BP9_Overstream

For this weeks Web 2.0 tool after some research I have decided to review Overstream. This application can be very useful for pretty much anyone that uploads online video whether for personal use or professional use. Although this tool does not help you create an actual video, it allows you to add subtitles to any video that you have created. I, for one, have always had a problem pulling information from videos because of how fast the information is usually presented. With Overstream, you can add pretty much any information you would like the audience to be able to read. You can simply follow along with the dialog to make it easier to follow what is going on if it is a noisy room, or if you have students that are hard of hearing, or you can include information that compliments the information in the video. With Overstream you can add whatever text you would like to any video that you have the rights to!

Using Overstream is as easy as uploading a video to Youtube or Viddler. Overstream allows you to create the subtitles or captions, and even hosts the files so you don't need to worry about finding your own server. Once the presentation has been created you simply embed the code into your video, and when the audience starts to play the video, all of the subtitle information is streamed directly from the Overstream server. Tired of fiddling with the settings of your video editing software or running short on time? Overstream can help you out! The best part about this program is unlike the other two Web 2.0 tools that I have reviewed this one is free! As long as you are not embedding your subtitles to a video that you do not own the rights to, Overstream is free to use.

One thing I did notice about using this service is that the website is very slow to load. Although everything did work perfectly once I was able to get to where I was going, it did take a little bit of time. I'm hoping these are just growing pains or an uncommon problem, but it is one thing to watch out for if you do decide to use this service. The website was simple to use and the layout made sense. I had a lot of fun just exploring around to see what else you can do with Overstream. In the future, it would be nice to be able to upload both the video and the subtitle stream to their servers, that way you don't have to go back and forth between services! Overall, I give this Web 2.0 tool an 8 out of 10.

For more information click here to access the Overstream website.