Why Progressive Video?

Comparing the pros and cons of embedded, streaming, and progressive video is beyond the scope of this article. However, there are a few differences that warrant mention:

• Cache me if you can. Unlike streaming video, progressive video is cached. This can be a good thing (if the viewer wants to replay the clip it will play from the local cache) or a bad thing (a copy of the video resides on the viewer’s computer, which could be an issue for material with strict copyrights).
• No Internet connection? No problem! For standalone usage such as a CD-ROM, where an Internet connection may not be available, progressive video is the only option for dynamic playlists. For video delivered offline, streaming video in Flash is not possible, since it requires a connection to a Flash Communication Server.
• 15 will get you… 15. Unlike videos embedded directly into your SWF file, the frame rates of your FLV files delivered through progressive download or streaming do not have to match the frame rate of the SWF file. This is an especially useful feature for a dynamic playlist application, since the FLV files in your playlist may come from different sources, and may not all have the same frame rate.