No additional expensive hardware is needed and new technologies are easily incorporated into ezXchanges' servers with no disturbance and with little or no additional cost to our users. ezXchanges realizes that the digital revolution has arrived, and that extraneous and expensive analog hardware is not necessary in this day and age. Accordingly, users exchange all their games in a format that is compressed for efficient transfer via the internet. The most popular transfer formats include H.264 (MPEG-4 AVC – the iPod/AppleTV format) and Windows Media 9 files. We have also added the popular XviD CODEC as one of the acceptable upload formats. If your current sports editing equipment can't open or save into these formats directly, we can recommend a software utility to do the job. (Excellent utilities for doing this are available online at modest cost, and, in certain cases, there are also inexpensive hardware accelerators available.)
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For Windows users: To just upload and download games, any Pentium 4 or higher machine will be fine. For encoding live or doing conversions you should have a newer machine such as a 1.8Ghz Intel Core DUO with at least 2GB RAM (3 GB RAM for Vista).
For Macintosh Users: To just upload and download games, any G4 desktop or laptop will be sufficient. For encoding and transcoding files, the Mac should be at least a G4 1.2Ghz, and be able to run Mac OS 10.4 (Tiger) and QuickTime 7.2. It must also have shipped with at least one original built-in USB 2.0 port. (Mac users can use a small - inexpensive - hardware accelerator for encoding of H.264 Video and it requires a USB 2.0 port.)
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By design, only teams that have been approved to download a particular game can access the game. The handling of the security for the games is further protected by UNIX permissions and database security as well as a dedicated hardware firewall. Even if someone were to get into ezXchanges’ systems, additional security measures and strategic misdirection within our data storage architecture would make it extremely difficult for them to access the games.
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We do. We think that's the only way that proper security can be maintained, and we are committed to that goal. When game videos are, instead, stored on shared servers, or on a variety of servers run by each school, it may weaken safeguards against tampering both by parties interested in the games and by intruders looking for weak spots in the network.
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Currently, no additional software is needed on laptops or desktops that are connecting to and using the ezXchanges network. The only thing that is needed is a Java enabled browser (we recommend Firefox.)
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The files are protected in two ways: First, they are run against a security algorithm that runs a checksum before each game is uploaded or downloaded. Then they are scanned on access by a virus scanner to provide an additional layer of protection.
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Yes, ezXchanges has a support page available within every account that gives the user access to many of the common questions and their answers. The Support page provides a step-by-step process on how to use each feature within your ezXchanges account. Users can also browse the Support page by keyword or topic. If you have a question that isn't answered on our Support Page, you can also send questions directly to ezXchanges and receive the response via email.
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We support the ezXchanges network and our users 24/7 via telephone and email. Of course.
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A high speed broadband connection is necessary for uploading and downloading. A minimum of 1.5 Megabits/sec upload and download speeds is highly recommended.
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Some users have uploaded games in as little as 6 minutes. Our users average upload speed is approximately 26 minutes. Using an Internet connection that only meets the recommended minimum speed, usually takes just under an hour to upload an hour-long game. (Times vary depending on connection speeds, Internet speeds, and traffic on your LAN.)
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Some schools have downloaded games in under 6 minutes. At average university connection speeds, a game takes 20-30 minutes to download, and an hour-long game, at the minimum recommended connected speed, takes just under an hour.
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MPEG4-H.264 (the iPod/AppleTV format), Windows Media 9, and XviD (upload only).
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Windows Media 9 can be encoded live during the game using a 3.0Ghz Pentium 4 (or Core 2 Duo, or Quad Core) computer. On most Macintosh computers, full frame MPEG4-H.264 is limited to post compression at this time because of the encoding complexity of the format.* However, accelerators are available that cut that encoding session down to faster than real-time. USB connected devices for live H.264 recording are currently in development and will be in testing this December (2008). The new "Uni-body" MacBook and MacBook Pros may be fast enough to encode full-frame H.264. This is being tested.

On Windows, XviD can be encoded live, depending on system and equipment (pre-testing is recommended).

*The multi-core Mac Pro tower can handle live H.264
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Yes, MPEG-4 H.264 is designed to deliver DVD or better quality at lower data rates and smaller file sizes. Windows Media quality reflects the result of a major investment by Microsoft in digital video technology. XviD is a favorite codec of quality-conscious open-source enthusiasts.
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For best performance use at least an Intel Core Duo (2.0GHz or faster) PC with at least 2 GB RAM (for XP) or 3 GB RAM (for Vista) and a large hard drive. Macintosh H.264 encode time is determined by the hardware accelerator, but the Mac should be at least a G4 866, and be able to run Mac OS 10.4 (Tiger) and QuickTime 7.2. It must also have shipped with at least one original built-in USB 2.0 port (for the accelerator).
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Most modern laptops have more than enough space for ezXchanges' files. But if space should get tight, external USB or firewire hard drives can expand your storage by 250 or more gigabytes, at reasonable cost.
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If the game video is one hour in duration, the compression takes less than one hour to encode using a USB-connected hardware accelerator. (65% to 95% of real time on Macintosh, depending on bus and hard drive speeds).
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For Windows Media the download must be complete (in most cases. depending on your version of Windows Media Player). QuickTime player can begin playing sooner than that if you have a fast and reliable connection. The network is not actually intended for streaming, so your mileage may vary.
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Yes, if you have to stop on upload you do not lose what you have already loaded. You can simply resume uploading at a later time.
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Files can be viewed on the computer screen with no further manipulation, using either Windows Media Player or the QuickTime Player. Files can also be opened or imported into your sports editing system for editing. Files can also be put onto DVD for viewing by a variety of means and H.264 files can be viewed on video iPods, or on TV screens over your LAN using a device like Apple's AppleTV. ezXchanges will help you arrive at the best workflow for your needs.
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When you register with ezXchanges, you select your time zone and our servers convert everything to it automatically, regardless of whether you are sending or receiving requests from different time zones.
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Yes, every conference office is provided with an ezXchanges account that can request and access full games from schools. The conference account can also elect to directly receive “game clips" from each school that may need to be reviewed by conference administrators and/or official coordinators for every game that is played.
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Absolutely! You can take advantage of our ezGuest service to share your games with other schools, or with individuals, just by issuing an invitation. Your guest gets an ezXchanges guest account which can access any game that you have approved them to see. When you share games with ezGuest you retain all of the controls and security that ezCoordinator provides for your regular account. ezXchanges is currently offering ezGuest accounts at no additional charge.
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Send email to Shannon Cotton at info@ezxchanges.com or call (518) 339-2746.
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