Manual: Podcast & Live-Streaming

1. Fundamentals

2. Procedure for KSL-recorded courses with ILIAS integration

Organize room & hardware

	Before the semester begins, check whether your lecture hall is equipped with the necessary hardware at www.podcast.unibe.ch under «Equipped rooms». You can request a podcast or streaming option when booking a room in KSL (see Request podcast or streaming option when creating a course in KSL).
	If a room is not equipped with podcast infrastructure or if a camera is required for recording or broadcasting, you can borrow this material from podcast support. Go to www.podcast.unibe.ch under «Borrowing material».
	By default, the podcasting systems are equipped with an HDMI Type A connector. If your device does not have a corresponding port, acquire a compatible adapter ahead of time. If necessary, inform fellow or guest lecturers.

Request recordings & live streams

	In the «Room requests» menu, select the desired option under «Equipment» and «Podcast & Streaming». «Podcast only» «Podcast & streaming» After selecting an option, a security notice opens. Please read it carefully and confirm the podcast or streaming request.
	If needed, enter a room preference under «Desired room». Only rooms with the necessary infrastructure will be displayed here if the podcast or streaming option is activated. Save and submit the room request.
	In the «Description» menu, activate ILIAS integration for the course (very bottom under «Generate link for ILIAS»). An ILIAS course is required to request automated recordings via KSL. If you do not want an ILIAS integration, follow the steps under 3. Procedure for courses not recorded in KSL or without ILIAS integration

Check & finish setting up the «Opencast Serie» in ILIAS

	Immediately check the correctness of the programmed dates in the «Content» tab of the «Opencast Series». Recording Station Date Start time By default, the system programs two minutes of pre-run time and five minutes of post-run reserve time. Example: If the lecture takes place from 10:15 to 12:00, a recording/transmission time of 10:13 to 12:05 is programmed.
	Check whether the dates are scheduled for live streams as planned (identifiable by the «LIVE» note in the thumbnail).

	It is best not to change the automatically generated title. The specified semester and the KSL root number help find the course in case of any support queries.
	You can also choose to have published recordings automatically posted on the university's video portal Tobira. There are three authorization levels to choose from: Public: Freely accessible Federation: Only for affiliates of a Swiss university Organization: Only for affiliates of the University of Bern You can find the direct link to the series on Tobira in the «Info» tab at the very top under «Link to Series in Tobira».
	Allows participants to attach private or public time-anchored notes (e.g., theory references, transcription, own reflections, etc.) to the published video.
	When checked, videos can only be viewed online and cannot be downloaded.
	Chat during live streams is only available via ILIAS (not via Tobira).
	Always save changes in the settings.

	You can also upload your own video or audio files via the «Upload Event» button.
	Using the «Report Quality Problems» option, course administrators, tutors, and students can report technical issues to the podcast support team. A reporting window opens.
	Course administrators and tutors can use «Report Date Modifications» to notify the podcast support team of incorrect scheduling, schedule updates, or cancellations (lead time: 2 days). The adjustments will be made as soon as possible and confirmed to you via email.

Record courses

	Before starting the first recording, check the correctness of the scheduled dates in the «Opencast Series». Do the recording times correspond to the lecture times - plus a reserve of 2 minutes pre-recording and 5 minutes post-recording time per recording? You can identify dates scheduled for live streams by the «LIVE» note in the thumbnail.
	Carefully read the legal information in the «Merkblatt Podcasts & Live-Streaming – Hinweise für Dozierende» and, if necessary, obtain consent for recording and broadcasting from fellow or guest lecturers («Vorlage Einverständniserklärung»).

	Connect the laptop to the projector and check that the screen is displayed correctly.
	Turn on the microphone and audio system: Please note that the microphone has to remain switched throughout the recording.
	Fully automated recording and transmission on site: Recording and live stream are started and stopped automatically by the pre-programmed SMP 35x recorder and transmitted live to the «Opencast Serie» with a delay of approx. 10 seconds (live stream) or uploaded directly to the «Opencast Serie» afterwards (live stream & podcast).

