Description of the Service
The service makes use of a camcorder to record VHS/C tapes of the swim. This records full-sceen colour and sound and can be played back on the camcorder or on a Video cassette recorder (VCR) using an adaptor and a standard television set.

The camcorder has the ability to zoom in and out for close-up shots.

There are many hundreds of sites on the Internet that include video.

Because the bandwidth on the Internet is (at present) insufficient to support many of the features of commercial television, severe compromises have to be made and the presentation is NOT comparable to commercial television (at present) in the following respects:

Picture size is not "full screen", but typically is 1/4 or 1/16th. screen size, i.e. about 1.5"x 2" (inches) but it is still clear enough and comparable to small colour photographs
The frame rate is not the 25 frames per second that are used for smooth continuous movement, but typically 4-10 frames per second.
Sound may be included although this adds to the transmission overhead by increasing the size of the video files to be transmitted. If sound does not add significantly to the clip, it can be left out.

The Audience
This is a service that enables organisers to make live coverage of their swimming competitions available, potentially, to the (estimated) 80 million on-line viewers world-wide over the Internet. However, do not expect to get 80 million viewers because (a) many people are not interested in swimming (b) many are too busy viewing other attractions or doing their business work on the net. This leaves a small number who are just curious and some bona fide swimmers who are the real target audience. The service can be used to give swimmers who cannot go to your competition, a chance to see what it is like and what they are missing.

Taking the Video Clips

Usually, we will take the video footage for you. Let us know exactly what you want recorded. Alternatively, we can show you how the equipment works, and you can take the "film" yourself. The camcorder is very straightforward to operate and is fully automated. You can make good films using only the "on"/"off" button and the "zoom in"/"zoom out" controls.

The camcorder weighs a few pounds and can become tiring to hold over extended periods. We have a tripod.

Bear in mind that VHS/C tapes record about 45 minutes of footage each. Several tapes can be used.

The camcorder battery lasts 1 hour 30 minutes. There is a backup battery that lasts 45 minutes. The batteries are re-chargeable. For prolonged videoing, it will be necessary to put one battery on re-charge while the other is being used.

Note that "pool sounds" audio clips will be recorded as part of the taking of the video. These can be used later with, or without the video.

The Requirements
This service requires the availability of:

Suggested Exploitation
There are no fixed rules about how, where or when video clips can be used. It is up to you. By default, clips will be taken to cover as many swimmers as possible. This means very short clips such as the dive and a few strokes for each heat. I/M events are good because they show all four strokes of the swimmers.

If a stroke looks unusual, more time may be spent on it, because people are always interested to see if there are different ways of swimming. Such strokes may be included in the "I Swam It My Way" gallery of interesting strokes.

Usually, people appear rather small but there is a potential problem with people/parents objecting because of the use of the (relatively powerful 10X) zoom lenses which effectively bring object ten times nearer, e.g. 50m becomes 5m.

Close up views are possible but these have to be deliberately planned and are probably not appropriate for most competitions, unless there are "interviews" or "presentation of medals" clips to be shown. The camcorder can focus down to about 1.5 foot.

If it is known that records may be broken, it is possible to film the event. This can then create a permanent record that is of great interest.

Preparation and Loading Of Video Clips
Taking the video "footage" on the poolside is just the start. A sequence of digitisation, selection, compression and reformatting is carried out before the video can be uploaded to the server from where it is retrieved by users.

Before video can be put on the Internet it has to be digitised. This is done using a special "capture board" that converts each frame of the video into a digital picture. The board can be used to create (Microsoft proprietary format) .WAV files.

To make the files as small as possible, some or all of the following techniques are used:

The files are then converted into the proprietary RealVideo format before uploading. This format is even more compact and "streams", i.e. the video can be viewed while it is being downloading. Streaming needs a continuous uninterupted connection, so, to avoid excess load on any one (ISPs) server, we put streaming video on many different servers (currently about 40 are used).

To view RealVideo, users need to download a (free) "player" from the Real Networks website (http://www.real.com).

Finally, you may wish to have a copy of the video footage on VHS tape. Copies can be made, onto standard VHS tapes, using a VCR with a SCART plug connection. There is a charge for these (see below). Each 180 Minute VHS tape can hold the contents of four 45 minute VHS/C camcorder tapes.

Making Users Aware
Video clips are publicised by appearing in the Multimedia section of the website.

The clip (or clips) may appear as the "Video of the Week" or in the "I Swam It My Way" section.

As the "Video of the Week" name implies, videos may not be retained permanently on-line. This is because they may occupy too much space. The space may be re-used by the next video. This keeps the site "fresh" and users have new videos to look at, thus retaining their interest.

The Costs
There are usually none.
However, if the competition is a long way from Luton, and I am not swimming in it, I may need to claim travel, and possibly subsistence and accommodation expenses, so this may need to be discussed in advance.
Additionally, if you want a video tape copy, there is a media charge (of about £2.00) and possibly a postage charge, if we are unlikely to meet again and cannot arrange hand delivery.

Other Related Supplementary Services
You may wish to consider using the Swimming Video Clips service in conjunction with other multimedia and video services:

For Swim Organisers
E-mail: swimsite@freeuk.com
Website: http://www.swimsite.org.uk