Product Updates

We have successfully pushed an update to all instances residing in Canada and the European Union. For a summary of the release, please refer to the corresponding tag for United States zones.

We have successfully pushed an update to all physical zones residing in the United States. Please note that this release will be pushed to Canadian and European Union zones next week. This release includes over 200+ new features and improvements.

1. 360°/VR Video Media Player Now Moved to General Availability
   By popular request, the Professional Services Team migrated the 360°/VR Video Media Player, a previously custom capability, to a feature available in all instances. The new 360°/VR Video enables the viewing of 360-degree VR content and supports perspective changes via the gyroscope (when viewed on a mobile device).
   
2. New Advanced Visual Search Capabilities
   The Visual Search capabilities introduced in the last release are now even more powerful with the following new additions that incorporate “fuzzy search”, advanced filtering options and improved performance:
   
   • Implementation of a Fuzzy Search algorithm – Established a fuzzy search that will match against a threshold of about 80%. This enables keyword searches such as engineer~ which will, for example, return engineers and engineer.
   • Ability to Restrict Searches to the Current Folder – New option within the Advanced Search operations to restrict search matches to media contained in the current folder.
   • Ability to Restrict Searches to a Given Channel – New option to restrict search for content to a particular Media Channel by using the channel: attribute. An example is channel:”MATH 235″.
   • Searching for YouTube and Vimeo Videos Included – Linked YouTube and Vimeo videos will be searched based on the available metadata fields.
   • Support for Prefix Searching – New option to search based on a keyword prefix via keyword* search operator. For instance, entering te* returns results with words starting with te including tell and test.
   • Support for Owner Filter – New option to filter searches based on the owner of the media via the owner:”{Your Name}” search option.
   • Custom Metadata Schema Search for Non-Videos – Visual Search now will search a custom Metadata Schema applied to non-video assets.
   • Speed Improvements with Large Match Sets – When searching for words that are mentioned thousands or tens-of-thousands-of-times in a given folder, the search results will now be returned within seconds instead of over a minute.

   

3. Go Back Folder Quick Link for Faster Folder Traversal
   Within My Media’s Action Bar, a new Go Back button enables users to traverse to the parent folder of the current location.
   
4. Optical Character Recognition (OCR) Capabilities Extend to Video Sources Recorded by PC and Apple Software Capture Application
   To enhance our Visual Search capabilities, we now will perform a full OCR scan of video sources – not just the screen source – recorded by the Software Capture for PC and Apple applications.
5. Media Player’s Slide Text Section Supports Multi-Source OCR
   Within the Media Player, recordings that have multiple sources with OCR results for the same time point – which is now possible with the newly introduced multi-source OCR – will now be shown.
6. HTML5 Video Conferencing Now Offers Breakout Room Capabilities
   The Video Conferencing product now includes the ability to create and manage Breakout Sessions with attendees. Future releases will further refine this capability so we certainly welcome your feedback on features and improvements we can make.
   
7. Extended API to Support Automatic Publishing Capabilities When Auto Scheduling
   To better support end-to-end automatic scheduling and publishing workflows, the RESTFul API now supports automatic publishing when performing auto-scheduling operations.
8. Media Player Improvements When Viewed in Portrait Mode on Mobile Devices
   This release includes improvements to the Media Player when viewed on mobile devices in portrait mode. A new top-and-bottom viewing capability for multi-stream videos ensures a crisp viewing experience irrespective of the mobile device form-factor or screen orientation.
   
9. Better Notifications for Auto-Scheduled Software Capture Applications
   To ensure that Administrators are informed on the status of auto-scheduling events when using the Software Capture applications, the Devices tab within Admin Panel now has a new status called Not Ready, as well as new notifications.

   
   The Not Ready status indicates that the Software Capture application is not in a state to record. For example, there could be a firewall issue, device conflict or perhaps the computer is logged out. Further, if an error blocks the use of a particular source, an error message will show up above the affected source. Please note: The full capabilities of this feature will be realized with the upcoming versions of the PC and Apple Software Capture applications that are forthcoming next month.

10. Ability to Lock / Override Roles for Users within Specific Courses
    To support scenarios where a Student role (such as a “student helper” or “course note-taker”) needs Instructor-level permissions within a given course, we now provide a manual “override” of the role value supplied by the Learning Management System.
    
11. Video Quiz Audit Log Capabilities
    To ensure the integrity of the Video Quiz-taking process, Content Creators and Administrators now have an Audit Log capability. This provides granular information on creation, editing, quiz attempts and user submissions.
    
