Email Streaming Video
Wouldn't it be great to receive streaming video email? Rather than boring text email, streaming video could deliver the message with greater visual appeal and entertainment value.
It is possible to send streaming video email, but there are few technical problems. One of the biggest is the method of delivery. There are basically two choices for email - streaming video as an e-mail attachment or a link embedded in the body of the message.
Streaming Video Email Attachments
Attachments are not a good idea because of their association with computer viruses. Many people are reluctant to open email attachments because they know that attachments can contain viruses that will compromise the security of their computer data.
Another problem with streaming video email attachments is the size of video files. Even short clips can be several megabytes in size. Anyone with a dial-up connection will not appreciate the time and expense of downloading a video clip which they may not even want to watch.
Streaming Video Links
A much better solution for streaming video email is to insert a link into the email message. Clicking on this link will open a webpage or a media player so that you can view the video without having to download the whole file.
Several commercial services specialize in this type of streaming video email. The cost can vary from a couple of dollars to more than $50 per month. Some of the more expensive services are geared towards businesses who want to deliver visual information to their staff or clients.
Free services like Google Video and YouTube also have an option for email - streaming video (in the form of a link) can be sent to any e-mail recipient.
Most of these streaming and video e-mail services use Flash for their streaming video. This allows the e-mail recipient to see the first frame of the video before clicking on the link.
Other streaming video formats will open up an appropriate media player on the recipient's computer, and the streaming video will start playing within a few seconds.
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