Important factors to format video for steaming

[kapow]

What is are the important factors to format video for steaming on a 56k connection?

BACKGROUND
I am new to streaming web video. I will soon be creating a site showing interviews and discussions.
I plan get my Digigal video converted for Real Player and for Windows Media.
I expect most visitors to my website will have a 56k modem / connection. So I need to know the right formatting requirements for my streaming video clips. I think streaming video is best for my site as I doubt the audience (for my site) will want to wait for a download.
(Please feel free to put me right / make suggestions etc).

Can anyone tell me the best choice of the following:

- Frames per second?
- Frame size?
- Bit rate? (is that the right phrase? - the amount of data that streams per second)
- Which Codec for Windows Media? (i.e. for people with IE-Browser who don't use REAL)
- Which Codec for REAL?
- Anything else?

- What is the best hardware / sofware to convert original digital video to streaming video?

- Does it make a difference to the quality if I get my video converted professionally or inhouse?


many thanks for any guidence.

[tomnhanni]

Well I'm not an expert but I have a 56k modem and I can usually only download at 4-6kb per second. I imagine whether I'm downloading or not that would be about the maximum transfer rate I'll get. So the video would have to be no more than 4-6kb x 8 = 32-48 bit per second. Any clip with that low a bitrate would be very low quality. I don't want to be discouraging but I wouldn't bother with only a 56k modem connection. ISDN or DSL would be the only way. But don't take my word for it as I said I'm not an expert. You could see if you could find an existing site and try if you can get any streaming clips going with your connection and maybe get some ideas.

[kapow]

www.cnn.com manage it very well.
- You click the streaming video to watch.
- You select: Windows, Quicktime or Real.
- You select you connection: e.g. 56k.
It works fine.

Sure CNN are giants, but if a server can deliver the number of simultaneous streams and the video is formatted to stream at that speed - I would think that it works.

Try it: This link might get you there immediately (otherwise start at cnn.com and select a video).

http://www.cnn.com/video/world/2002/01/10/bf.guantanamo.prep.cnn.med.exclude.html