After the live stream or recording has been completed, the recording is automatically uploaded to the system. It will have to be converted there before it can be processed in the «Opencast Serie» in the ILIAS course. This process takes about half of the recording time. After a two-hour recording, the recording is usually available for further processing after one hour.

Access live streams in ILIAS

	Dates scheduled for live streaming can be identified by the «LIVE» note in the thumbnail.
	Live stream dates in the future are marked with «Live Stream (not started yet). Open from date, time». Students can only see scheduled live stream dates, not scheduled podcast dates.
	Ongoing live streams can be identified by the play icon in the thumbnail. These can be accessed via the «Join» button and a new tab will open. The live stream then has to be started by clicking on the play icon. The «Join» button only appears while the course is taking place and only after the start time has elapsed («08:13 Uhr» in the example). If students open the «Opencast Serie» beforehand, the button will NOT be displayed automatically after the start time has elapsed, but only after a browser reload (e.g., clicking on  «Reload Events»).

Edit & publish recordings in the ILIAS course

	Via «Actions» > «Cut» and subsequent authentication via Campus Account, you are directed to the video editor of the video you want to edit (see The Opencast video editor). In the editor, you can cut the video and publish it afterward.
	If you do not want to trim the recording, you can «Direkt publizieren» (publish directly) via «Actions» > «Start Workflow». In this menu item you can also «Aufzeichnung Duplizieren» (duplicate) and «Retract publication».
	Via «Actions» > «Set online/offline» you can change the online or offline status of an individual recording. Videos and recordings you do not want to cover until later in the course can be hidden (offline) with this function.
	Via «Actions» > «Edit Metadata» you can change the video title and enter further information about the recording (e.g., date, instructor). These serve as orientation and are displayed in ILIAS next to the thumbnail.

3. Procedure for courses not recorded in KSL or without ILIAS integration

Organize room & hardware

	Before the semester begins, check whether your lecture hall is equipped with the necessary hardware at www.podcast.unibe.ch under «Equipped rooms».
	If a room is not equipped with podcast infrastructure or if a camera is required for recording or broadcasting, you can borrow this material from podcast support. Go to www.podcast.unibe.ch under «Borrowing material».
	By default, the podcasting systems are equipped with an HDMI Type A connector. If your device does not have a corresponding port, acquire a compatible adapter ahead of time. If necessary, inform fellow or guest lecturers.

Request recordings & live streams

	Online form: Event series
	Online form: One-off event(s) (incl. conferences, meetings))

Check & finish setting up the «Opencast Serie» in Opencast

	Go to the «Series» tab.
	After clicking on a series title, you will be directed to the «Videos» tab, and all recordings of the selected series will be listed.
	Check the correctness of the programmed dates in the table. Date Start and end time Location
	Check whether the dates are scheduled for live streams as planned (identifiable by a «Yes» in the «Published» column).

Click the three green bars on a video of the series or the series to open the series details.

In the different tabs, you can change or view various settings: Metadata: You can change the title, etc. Access policy: Here you can restrict access to Tobira and add/delete authorized persons. There are four authorization levels to choose from: Tobira: Privat: Only authorized users (see table directly below) can access the series. Tobira: Organisation (nur Unibe): Only affiliats of the University of Bern can access the series. Federation: Only affiliates of a Swiss university (SWITCHaai login) can access the series. Tobira: Öffentlich: Freely accessible. Theme: You can change the intro here. Tobira: Here, you can find the direct link to your series on Tobira. Clicking on the copy icon copies the link to the clipboard. For not publicly published series, the direct link only works correctly if you are logged in to Tobira. Therefore, you may have to click on the direct link again after successfully logging in to Tobira.

Record courses

	Before starting the first recording, check the correctness of the scheduled dates in the «Opencast Series». Do the recording times correspond to the lecture times? You can identify dates scheduled for live streams by  a «Yes» in the «Published» column.
	Carefully read the legal information in the «Merkblatt Podcasts & Live-Streaming – Hinweise für Dozierende» and, if necessary, obtain consent for recording and broadcasting from fellow or guest lecturers («Vorlage Einverständniserklärung»).

