because it’s sometimes the best way to tell your story. Millions of videos with parts of your story are right there for you to use. We’ve all said those dreaded words, “I can’t” when it comes to some of the best ways to influence our audiences. The web isn’t just for research anymore, got a URL? Freepath will show it.

And if you read back one post, you’ll see that Freepath also lets you pack a .play (our transportable playlists) and send it to anyone you want. Imagine collecting up what you think are the funniest clips on YouTube into one sharable playlist! Here are 10 ways Freepath players have thought of using Freepath for streaming videos:

Make ‘em Laugh. What a great way to start a boring training event.
Virtual Field Trip. Uploaded vacation videos are a LOT cheaper than airfare.
YouTube Party! (Junior High boys, no accounting for taste).
Safety 101. What NOT to do in the warehouse during lunch.
Family Reunion. Fifteen grandkids, one playlist.
Weird Science. The textbook isn’t clear on how the Mentos get into the diet cola.
Customer Testimonials. They’re already talking about your products, show them off.
Breaking News. Lead off your keynote with this morning’s news.
Webcam Wallpaper. Your class can’t take their eyes off the Osprey nest.
Disaster Briefing. Response teams prepare and learn from real-time uploads.

I bet you can come up with about 50 more uses just from your own experience. So we’d have to say streaming video is alive and well… as long as you have an easy, affordable way to show it… Hmmmmmm. (Why do you think we called it “Free” path?)

Next time around, some old news. PowerPoint. Wait, don’t get me wrong, we think PowerPoint is great, it’s just that with Freepath, it’s even better!