12. Improved Screen Reader Support for Media Player Sidebar
    This release improves the screen-reader accessibility support of the Media Player’s Sidebar. Specifically, we applied user-interface changes to ensure that screen-readers can fully narrate the options in a consistent and clear manner.

We have released a new Software Capture for Apple version (3.0.1) that focuses on an improved user experience, automatic framerate optimization, automatic firewall traversal capabilities, and video test proctoring capabilities (for those organizations with this SKU enabled). Please note that this release has been pushed out to all instances within the Canada and European Union zone.

We have successfully pushed an update to all instances residing in Canada and the European Union. For a summary of the release, please refer to the corresponding tag for United States zones.

We have released a new Software Capture for Apple version (3.0.1) that focuses on an improved user experience, automatic framerate optimization, automatic firewall traversal capabilities, and video test proctoring capabilities (for those organizations with this SKU enabled). Please note that this release has been pushed out to all instances within the United States zone. It will be pushed out to Canadian and European Union instances next week. To take advantage of these new capabilities, please update the installed application.

1. Refreshed Desktop Application User Interface
   This version includes a refreshed experience with more clear Action Buttons for Start, Stop, Pause and Cancel. We also added a more modern translucent background to partially see what’s behind the desktop recording application and more clear iconography.
   
2. Video Test Proctoring Available for Apple
   The video test proctoring capabilities introduced for PC platforms is now available on Apple computers. For those organizations with this SKU enabled, this workflow enables users to initiate controlled recordings during active test taking, accept configurable Terms and Conditions, capture appropriate imagery of government-issued photo ID, and record multi-sources during online test activity. We offer options for both live and non-live test proctoring.
   
3. Auto-Scaling Frame Rate Level Based on Performance
   Based on the available CPU and resources of the computer, the framerate default settings will be automatically established. This can be adjusted and in the event it exceeds the recommended setting, a message will be provided to the user.
4. Improved Firewall Traversal
   Transition of outbound port access to Port 443 to be more compatible with an organization’s existing firewall configuration. With more stringent firewalls, this capability will reduce the likelihood the Platform’s use will require a firewall change.
5. Default Location for Recorded Media Changed to My Media Top-Level Folder
   Changed the default location where captures go to the top-level Media Collection rather than the Default Collection. This change was made so that novice users who record will see their recording available immediately after clicking on My Media, rather than having to go into the Default Collection sub-folder.

This release also resolves about 25+ issues including resolution of an issue that would prevent the Mouse Cursor being recorded as part of the screen capture.

We have successfully pushed an update to all physical zones residing in the United States. Please note that this release will be pushed to Canadian and European Union zones next week. This release includes over 160+ new features and improvements.

1. New Visual Search Available to Upgrade Across All Instances
   All the sub-system infrastructure and related metadata upgrades to take advantage of the new Visual Search is available to organizations. Within the next 60 days, this will be turned on incrementally to all customer instances, however we will provide the opportunity for Administrators to request it be turned on within their instances. New capabilities of the new Visual Search include:
   • Ability to perform full media library searches across all videos within all metadata types including captions, optical character recognition (slides) and comments.
   • Capability to see all matches across the timeline of the video as clickable push-pins.
   • Play All Matches feature that generates a dynamic playlist of five-second snippits of all search matches.

   We will continue to refine and improve this capability over the coming months and value your feedback in improving the quality of the visual search across your production data workloads.
   

2. Ability to Perform an OCR “Sweep” on Uploaded Media
   Content Owners uploading content can now trigger an OCR sweep of their uploaded media using the same OCR-generation algorithms that run when processing content captured via our capture tools. This ensures that uploaded content displaying significant textual content can take advantage of our Visual Search capabilities.
   
3. Improved Zoom Connector Integration
   The Platform’s Zoom integration is being migrated from a traditional API integration into a Zoom Marketplace application. For organizations enabling this Product SKU within their Instance, this provides an easier installation process, as well as a more future-proofed integration via Zoom’s preferred integration method. To learn more, visit our Zoom integration steps available here.
   
4. Sub-Channel Rosters Can Now Be a Subset of the Main Channel Roster
   To provide more flexible intra-course sharing of content, Media Sub-Channel rosters can now be a customizable subset of the full course roster of the main Media Channel. This enables new scenarios such as, among other things, providing specific accessibility accommodations to subsets of course participants.
   
5. Video Quiz Creation and Administration Now Within Media Details
   Content Creators can now create and manage their video quizzes directly within the familiar Media Details view. Previously, quiz content was managed in a special section within My Account settings. Over the coming months, we will continue to introduce new quiz capabilities, as well as improved creation workflows.
   
