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Creating, Uploading and Editing Media

Table of contents

1. Creating an Ad Hoc Capture using Universal Capture Software [edit]

2. Launching the Local Universal Capture Installation [edit]

3. Starting an Ad Hoc Capture using Universal Capture [edit]

4. Uploading Media [edit]

5. Notes and Limitations Surrounding Uploads [edit]

6. Uploading Videos through the Mobile App [edit]

Creating an Ad Hoc Capture using Universal Capture Software [edit]

There are multiple ways to open the Universal Capture (UC) interface to create an ad hoc capture. The New Capture or New Software Capture option in the Create button menu allows you to launch the local installation of Universal Capture on the computer you are using. Which option you see depends on your role and some institution settings. Students and Teaching Assistants will always see New Capture. Instructors will see New Software Capture if the New Device Capture also appears in the Create button menu.

The first section below has procedures for launching the local installation of Universal Capture. The second section below provides instructions for using the UC interface, regardless of how you got there. All Universal Capture interfaces work similarly.

Launching the Local Universal Capture Installation [edit]

If you are using the local computer to do the ad hoc recording, use the below instructions to launch Universal Capture.

To launch a local Universal Capture installation for ad hoc capture

Log into EchoVideo.Click the Create button in the top navigation bar.Select New Capture or New Software Capture, whichever is available to you.
Create button menu open showing new software capture option as described

A new tab opens that allows you to Launch Universal Capture or install Universal Capture if it is not already installed on the computer. If Universal Capture is not installed on your computer you will need to raise a request with the ITS Service Desk to have it installed.

Click Launch Universal Capture.
Launch universal capture page with button identified for steps as described
If a popup box appears, click Open Echo360 Capture to confirm the application you are using. This may only be necessary the first time.
confirm launch of link to open Universal Capture for steps as described

The Universal Capture window appears and you may be prompted to log in to your account. See the next section for configuring and launching your ad hoc capture. You may also want to refer to Start a Recording with Universal Capture.

EchoVideo_UniversalCapture.png

Starting an Ad Hoc Capture using Universal Capture [edit]

No matter how you get to a Universal Capture window, the UC interface is the same. The below instructions guide you through each step.

Using the Universal Capture interface for an ad hoc capture

When the Universal Capture window appears, notice that the default inputs are showing in each of the panels, along with an audio (VU) meter in the center.Use the Input drop-down lists to select different inputs for each panel - selecting None if you don't want one or either of them (e.g., display only, video only, or audio only - for audio, select Mute only if you are capturing System Audio with a Display input).


EchoVideo_UniversalCapture_Input.png

Click the capture title in the top left corner or capture type below the Record button, identified in the figure below to open the Capture Details page.


EchoVideo_UniversalCapture_Rename.png

The Capture Details page appears, containing fields and configuration options as described below the figure.

Managed UC Capture Details page

Enter a Title for the capture. This name will be the name of the recording. If you select to publish the capture to a new class, it will also be the name of the class.Description and Tags are optional fields. Complete them if desired.If applicable, enter a Capture Duration for the capture. The default is 60 minutes (1 hour). You can edit this to be more or less. Also, note that the date / time of the next scheduled capture appears below the Duration box.

The Duration field is NOT available when using UC: Personal. UC: Personal does not take a set duration and count down; it will record for as long as you let it. Click Stop when finished to end a UC: Personal recording and upload it to EchoVideo.

Select a recording Quality for the capture. The default quality selection depends on the type of device being used (Pro, Pod, UC: Classroom, or UC: Personal) and the type of capture being created (Live or VOD). For detailed information on quality options, see Universal Capture Recording Quality.

BEST PRACTICE: A / D / V, A / V / V, and A / D / D recordings can be processor-intensive. Do test captures to be sure your computer and input devices output a quality that meets your standards.

Select a Publish To location, identifying where you want the ad hoc capture to be published when it is finished. The drop-down list will include your Library and any currently active sections you are enrolled in.If applicable, select a Class option. If you have selected an active course / section to publish to, you will then be able to choose to either create a new class or publish to a pre-existing class. If publishing to a NEW class, the class name will match the title given for the capture.Select the Live Stream checkbox to stream the capture live (in real-time) to students. YOU MUST publish to a course to perform a Live stream. The class in the course provides the means for students to view the stream.When finished, click SAVE.

You are returned to the main preview page. Take this opportunity to confirm or change your input selections if needed.

EchoVideo_UniversalCapture_ReadyToRecord.png

 

When you are ready to launch the capture, click the red Record button in the center of the screen, identified in the above figure.

