Streaming Help

Please understand that we list all the streaming solutions we know about on this page. If you contact us and request help, we are likely to refer you to information already on this page. Thanks for reading carefully to help us keep support costs at a minimum.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I fix buffering?
Why am I seeing an error message?
Why does the pitch change when I listen with Adobe Flash?
Why do I hear noises in the background?
Why does live streaming work but BBNBI streaming does not?
How do I listen on my Apple Macintosh?
How do I listen on my Linux machine?
How do I listen on my PDA, cell phone or web appliance?
What formats and players do you support?
Why does the stream disconnect after 4 hours?

How do I fix buffering?

This is a Windows Media issue and doesn’t happen with Flash (though Flash has different issues). The most common cause of buffering is an internet connection that is too slow on the listeners end. Dial-up users are especially prone to buffering. Another possible contributor is activity taking place on your PC. Whenever your PC's processor is called upon to handle a task other than streaming playback, an interruption is possible. Results will vary depending on numerous factors like processor speed and memory. If streaming works fine as long as you don't use the machine for anything else, this may be the problem.

Why am I seeing an error message?

Error messages can be seen for a variety of reasons. Here are some issues we have run into with BBN listeners:

1. Firewalls - Some firewalls can block BBN streaming. One way to test and see if your firewall is indeed the problem is to disable the firewall completely and then try streaming BBN, however, we don't recommend continued operation without some kind of firewall. For BBN streaming to work, your hardware router will need to be able to pass HTTP on port 80, MMS on port 1755 or RTSP on port 554. Most routers (but not all) allow these protocols by default. If disabling your firewall solves the problem, the first thing we recommend trying is disabling the UDP option in your Windows Media Player.

To turn off UDP streaming in Windows Media Player

1. In Windows Media Player, on the Tools menu, click Options.
2. In the Options dialog box, on the Network tab, in the Streaming protocols area, clear the UDP check box.

More Windows Media player errors codes can be looked up on the Microsoft web site.

2. Download Accelerators - Some BBNBI students have encountered errors when "download accelerator" programs are installed on a machine. For instance, If you use software called Download Accelerator Plus, hold down the ALT key when you click the BI audio link to temporarily disable browser integration of DAP.

Why does the pitch change when I listen with Adobe Flash?

This is a known issue with Adobe Flash live streaming. The pitch changing arises from what Adobe calls their “catch up” technology. The purpose is to allow for near-real-time audio without buffering. (Windows Media Player, by contrast, can have a delay of a few minutes to avoid buffering.) Adobe Flash slows the audio pitch instead of buffering. Then to “catch up”, they speed the pitch. This isn’t all that noticeable with voice, but sounds very bad with music. We have found ways to minimize the issue, but it can still be heard on occasion. We apologize for the inconvenience and ask you to join us in petitioning Adobe for an option to disable that feature in our encoder software. Right now there is no way to disable it.

Some have asked why we would want to use Adobe Flash since this problem is a possibility. There are some carefully considered reasons. First, Flash streaming is probably the single most prevalent technology that works on many platforms while Windows Media is optimized primarily for Microsoft Windows PC’s. Only about 2% of BBN listeners use a format other than Windows Media and Flash works most easily on Macintosh and Linux machines without downloading a 3^rd party player. Another factor is cost. We can stream in the Flash format for a significantly lower overall financial hit, once licensing is figured in.

Why do I hear noises in the background?

The technical name is “artifacting”. When audio is packed (compressed) to minimal bandwidth for web transfer, the un-packing process has the audible artifacts you hear. Windows Media compression artifacts sound like rather severe phasing or many people think of it as a robot voice sound. Adobe Flash compression artifacts sound like static. It isn’t possible to completely get rid of artifacts, but it is possible to reduce them. The problem is that a minimal increase of quality comes with a price tag of hundreds of thousands of dollars per year. So we’ve selected the compression quality that offers a reliable stream to the greatest number of listeners for a price we can afford and with a quality that is adequate.

Why does live streaming work but BBNBI streaming does not?

It happens sometimes that live streaming will work fine while BBNBI on-demand streaming won't. The usual culprits are:

1. Presence of Winamp on the PC - To fix, open Winamp. Go to Options / Preferences / File Types / De-select WMA and ASF. The list may not be alphabetized so you may have to hunt around for these file types.

2. Presence of a Download Accelerator (there are many) - If you use software called Download Accelerator Plus, hold down the ALT key when you click the BBN on-demand link to temporarily disable browser integration of DAP.

Recommendations:

1. Completely remove WM Player and then install the latest version from the Microsoft web site.
2. Turn off the local firewall and try it again with the firewall off.
3. Sometimes the file association on a users PC can be inadvertently set to open our files with the wrong program. The symptom is that the user is asked to save a file. The solution depends on the operating system:

In Microsoft VISTA - Create a blank NOTEPAD file and name it fix.wma / right click on the file and select OPEN WITH / CHOOSE DEFAULT PROGRAM... select Windows Media Player and click OK.

XP - Create a blank NOTEPAD file and name it fix.wma / right click on the file and click OPEN WITH. From the list, select Windows Media Player. Check the box to "Always use the selected program..." and click OK.

How do I listen on my Apple Macintosh?

We recommend using our Adobe Flash player. On the left side of any BBN web page, look above the round blue button to select a different player. After you select “Adobe Flash”, please give the page a moment to refresh before clicking the blue button. Another way to accomplish the same thing would be to go back to the home page and look on the right side of the page in the area called “BBN Languages”. You may activate the Flash stream from there also and not have to wait for the page to refresh.

How do I listen on my Linux machine?

How do I listen on my PDA, cell phone or web appliance?

For PDA’s and phone running Pocket PC software and Windows Mobile 5, we have found that our stream will play if you enter our direct URL into your player. The same URL works for web appliances that support Windows Media streaming. The URL is: http://www.bbnradio.org/WindowsMediaDotComASXLinks/wmenglish.asx

What formats and players do you support?

BBN streams in the Windows Media and Adobe Flash formats. For users with a Microsoft Windows or Microsoft Pocket PC, we recommend listening with the Windows Media format. For listeners with Apple or Linux computers, we suggest using the Adobe Flash format.

Why does the stream disconnect after 4 hours?

While BBN streaming is always available to listeners without cost, there are still costs that have to be paid. BBN pays for bandwidth and music licensing according to how long each end-listener stays connected. As you might guess, some folks find it most convenient to start the stream and just leave it running perpetually. It stays running while they are at work or out in the yard and BBN's costs rise unnecessarily. To be the best stewards we can be with the Lord's money, we have coded a time limit of 4 hours into each listening session. When a session ends after 4 hours, a listener need only click PLAY in their Windows Media player to reactivate.