6. Video Quiz Creators Can Now Add Hints to Questions
   Video Quizzes now support the ability to add a Hint to a question. Users who opt to view the Hint are displayed to the instructor within the YuJa Gradebook.
   
7. Richer Video Quiz Question and Answer Fields including LaTeX Support
   To support more sophisticated formatting options, the question and response fields now allow entries that can exceed 140 characters and be formatted via a built-in formatting toolbar. For users wishing to create richer formatting for STEM-based content, we have also integrated support for the LaTeX language in the question and response fields.
   
8. More Intuitive Question Markers Below Timeline of Video Quiz
   The Video Quiz timeline incorporates new question markers that “fill in” as a particular question has been completed.
   
9. Improved HTML5 Video Conference Replay
   This release, we completely overhauled the conference replay to be more robust. This should provide both a more intuitive replay experience, as well as fewer situations with video conference replay issues.
10. More Intuitive Thumbnail Selection Option within Media Details
    Based on customer feedback, we improved the selection of custom thumbnails within the Media Details. The new selection uses an image carousel with more clear delineation of the current thumbnail being used.
    

We have successfully pushed an update to all instances residing in Canada and the European Union. For a summary of the release, please refer to the corresponding tag for United States zones.

We have successfully pushed an update to all physical zones residing in the United States. Please note that this release will be pushed to Canadian and European Union zones next week. This release includes over 180+ new features and improvements.

1. Improved Media Channels Interface with Drag-and-Drop Channel Reordering
   The release introduces a more compact, flexible and configurable Media Channels view. This includes a more compact video thumbnail, improved visibility of tabbed Sub-Channels, and most importantly, the ability to re-order published content with convenient drag-and-drop facility.
   
2. Improved Media Thumbnails within Media Library View and Loading Performance
   The new, more compact Media Thumbnail has also been incorporated into My Media and EnterpriseTube. New content will also more clearly show key attributes, including duration, using a gradient overlay which uses the available space better. We also made the entire experience load faster.
   
3. Video Quizzes Now Offers “Skip for Now” and “Disable Fast Forwarding” Options
   Over the coming months, the Product Team will be introducing over 50+ new interactive video and text quiz capabilities. This release, the Platform now offers two new quiz capabilities to disable fast-forwarding during video quiz attempts, as well as the ability to provide the answer immediately following a question submission.
   
4. Improved Optical Character Recognition Algorithm Deployed
   As part of a longer-term project to improve the searchability and quality of auto-generated metadata, the Platform now has an improved Optical Character Recognition (OCR) algorithm. New content will automatically take advantage of the improved OCR algorithm that, among other things, will read the text off recorded slides better.
5. Improved Auto-Generation of Table of Contents Based on Screen Transition Algorithm
   As part of the same longer-term project to improve the searchability of auto-generated metadata, the Platform now has an an improved algorithm for pre-generating the Table of Contents shown within the Media Player. This algorithm leverages screen transition data to better detect truly distinct presentation segments and, in turn, generates a more relevant Table of Contents section.
6. Improved Iconography for Admin Panel, Analytics and My Account
   The Platform now incorporates clearer and more understandable iconography for the Left Navigation Bar within the Admin Panel, Visual Analytics and My Account.
   
7. New SIS, LMS and SSO Auto-Merge Module
   Organizations now have new integration options with the ability to integrate the Platform directly into a Student Information System (SIS) while using both a Learning Management System (LMS) and Single Sign On (SSO) system. Both courses and users will be cross-matched among the systems for a consistent and unified media experience.
   
8. New Podcast Syndication Capabilities
   For organizations looking to cross-syndicate channels to other forms of distribution, Media Channel owners can now generate an RSS Feed that can be enabled on a per-channel basis. This can be “consumed” by RSS syndication tools such as Apple iTunes.
   
9. Auto-Resizing Media Details Dialog that Fits Better within an LMS and Smaller Screens
   The Media Details pane has been improved to dynamically adjust to the available size in two ways. First, the window vertical scroll adjusts to keep the Save buttons visible. Second, the horizontal space is used more efficiently with the left icon labels tucking away when there is not an ideal viewing size.
   
10. Improved Resolution of Default Thumbnail
    For new video content, the Platform now generates and associates a higher resolution thumbnail. Previously, the thumbnail generated could appear slightly grainy when viewed within a mid-sized browser window. Please note that this is not retroactive on existing media.
11. More Flexible External Sharing with the Share Dialog
    The Share dialog now supports the ability to input an email address to send a recipient a direct link to a video. Email recipients will get an email and if they have an associated YuJa account, they can also access it within the Shared with Me section of their account.
    
