Real-Time Alerts

We have successfully pushed a new minor version update to the YuJa Software Station to all zones. This release includes:

1. Added the ability to select the Media Library folder as a Save location
2. Optimized recording UI smoothness
3. Added support for Datapath capture cards including detection of situations where the sampling and encoding rates are exceeded.
4. Added permission checking to Watch Point when specifying a folder.
5. Fixed issue with DPI scaling for certain desktop display and OS versions

We have successfully pushed an update to all zones. This release includes:

1. Workflow Update to the Capture & Live Stream – This workflow simplifies how to initiate a capture and live-stream, including reducing the number of clicks required.
2. New Admin Panel Overview tab – This tab provides Administrators with a cursory overview of the activity that’s happening within their enterprise’s zone. We are in the process of updating all the Platform’s sub-systems to send all their normal and abnormal alerts (e.g. low audio signals, auto-schedule failures, etc.) to this centralized console over the coming releases. The overall product vision for this Admin Panel -> Overview tab is alerts filtering in real-time from various sub-systems and remote device nodes (capture devices) that are placed in your physical environment.
3. Refined Media Player Controls – We made some tweaks to the Scrubber Bar positioning that makes it easier for users to utilize the player controls, as well as, better uses the on-screen space. This update also paves the way to an upcoming feature for customizing the player controls (“player skins”).
4. Hub Preview Confidence Migrated to HTML5 – Admins will notice that we shifted the Device Preview control from an embedded Flash applet to an HTML5 one.
5. Refinements to the Metadata Schema Workflow – Recognizing that metadata data-entry can be cumbersome for users, we have added some explanatory animation and alerts in situations where Required Fields need to be filled out. Some additional metadata schema improvements and bug fixes are also part of this.
6. Gradual Transition to Self-Service RESTFul API Use – We will be transitioning use of our RESTFul APIs from an On-Prior Approval Model to a Self-Service Model in Q1 of 2018. As part of this, the API Key generation is now available within the Admin Panel.
7. Alert Toasts Now Match Look-and-Feel of Platform – You’ll notice that the Toast Messages that appear now match the Platform’s look-and-feel better.
8. Refined Main Menu Panel – To improve the overall usability of the Platform, we added additional short explanations for each of the Main Menu tiles.
9. Media Pipeline Improvement to Handle Resolution Fragments Better – In instances where a screen resolution change occurs during an active Software Capture, our media pipeline now performs a post-capture re-stitch of the various resolution fragments to create a cohesive media object. The pipeline also will perform media processing retries of captures that have not uploaded within a week to the YuJa Cloud. The pipeline will also now send a warning alert email to users whose media has not uploaded within a week.

Additionally, we will be releasing an update to the Software Capture for PC next week and making available an optional Hardware Hub Firmware the following week. We will provide more details on each of these updates when we make available these off-cycle releases.

A total of 168 features, improvements, and fixes were released within this update. If you have questions on anything with this release, please do not hesitate to email support@yuja.com.

As we close out the 2017 calendar year, we will be using the slower December holiday season to refine and improve a few workflows. One, in particular, is a workflow that will simplify initiating a Software and In-Browser Capture from within the Platform or LMS (non-finalized preview screenshot below).

Essentially currently clicking on the Capture & Live Stream currently goes to a three-box layout from which you then initiate a capture. In mid-December onwards it will be a dialog which allows you to perform a one-click software capture initiation. Keep in mind that this dialog will preserve any Browser Capture ON/OFF settings that you have established within the Admin Panel -> Platform Tab. If you have questions about this upcoming change, please do not hesitate to reach out to support@yuja.com

We have successfully pushed an update to all zones. This release includes:

1. Introduction of “One-Click Drag-and-Drop” which enables users to drag content right onto the Media Library window pane for uploading and inclusion within their Personal Library.
2. Migration to general availability in all physical zones of Custom Metadata Schema which enables institutions to define customized – and optionally mandatory – metadata fields for media. This offers improved metadata-based organization and metadata search. To ensure a successful incorporation of these capabilities, we will not be enforcing the Required Flag for metadata schema rules while institutions learn about these capabilities. Enforcement of the Required Flag will happen in a subsequent release.
3. Improved integration with Rev, AST CaptionSync and 3Play Media for submitting human captions. We have had conversations with all our human captioning vendors to improve their error reporting in instances where captioning isn’t possible (low audio levels, zero audio levels, etc.) and, based on this, will be deepening the integration further in an upcoming, near-term release.
4. Updates to the iOS mobile apps to match the Android app’s ability to upload pictures and videos already present on the device.

We also added about 50+ minor improvements and fixes including: a minor update to the Apple Capture application related to improvements in device compatibility, media library permission and usability fixes, HTML5 Media Player browser compatibility fixes, and more.

Looking ahead, we are putting the final touches on some improvements to our YuJa Cloud’s media processing pipeline (to be even faster, have more capacity, and fault tolerant), an improved YuJa Software Station for PC with more capabilities, and much more.

As part of our 2017 and 2018 initiatives for deeper synchronous and asynchronous video capabilities, we have completed our work on adding new infrastructure alongside our RTMP-based Live Streaming (with our Flash-based Live Stream Player) to include HLS Live Streaming with a new HTML5 Live Player. This HTML5 Live Player works with the newer HLS infrastructure and adds a new ability to pause and resume Live Streams, as well as single-click Jump-to-Live.

Our Operations Team will continue to operate both sets of infrastructure while institutions migrate to the new capabilities. To ensure a smooth transition as we increase capacity, we’ve turned off tablet and mobile live streaming through November however this will be enabled in December. This release is part of a larger initiative around Live Streaming workflows that we’re excited to offer our partner institutions.