	Connect the laptop to the projector and check that the screen is displayed correctly.
	Turn on the microphone and audio system: Please note that the microphone has to remain switched throughout the recording.
	Fully automated recording and transmission on site: Recording and live stream are started and stopped automatically by the pre-programmed SMP 35x recorder and transmitted live to the «Opencast Serie» with a delay of approx. 10 seconds (live stream) or uploaded directly to the «Opencast Serie» afterwards (live stream & podcast).

After the live stream or recording has been completed, the recording is automatically uploaded to the system.

Access live streams in Tobira

	Send your participants the «Direct link to series» (under «Series details» > «Tobira» tab).  For not publicly published series, the direct link only works correctly if you are logged in to Tobira. Therefore, you may have to click on the direct link again after successfully logging in to Tobira.
	Live stream dates in the future are marked with «Upcoming» and a note about the start time «in XY weeks/days». Participants will only see scheduled live stream dates, not scheduled recording dates.
	Ongoing live streams can be identified by the thumbnail. Clicking on the thumbnail opens the live stream. The live stream then has to be started by clicking on the play icon.

Edit & publish recordings in Tobira

Clicking on the «scissors» icon will take you directly to the video editor of the video you want to edit (see Opencast's video editor). In the editor, you can cut the video and publish it afterward. If the recordings of live streams are edited and published, these recordings are available via the same link as the original live stream itself. Participants can therefore access the live stream and then the recording using the same link. The same applies to live streams embedded via iFrame.

By clicking on the three blue bars, you can edit the metadata and change, for example, the title or speaker. Do not change start/end times or locations for scheduled dates. Please notify podcast@id.unibe.ch of any change requests.

4. Opencast's video editor

Trim & edit videos

	The audio deflections in the time track of the video make it easier to find segments with or without sound.
	Use the «Zoom» function to zoom into the time track and edit the video more precisely.
	To cut, drag the cursor to the desired position.
	Use the «Cut» button to divide the recording into segments.
	Use the «Delete» button to mark the segments that should not be published. They are now highlighted in red because they are still awailable but they will not appear in the published recording. If the cursor is in a red segment, the button changes to «Restore» and you can restore the segment.
	Deactivate the «Preview Mode» if you want to view the red segments too.
	If requidred, you can use the navigation aid on the left to edit the metadata, tracks, subtitles and the preview image of the video.
	The «Finish» button gives you the option of publishing the edited video («Save and process changes») or «Save changes». In both cases, you must confirm your selection again (e.g. via «Start processing»). You can close the confirmation page that opens.

Edit tracks

	If you want to remove an image or audio track from your video (e.g. for dual-stream recordings or to publish only  audio), switch to the «Tracks» area.
	First activate the «Customize track selection» option.
	You can now activate/deactivate the desired image or audio tracks by clicking the corresponding checkbox.

Add or edit subtitles

	In the subtitles area, you can edit the existing subtitles (e.g. the automatically generated ones), create your own subtitles or upload them.
	If your video already has existing subtitles, you can edit them by clicking on the corresponding tile.
	Click on the + sign if you want to add or upload new subtitles. First select one of the supported languages.      In both cases, the subtitle editor will open (see right).
	You can upload new subtitles and download existing subtitles.
	You can use the + sign to add a new segment before or after an existing subtitle segment.
	Here you can enter or edit the text. If you click in one of the boxes, the video jumps to the corresponding position.
	You can change the time and duration of the subtitle segments via the input fields or via the subtitle track. In the track, you can move the segments or shorten or lengthen them by dragging at the beginning and end.
	The subtitles must be actively published. In the «Finish» area, you decide whether you want to publish the video with or without subtitles.

 Select or upload thumbnail

	In the «Thumbnail» area, you can generate a preview image from your video or upload your own image.
	If you want to select an image as thumbnail from the video, position the cursor at the desired location and  click «Generate».
	Alternatively, you can also upload your own thumbnail via «Upload». If possible, it should be in 16:9 format.