Video and Audio Solutions

Sometimes no matter how hard you try you can’t get technology to work. Fortunately that’s only sometimes. Your not the only one who’s had issues so we’ve come up with a few answers to frequently asked questions about why you can’t always see and hear your favorite supermodified show.

1) Why can’t I connect using my MAC computer?

Solution – Download the Flip4Mac software. The old copy of WMP will work on older Power PC based Macs but not on the new Intel Macs. Flip4Mac is more stable and is updated on a regular basis.

2) Do I need any special equipment to hear the stream?

No. Our show uses an embedded Ustream Live Player which is based on Flash. Be sure you have the latest version of Flash. Update Flash: http://www.adobe.com/products/flashplayer/

3) When I try to connect to your Internet stream, nothing seems to happen. What should I do?

If you have software on your computer that automatically blocks pop-up advertisements, you may have difficulty in launching the tuner. The software cannot in some cases differentiate between an unwanted ad and the tuner. Try disabling the blocking software and then connecting to the stream.

4) Can I connect to your stream with a Mac computer?

Yes. Because of unique characteristics of Mac computers, you will have to have the Windows Media Player (for Macs) installed on your computer first. Click here for OS 8.1 – 9.x or OS X

5) How do I listen to your Internet stream from work?

Many businesses have something called a firewall that can affect how you listen to our on-line stream. If you think this may apply to you, please contact your network administrator or IT person for assistance.

6) Why do I hear what you are broadcasting on the Internet stream a few minutes after my friends can?

The delay exists because of the distance it travels from where we are at out over the Internet and then into your computer. Depending on distance to the actual broadcast location and then out over the internet to a computer, there may be a slight difference in when each individual hears the stream. Usually this is barely noticeable and shouldn’t detract from your enjoyment. The audio also “buffers” – meaning that it stays in front of the actual signal to attempt to recover lost data.

7) My stream keeps cutting in and out… or stopping, what can I do?

Due to the nature of the Internet, sometimes congestion or Internet traffic can cause what is most commonly referred to as “buffering.” This is where the audio seems to cut in and out, or stop altogether. This can be caused by a multitude of reasons such as:

Your internet provider is overloaded with users. Like commuting on freeways, traffic on the Internet is subject to traffic jams. When things are busy on the Internet, part of the audio information can be lost. When too much information is lost, the tuner will have trouble playing our stream.
Bad connection to your Internet Service Provider. You may have a poor connection to the Internet. If you’re using a dial-up connection with a modem, try disconnecting then reconnecting to the Internet. Sometimes this will give you a better connection.
There is an outage on the Internet in the path that you take to get to our servers. Just like electrical power failures, Internet failures can sometimes play havoc when attempting to connect to our stream.
You are running too many things on your computer at the same time. Close all unnecessary programs.
Surfing the web while listening to our Internet stream. If you try to view a web page with lots of graphics, your computer may not have enough capacity to simultaneously listen to our Internet stream (which requires a lot of processing power).
Our servers are having issues.
Ustream has a very popular sponsored program running which is bogging down their servers.
Your computer is just plain slow! Check out a new one at Scott’s Computer World!

Read how to change the amount of buffering in your Windows Media Player HERE.

8 ) The audio player seems to be playing, but I cannot hear anything. Why?

Please check the following:

Speakers are turned on and that all the wires are plugged into the correct socket.
Sound card is working properly.
Volume (in the taskbar of Windows) is NOT MUTED.

9) Why are there periods of silence heard occasionally on your Internet stream?

You may occasionally hear moments of silence during our Internet stream. There is nothing wrong with your computer. It’s the nature of the beast. Because of the technical issues involved with streaming our audio over the Internet as well as various network programming issues as one element transitions to another, there are sometimes a few seconds of ‘Dead Air’ heard on the stream. Stay tuned – the audio will resume in a few seconds.

10) I get an error message about ‘Active X Controls’. What should I do?

In Internet Explorer, go to Tools > Internet Options > Security Tab > Custom Level. Look for “Run Active X Controls and Plug-Ins”. Make sure the ‘Enable’ button is checked. Click OK to apply the new settings. Then try connecting again.

11) Can I listen to your stream through the Firefox Browser?

The Firefox web browser will work with our stream provided that the plug-in for the Windows Media Player files (.asx) is installed and correctly set to launch the player. Please see the Mozilla Firefox website for details on how to download and install the plug-ins.

12) Why is my broadcast/stream choppy?

Potential Causes

Insufficient Internet bandwidth: It is possible that the upload speed of your Internet connection is too slow.

Check your internet connection at www.speedtest.net
We recommend an upload speed minimum of 320 Kbps. 400 Kbps is preferred.

Other household members may be using up bandwidth on your home network.

Check to see who else in the house is streaming media or doing big uploads and downloads.
Ask them to stop.
Invite them to join you for Wailing with Wing Side Up.

