042320: Vanikapila Hana Hou!

BOT:

Aloha Ahi Ahi UFOhana,

Mahalo nui to all that beamed up to our UFOhana Holodeck last week. We had such a great response and Sandy had such a great time, we’ve decided to hold another one this Saturday. We had a bumpy start last Saturday but I think I’ve managed to work out the technical issues. I was able to successfully test scheduling and configure Chat mode on a test session, so I hope to get that running at this Saturday’s Vanikapila (Virtual+Kanikapila) session. But as all things technical, there are always unforeseen complexities in the infrastructure and of course Murphy’s 1st Law, “If something can go wrong it will.”

That said, here’s the link for this Saturday’s Vanikapila:

So keep an eye on your emails for any updates on broken session links this Saturday. You can also search my YouTube channel, below, for active livestreams:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXFJP7faHMj9xvevv8IaChg/featured?view_as=subscriber

Click image above to view online album.

I’ll say an extra prayer to the great Tech God, Murphy, that things go smoother this time around.

Since we’re on the subject of tech. I understand that there were some issues with audio and video quality.

Tech Talk Time. . .

First we have to talk about Download and Upload Speeds, which is measured in Mbps / Megabits per second.

Download Speed is important for times when you’re watching Netflix or downloading large files, such as Video file attachments. For the most part we all have excellent download speeds, else your Streaming Content will be extremely choppy and audio would stutter. However, it can be affected by external factors in the environment, mentioned below in the WiFi section.

Upload speed is important for things like Video Conferencing, streaming content (like me livestreaming on YouTube) or when you’re transferring large files (live video files) to cloud storage or similar services.

Upload speed for residential customers are usually quite slower than download speeds. For example my download speed is around 175Mbps, while my upload speed is (on a good day) around 4Mbps. Big difference no? This is called Asymmetrical Broadband, which is the standard for all ISPs (Internet Service Providers). You can get Symmetrical Broadband if you’re willing to pay the megabucks. Almost $400/month, to get near 30Mbps upload speed, which would be way more than excellent for Live Streaming.

So what does this all mean?

Because I’m streaming large amounts of data (uploading) to the internet, and Comcast is not always consistently providing fast uploads, YouTube will automatically throttle down the resolution from 1080P (of my camera) to a lower resolution like 720P or even lower. The lower resolution also means less data uploaded to the Internet. This usually results in a fuzzier picture, but allows the streaming video/audio content to continue flowing smoothly.

Interestingly enough, slow download speeds can also cause adversely affect live streaming quality, on the viewers end, for the same reasons.

So what can we do?

WiFi, it’s a great thing, but it’s also not always the best way to send or connect to live streaming content on the internet. It’s susceptible to interference, gets weaker the farther away you get from the source (your wireless router), can’t penetrate solid walls, etc. To mitigate the issues we could move our device closer to the router, and avoid operating the device near devices with electric motors (fans, refrigerators, etc.) or any device that emits RFI (Radio Frequency Interference).

Best solution . . . if your device (PC, Laptop, etc.) supports it, you may want to forgo using WiFi altogether and plug it directly, using an Ethernet Cable plugged into an Ethernet Port on your Router. Which is probably best for people who are streaming content producers.

Tech Time over . . . back to strumming . . .

So as I mentioned I hope to have Chat Mode running this time around. You should be able to send requests and actually see other Uke Pilot’s Chattering. For those of you not familiar with Chatting, I’ll also have my cell phone nearby if you’d like to text me. Keep in mind I’m also monitoring the live stream control “room”, so I may miss comments here and there.

Ok, time to get ready for work . . .

Don’t forget to wear your masks!

UkEkU

moving in silence,
soft shadows in the gloaming,
distant howls calling.

Malama Pono Kakou,

-=SqL+Nohea+Jake=-

:EOT

2 Replies to “042320: Vanikapila Hana Hou!”

  1. We miss everyone and look forward to properly celebrate the 20 year Anniversary of UFOHANA ! We missed the first 17 years but hope to be strumming for the next 20. Hope we can get together soon. Hang in there y’all. Aloha Don & Marty

  2. Sending this on to Paul Torikian who didnt know about last weeks session. I loved it. Thank you Del and Sandy.

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