12. Folders and Channels Can Now Be Sorted by Last Viewed
    Now that the Platform offers the ability to adjust the order of your content, the Product Team has also released a Sort By Last Viewed option to all production zones.
    
13. Improved the Video Editor’s Launch Behavior
    Since the Video Editor opens in a new browser tab, the Platform now provides an on-screen notification that it is being launched.
    
14. Improvements to Media Player Layout and Multi-Source Sync Performance at Faster Speeds
    The Media Player now has an improved capability to play multi-source content, in synchronicity, at faster speeds. Previously, we saw edge cases where, in certain browsers, at higher speeds (1.75x or faster), that the sources could become slightly out-of-sync.
15. Improved Network Quality Detection and Notification of HLS Bitrate
    The Media Player now has an integrated notification of the current bitrate being streamed, as well as more reliable adherence to automatic or manual adjustments to the bitrate.
    
16. Video Conferencing Have Ability to Change A/V Sources
    The beta HTML5-based Video Conferencing product now has the ability to switch webcam and mic sources while in a video conference meeting.
    
17. EnterpriseTube Tools Can Be Turned On-and-Off
    Organizations now can selectively enable the EnterpriseTube Library and Events tab. The Product Team also moved the EnterpriseTube administrative tools into the Admin Panel Platform tab for a more consistent experience.
    
18. Coming Soon – New “Visual Search” to Replace Existing “Intuitive Search” Capability
    You may have noticed an emphasis on improved metadata generation in this release. This is part of a new Visual Search capability that the Product Team is launching soon. This will eventually replace the current search capabilities (called “Intuitive Search”). This new Visual Search will enable users to:
    • Perform a deep search across all their media content and see playable push-pins where there are matches in the captions, optical character recognition, index and more.
    • Click Play All Matches to dynamically generate a unified playlist clip that shows all the matches. This enables a user to quickly find topics of interest and watch just those topic excerpts.

    Over the coming weeks, we will be launching some new media processing “horsepower” that will re-process in the background the petabytes-on-petabytes of existing media data. The end result is that all your content will be able to take advantage of this new capability.
    

We have successfully pushed an update to all physical zones residing in Canada and the European Union. For a summary of the release, please refer to the corresponding tag for United States zones.

We have successfully pushed an update to all physical zones residing in the United States. Please note that this release will be pushed to Canadian and European Union zones next week. This release includes over 110+ new features and improvements.

1. New Offline Downloading Capabilities with Podcast Pre-Generation
   The Media Player now supports the ability to auto-play based on settings We now provide the ability to download directly from the Media Player without the need to wait for an email with the streams. Now, Content Owners can opt to pre-generate podcasts for viewers enabling quick and direct downloading while watching the video.
   
2. Ability for Organizations to Customize Speed Controls
   Administrators have new Media Player customization capabilities to select which variable speeds, including much more granular speed options. This was a heavily requested capability from our Medical and Nursing school partners.
   
3. New Top Bar and UI for HTML5 Video Conference Tool
   As part of our beta HTML5-based Video Conference, we incorporated a visual refresh aimed at a better user experience. This includes clear top-bar buttons of key tools, a higher-contrast user experience, and more attractive integrated chat.
   
4. New Branded Video Conference Landing Page for Guests
   As part of the visual refresh of the HTML5-based Video Conference, we also incorporated a branded guest landing page for those joining a video conference.
   
5. New Chat Integration with Visual Notification of Unread Chats
   We’ve introduced a new chat box integration that’s more similar to iMessage’s style that users are familiar with. We also introduced a visual notification on the Top Bar of the number of unread chat messages.
   
6. Ability for Organizations to Adjust the Control Time Used for the Go Back Button
   Organizations can now customize the Media Player’s Go Back button’s control time. The default will remain unchanged; however, customers can now change the control time to one better suited to their users.
7. New Control Options for Ad-Hoc Hardware Captures Initiated from Room Touch Panels
   Administrators now can manage which user and to which location an ad-hoc hardware capture should be stored in. The primary use-case is administrators would like to centralize the management of touch panel-initiated recordings.
8. Schedule Priority Setting for CTRL=Extend Touch Panel Command
   Administrators can now choose if, when a Extend command is sent from the room touch panel, they would like to prioritize the existing auto-scheduled event or the current, active event.