Insufficient CPU: Ensure additional programs are not running in the background or accessing the Internet (ie Itunes, Skype, Napster, etc). Your stream can become choppy if your CPU usage is so high that it causes your computer to slow down. This can affect both the broadcaster stream quality and viewer stream quality.
1. Buffering: Increase the buffering settings on the broadcast. Users can adjust the buffering in the Menu button of the video player.
2. Close all other programs: By closing other programs running on your computer (Itunes, Skype, AIM), you will free up CPU and help your computer run faster.

14) Why do I get error messages when I try to enter a chat room.

Potential Causes

Firewall Issues: It may be possible that you are behind a firewall that has blocked off the necessary ports that allow Ustream to connect.
Flash: It may be possible that you do not have the most updated version of Flash or your Flash has been corrupted
You have forgotten or incorrectly entered your Ustream user password.

Troubleshooting

Open Firewalls: You want to check whether the standard ports for video streaming and chat are blocked. They are port number 1935 for video streaming and port number 6667 for IRC chat. Here is information on how to open the ports:
- http://support.microsoft.com/kb/308127 (PC)
- http://homepage.mac.com/car1son/static_port_fwd_firewall.html (Mac)
Update Flash: http://www.adobe.com/products/flashplayer
When you originally signed up to use the Wailroom, you had to create a Ustream username and password. We have no way of telling what that is. You should go to http://www.ustream.tv then log in and use their system to send you prompts for your password. If all else fails, simply create another account and this time write it down for safe keeping.

15) Can’t See/View a Stream

If you cannot view a stream, this could be because of a firewall. The following is a guide on how to allow Ustream on common blocking applications:

Adblock Plus extension (Firefox):Locate the ‘APB’ stop sign (usually upper right on your browser), click the down-arrow next to it and click “Disable on ustream.tv”.(There maybe more than one) ”Noscript” add-on for Firefox: Locate the blue ‘S’ on the bottom of your task bar and/or “opinions” and allow “ustream.tv. ” (May need to allow more than one)
IE7Pro AdBlock: Locate the blue ‘E’ icon in the lower-right corner of your browser. Right-click it, and select “AD Blocker,” then “Don’t Filter This Site.”(Anything with ustream.tv)
SafariBlock: Open Safari Preferences, choose the SafariBlock tab, and click the “Disable” button.
Kaspersky Internet Security: You have a couple of options:

1. Pause Protection: Right-click the red/black “K” (Kaspersky Icon) in the lower-right corner of your screen. Click “Pause Protection”. Choose an appropriate time period from the drop-down menu. Then click outside of the drop menu. The window will disappear, and the “K” will turn gray. You can now surf our site for the time period chosen.
2. Turn Off Anti Banner: Right-click the red “K” in the lower-right corner of your screen. Choose “Open Kaspersky Internet Security.” Choose “Firewall” in the left menu. Then click “Configure.” Then choose “Firewall” in the left menu of the pop-up screen. Finally, un-check “Enable Anti Banner.”

ZoneAlarm Pro firewall: You can turn off ad blocking under the “Privacy” tab and slide the “Ad Blocking” control to the “off” position. NOTICE: there is no reason to disable ZoneAlarm, only the banner blocking option needs to be disabled.
Norton Internet Security:

1. 2005/06
  - Open Norton Internet Security. In the main window, double-click “Ad Blocking” and then uncheck “Ad Blocking”. NOTICE: there is no reason to disable NIS, only the ad-blocking feature needs to be disabled to access this site. Alternatively, in some versions, you can click the Norton icon in the toolbar (lower right corner) and select “Allow ads from this site” OR uncheck the box that says “block ads from this site”
2. 2007
  - This version didn’t come out with built-in security for ad blockers. However, there is an available add-on called Norton Security Center. Click the “Add-On Pack” tab at the top. Click “Ad-Blocking,” then “Configure.” In the new window click “Advanced.” Now click the button that says “Add Site,” and type in “www.ustream.tv” (without quotes). Click “OK.” This adds the site to the left column. Now ensure that “www.ustream.tv” is selected in the left column, and click the “Add” button. In the prompt, click “Permit” and type “ad” in the window (without the quotes). Click “Ok,” three times. You can now close Norton Control Center and restart your browser.

AdSubtract: Right mouse-click on the AdSubtract icon in your task tray (looks like an orange circle with a plus and minus sign) and select “Disable AdSubtract”.
WebWasher: Right mouse-click on the WebWasher icon in your task tray (looks like a blue circle with a white “W” and then select “Deactivate standard filter”.Right mouse-click on the WebWasher icon in your task tray (looks like a blue circle with a white “W” and then select “Deactivate standard filter”.Right mouse-click on the WebWasher icon in your task tray (looks like a blue circle with a white “W” and then select “Deactivate standard filter”.

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