To take advantage of this new infrastructure, please update your Software Station applications. Appliances do not need a firmware update.

We have successfully pushed an update to all zones. This release includes:

1. Improved Hardware Hub firmware which includes support for SDI and HDMI embedded audio within HLS-based Live Streaming, support for Hardware Appliance-based OCR meta-layer creation, and improved error and alert reporting. To receive this firmware update, please contact your Account Manager to receive an update appointment.
2. New System Alert tab within the Admin Panel that enables Administrators to send custom email notices to users of the Platform within their organization including – but not limited to – internal policy changes, notices of newly available media relevant to all users, upcoming user training sessions, etc.
3. Minor version update of the Software Capture for PC including general availability for screen region capture, improved behavior when the desktop icon is clicked on during an active capture, and more. We will be releasing another minor application update with some additional capabilities in a few weeks.
4. General availability of Recycle Bin capability with an Admin-configurable retention period. The organization’s Administrators can establish a retention period (default is 30 days) for all users. All deleted media automatically goes to the user’s Recycle Bin (underneath their My Account) where it be self-recovered prior to the retention period.

We also added about 65+ additional smaller features and improvements such as new third-party captioning vendor support, minor update to the Android app to support uploading locally stored photos and videos, and more.

To take advantage of these new capabilities, you may need to clear your browser cache.

We have successfully pushed an update to all zones. This release includes:

1. New YuJa Software Station for PC binaries which includes:
   • Improved MPEG restoration capabilities in instances where capture-only sessions are terminated abruptly (forgetting to press Stop, premature machine termination, abrupt logout)
   • “Robustification” of PC-based software capture automation
   • New capabilities within Watch Point ingestion, namely ability to select a Publish location and Owner
   • A dozen or so smaller bug fixes and UI improvements

   Note: We will be performing one additional PC Software Capture application update within the next month as we roll-out fully HTML5-based live-streaming capabilities across all capture platforms, including the ability to “pause and resume” Live Streams. We have already rolled out HTML5-based live streaming to some zones and are pleased with the response. We will continue to broaden this in the next release. RTMP-based Adobe Flash streaming will continue to be officially supported by YuJa Product Support for approximately 60 days after our HTML5-based Live Streaming enters general availability.

2. We also did a very minor binary improvement to the YuJa Software Station for Apple binary in all zones that resolves a few relatively rare issues.
3. Media Channels offer Sub-Channel capabilities within course-linked Media Channels with separate permission capabilities. The primary use-case is the ability to create sub-channels within a course for student submissions, and better organization with large numbers of media assets aligned to a given course.
4. General improvements to the Software Capture suite’s Auto-Scheduling capabilities in edge-case scenarios including when the remote machine is switched off, turned on late, turned off early/abnormally, etc. We will continue to analyze aggregate log data to identify mechanisms to improve Auto-Scheduling capabilities even further.
5. Improvements to the Accessibility Dashboard including the ability to create a downloadable report of all media that matches specific criteria such as missing copyrights, missing captions, missing audio descriptions, etc.

In addition to the above items, we also added about 62 smaller features and improvements. Looking ahead to our November releases, we will be introducing a fully HTML5 Live Stream player, customized Metadata Schema Management tools, new standardized and fully automated caption integrations with Rev and CaptionSync, configurable Transcoding Profiles, and much more.

We have successfully pushed an update to all zones. This release includes:

1. Ability to create “virtual edits” using the Sub Clip capability within the HTML5 Player. This enables Content Owners to send a video link that plays at a certain start point or sub-section without needing to use the Video Editor to create a new copy.
2. Improved accessibility of HTML5 Player with new use of highlight color on the buttons, the ability to initiate the initial play action with only the keyboard, and the ability to incrementally control the volume bar with only the up-and-down keys.
3. Improvements to IMS role mappings to ensure LTI mapping roles are preserved within a Course for TA and other non-student and instructor roles.
4. UI improvements including improved thumbnail icon for videos and more consistent dialog format across the Platform.
5. Ability to customize the name of your Login options. For example, if your institution calls your Single-Sign-On a institution-specific name, you can now use that in the Platform label.

We also used this release to improve a total of 115 separate items across the Platform. Looking ahead to October and early November we will be introducing some key features including: Metadata Schema Management and Enforcement, new filtering tools for administrators to better track Accessibility Compliance across all video assets, brand new secure HTML5 Live Streaming Player, configurable Transcoding Profiles, an update to the YuJa Software Station for PC, and much more.

Important Notes:

1. We introduced a feature to set a customizable color for the Sliding Side Bar within the Platform. This also updated the rendering of the icon colors which your web browser may have cached. To see your new or customized color palette, please clear your browser cache.
2. With the new ability to customize Platform Login options, Administrators will need to re-select their preferred Login method. We apologize for the oversight in setting the most likely default for institutions.

Today an issue was brought to our attention by a partner institution that recently upgraded their Moodle instance. The issue could, through a series of events, result in a premature user account deletion in rare scenarios. The Product Team has reviewed the affected code-path and issued a suitable patch. We will continue to monitor the situation accordingly.

We have successfully pushed an update to all zones. This release includes:

1. Probably the most noticeable is we made some cosmetic improvements to the look-and-feel with a more modern main menu, modern font-face and blue styling.
2. Improved Media Extension improvements to D2L Brightspace and Moodle to bring them to parity with Canvas and Moodle, including: drag-and-drop upload, initiate capture, select media sub-folders, and more.
3. Thumbnail preview for uploaded images
4. Replace video capabilities which will replace video A with B.

Since we had pushed back this release by a week, this semi-month release also includes 83 additional features and product improvements.