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Rackspace Cloud Files and Flowplayer : Better Guide !

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Rackspace Cloud Files and FlowPlayer is a guide for using various features of Flowplayer and Rackspace Cloud Files for Streaming Video, Audio and other media. This Rackspace Cloud Files and Flowplayer guide is actually intended for a reason – In our previous guide on embedding Streaming Video From Rackspace Cloud Files in WordPress, we found a person, who faced problem while using the guide (see the comments on that webpage). Those who are not that much used with Streaming Media, can read this theoretical article on streaming media before reading this guide on Rackspace Cloud Files and Flowplayer.

 

Rackspace Cloud Files and Flowplayer : The Basic Things

 

The basic thing is actually neither about Rackspace Cloud Files nor Flowplayer. It is about WordPress. The user Mai faced the problem, probably due to one big thing that is never elaborated said about WordPress writing pane. For example, if you look at this screenshot, you will see two toggle buttons – Visual and HTML :

 

Rackspace Cloud Files and Flowplayer

 

If you toggle HTML and Visual mode many times, the formatting get lost. This is actually TinyMCE, not a core own developed part of WordPress. For inserting any custom complex HTML, Javascript codes, always paste in HTML mode in last step, save the draft and publish it. Never revert to Visual mode even in idle state after publishing. The codes can break if you revert back to Visual.

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Another thing is that, in Writing Settings of WordPress (/wp-admin/options-writing.php), tick that option saying “WordPress should correct invalidly nested XHTML automatically” and uncheck the option saying “Convert emoticons like :-) and :-P to graphics on display”.

Among few thousands of articles, its difficult to pin point in which article I pointed one thing – Rackspace Cloud Files is actually Akamai CDN with Open Stack Swift optimized for Rackspace Cloud Servers and their other services. It is difficult to say whether an undocumented trick Rackspace Cloud Files will work on another hosting company’s server or not.

 

Rackspace Cloud Files and Flowplayer : HTTP, HTTPS and Streaming URLs

 

Rackspace Cloud Files is not mere Content Delivery Network, it actually has quite large number of undocumented usages. We wrote some by testing after following Akamai’s Guide. Unfortunately, sometimes, a bit change of trick is needed for Rackspace Cloud Files as Rackspace obviously use a custom featured plan of Akamai. The basic rule about about HTTP, HTTPS and Streaming URLs are :

 

HTTP URL : URL of choice unless it is of Streaming Media or you need HTTPS URL of CDN for your website which is using HTTPS itself. We use in that case to avoid mixed content error, otherwise HTTPS is slower than HTTP. Using https URL of Rackspace Cloud Files for WordPress guide will through some more spotlight. It supports delivery of all things uploaded on Cloud Files. You can take, this is default.

 

HTTPS URL :  Usage is explained above. However,  HTTPS URL might not deliver all kind of static contents.

 

Streaming URL : Only for Streaming Content.

 

Rackspace Cloud Files and Flowplayer : Advanced Usages of  Flowplayer

 

All types of plugin reference can be found here :

 

 

Except non hosted, almost all are supported by Rackspace Cloud Files. We have not tested HDDN, HDDN is supported by Akamai, but unless we test, we can not give warranty about Rackspace Cloud Files for HDDN. We have the highest number of Cloud Computing guide in English Language on this Earth of Internet as non product selling website, it will be a misleading comment without testing it, HDDN also has Slow Motion control like very advanced feature :

 

Rackspace Cloud Files and Flowplayer : iPad and other iDevices

 

You can actually use native iOS support by Rackspace Cloud Files and Flowplayer in two ways :

 

First is without using HDDN support of backend :

 

Second is using HDDN support :

 

We have not tested with HDDN support at the time of writing. HDDN support is not an absolute terminology, one feature might be supported another might not be by Rackspace Cloud Files. Probably there is some Service Level Agreement with Akamai and Rackspace, that resulted very less documentation of this aspect. These are highest level of technology, very difficult to say a single word just on prediction. Akamai is used by almost all the giants from IBM to Microsoft. It is obvious that, SLA will prevent all the officially publishing all the usages of Akamai’s optimized system. Rackspace Cloud Files costs a fraction, you can not expect all the hidden features in documentation. Most importantly, with WordPress, it is technically difficult to use device OS specific delivery. You have to use Mobile user detection and use WordPress conditional elements to display rightly. Which is probably difficult than using the first method.
Abhishek-Ghosh

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Comments

  1. Thanks a lot Abhishek!
    Really appreciate it.

    I have asked in flowplayer forum about the security plugin, and ipad and iphone plugin and they said this:

    ***
    flv will not play in iOS anyway as Apple decided to not support Flash on mobile devices. The secure plugin is Flash only, so it will not work on iOS devices. Hence the ipad plugin will not work with it either, unless you give a non-secure ipadUrl(), which kinda defeats the purpose. To the best of our knowledge, there is no secure streaming in html5 without platform-specific tools.

    The folioview plugin is Flash only (with the .ipad fallback) so it won’t work with Flowplayer 5, but of course you’re invited to ask them for a fp5 pluign…

    If you provide a link to apage you already created we could have a deeper look, but with 3rd pary tools ike WordPress plungins you’re almost on your own I’m afraid

    ***

    So i guess it’s:
    Security and flash withought iOS

    iOS with security and .mp4 not flash

    And I read this code about JW player to prevent real player from downloading:

    **

    Blocking realplayer is easy with Apache:

    SetEnvIfNoCase User-Agent “^RealPlayer” bad_client

    Order allow,deny
    Allow from All
    Deny from env=bad_client

    An other solution is to set a cookie and check the request for it. JW Player send the cookie as long as you do not use JavaScript to draw the box. RealPlayer does not support it.

    **

    can this in any way applied to flowplayer? Althought sorry but I dont know what do they mean by apache or the tech details.

    Here is a link:

    amazingtr.com/members/?p=287&preview=true

    1st vid is flash in flowplayer (rackspace file and WP flow plugin) but it can easily be downloading using RP Downloader

    2nd vid is JW player, .flv too

    note:
    do u think this plugin might help?

    rap-extraz.com/extrakick/securedl/videos?v=1

  2. Thank you very much for sharing the latest information. I agree with the statement, there is no secure streaming in html5 without platform-specific tools.
    Akamai/Rackspace Cloud Files does not use Apache web server to my knowledge. The equivalent is the Custom header for container (in the First Generation Cloud Control panel). (search with Apache in our search box for understanding that it is just the serverside software.)
    Probably jPlayer trick will not work by any means.
    I do not know about that plugin, its paid, difficult to take the risk !

  4. Thanks a lot!
    Oh too many technichal details!

    Now I am converting my videos to mp4 in encoding.com so I can make sure they will work in iOS and any other device. Although viddler worked great in all devices (although my files are in .flv) but maybe the thing is the player? flowplayer and JW player only run mp4 and dont make other formats by them selves?

    My concern now is the security!
    It is my only problem
    Here is what ppl in flow player said (not sure exactly what they are telling about clever way, and is the flow player am using is fp5?

    **
    As for signed URLs that should work with fp5 if you have a clever way of adding them to the video tag.

    **

    my question to them was anout security (as they said their securtiy plugin works on flash only so no iOS or mp4 videos!!)

    Ok, what about this:

    flash.flowplayer.org/plugins/streaming/cloudfront/index.html

    THANKS A MILLION doctor
    I wish u happiness!