IMPORTANT: Users are not limited in any way to specific quality options. If you are planning to stream the capture Live, we do NOT recommend selecting Highest Quality; live streaming performance is likely to suffer, particularly for users with lower or shared bandwidth.

You will see a short countdown. When it finishes, your recording will start.

The capture will continue for the duration you set until you click the Stop button, OR until the next scheduled capture for that room / device is set to begin. If you attempt to set the duration of your ad hoc capture beyond the start time of the next scheduled capture, you will receive a warning notifying you of the conflict. You are given the option of generating the ad hoc capture for the truncated duration instead, or canceling and selecting a different room.


Uploading Media [edit]

Your Library contains all the media you have access to outside of a classroom or course.

You may want to upload a video or a presentation to your library to edit it or hold it until you are ready to publish it to a class, share it with another user, add it to a collection, or submit it for a homework assignment.

Notes and Limitations Surrounding Uploads [edit]

The file you upload must be one of the Supported Content Formats or it cannot be uploaded or processed.

File Size Limits: EchoVideo imposes a 20GB file size limit for uploads. If uploading to EchoVideo from a location other than your local computer (i.e., Google Drive, Box, Dropbox, etc.), the FileStack uploader imposes a 220MB file size limit. If your file is larger than 220MB, download it to your local computer first, then upload it to EchoVideo. It must still be smaller than 20GB.

Troubleshooting presentation plug-in content: If you use a plug-in (such as ChemDraw) to generate equations, molecular drawings, or other items for your PowerPoint presentation, you may find these being stripped or otherwise altered when you upload the file. In this case, convert the PPT to PDF and upload the PDF. Alternately, for Windows users (and Instructors only), use the EchoVideo PowerPoint Ribbon add-on to publish the presentation. Both of these methods retain plug-in content in the presentation.

Exported graphics to PDF format is not supported. Some graphics programs will allow you to export or save a graphics file (.png, .jpg, .gif, etc.) as a .pdf file. While EchoVideo will recognize it as a PDF and allow you to upload it, media processing will fail.

To upload media to your Library

  1. Click Create.
  2. Click Upload Media.
    Library displayed with the Create button drop-down expanded and Upload Media highlighted in pink
  3. In the FileStack window, use the location selection on the left to identify where the file you want to upload resides, then follow the prompts. Your local computer is selected by default.
  4. Click the icon in the center of the screen to select the file(s) to upload.
    Filestack dialog box with location selection and select files to upload icons shown as described
  5. Select the file(s) you want to upload. You may select multiple files for upload (up to 30), using the shift+select or ctrl/command+select functionality. You may also drag and drop multiple files to the FileStack window.
  6. Once the file(s) you want to upload are listed in the FileStack window, click Upload.
    List of files to upload in filestack as described

The FileStack window changes to provide an upload progress bar. When finished, the window disappears.

IMPORTANT: CLOSING the FileStack window before upload(s) complete will CANCEL THE UPLOAD. DO NOT DO THIS UNLESS YOU WANT TO CANCEL THE UPLOAD.

The newly uploaded file appears in your Library but is dimmed while it is processed. NOTE that you may need to refresh the page to see the newly uploaded file.

Uploading Videos through the Mobile App [edit]

The main menu contains an Upload Video option, that allows you to upload videos from your mobile device to your EchoVideo content library.

main menu with upload video option identified

If you are using the Android mobile app, you will also see an EchoVideo option within your video recording app. This allows you to select to upload a video to EchoVideo the same way you might upload a video to Facebook or Twitter.

Both the iOS and Android apps allow you to TAKE a video when you select to upload as well. Click the Camera icon from the upload video screen (in iOS it's in the top right corner; in Android it's bottom right). Record your video then upload it directly into EchoVideo.

To upload a video from within the mobile app:

  1. Click the menu button in the top left corner of the screen.
  2. Select Upload Video; a list of the videos on your device appears.
  3. At this point you can select a video to upload, or you can click the camera icon to record a video.
     -- In iOS the icon is in the top right corner;
     -- In Android it's bottom right.
    Prior to uploading, the preview screen appears, allowing you to view the video to make sure it is the item you want to upload.
  4. Click Start Upload.
    A screen appears showing previous uploads, as well as any current uploads that are occurring.

You can cancel the upload from this screen by clicking the X located on the right-side of the progress bar. And as with all screens in the app, click the arrow in the top left corner to return to the previous screen.

As with all uploaded video content, you can edit the video through EchoVideo to trim the ends or cut out segments as needed.

Upload capabilities differ based on Mobile OS: The Android OS allows you to upload multiple videos simultaneously; the iOS allows for one video at a time. In addition, the Android upload runs as a service, meaning you can close the app and video(s) will continue to upload in the background. The iOS upload screen must remain open until the upload completes.