netstream play in the middle of a video

Question

I'm using the netstream and video object to play a video in flash. Specifically a mp4 video.

What I'm trying to do is start playing the file from a specific position (Ex. 20seconds).

However with netstreamObject.seek(20) doesn't work unless the stream has been loaded past 20seconds. Is there a way to specify starting to load at 20s? Or any other way of accomplishing this?

Answer 1

would it not be simpler to create a new version of the file starting at 20 seconds. this way there is less for the user to download.

try looking here http://www.winmend.com/file-splitter/

Josh

Answer 2

Also if your client allows, you can use Streaming video RTMP and seek that way, instead of using Progressive video.

If sticking with Progressive check Josh's answer.

Answer 3

You can use some sort of CDN cache server (so the actual file will be served via this cache server) which support lighttpd, then you can seek ahead in the video.

Answer 4

The short answer is, "You cannot seek past the download point in a progressive video." However, Akamai and other CDNs (for example, YouTube) have technology to allow seeking on progressive videos. This does not solve your problem, because it is proprietary server technology. In your situation, using only client code with no control over the files or streaming server, there is no way to seek until the file loads.