Technologists developed a custom media hosting solution by which students and affiliates around the world could access Stanford video content.
OBSTACLE
Media files on the Canvas platform were not accessible in some regions due to country-wide restrictions. Youcubed needed a more practical solution than recommending a Virtual Private Network while also providing low-latency playback for all users.
First, the team evaluated alternative hosting solutions. The team created and devised a new video hosting solution to guarantee international access, and transferred and hosted video files using AWS via the fast performing Content Delivery Network with multiple endpoints globally. Technologists leveraged an open source modern Javascript video player that could be overlaid in the existing LMS Canvas platform. Video files (video, image poster, subtitles) were uploaded to both Vimeo and AWS Content Delivery Network. Code was developed on the Canvas GUI accounts for both video players. Finally, the team created an embedded video toggle to allow switching between AWS and Vimeo media players.
Technologies used
Canvas
Javascript
AWS Content Delivery Network
Vimeo
An example of the “refused to connect" error when accessing the video content.
Visual of the Vimeo player with the option to click on the “Trouble seeing the video?” link.
The media files are being accessed via the alternative Amazon Web Service video setup.
Within two weeks of implementing the AWS hosting solution, GSE IT had resolved all access issues from Southeast Asia. By creating a “toggle” solution that prioritized video playback to 75% Vimeo and 25% AWS, latency issues from areas such as East Africa were also minimized. GSE IT successfully provided learning content globally without requiring excessive hosting resources. The team leveraged Vimeo as an affordable and scalable solution, while Amazon Content Delivery Networks was utilized for its reliability and uptime.
