Walkie-Lookie™ FAQ

Why are some parts of this not working?

This is a public beta, and we're rolling out a little at a time, to make the bugs easier to find. Please sign up as a "Looker" (the clickable ad on any of the "view and load" pages), and we'll send you email when we're fully functional. Or come back every week or so to see what we've added!

What is Walkie-Lookie™?

We are a new site dedicated to providing original video content in ways that make it easy to download and transfer to personal video devices. The content is designed to be short enough to be quickly downloaded on broadband yet still have moderately high quality, and to be viewed on the small screen in typical small-screen-viewing environments. We own or hold an appropriate license to the material, so no digital rights management or arcane loading systems are required. Return to top.

How do you pay for this?

Walkie-Lookie is an advertiser-supported business model. There are sponsor mentions on the opening frames and closing logos of all lookies, and a 15-second commercial at the beginning of every Lookie. At rollout, we're using the commercials to brag about Walkie-Lookie, but when we have some data on how many people download our "lookies" we'll offer to "brand" them with advertiser content. We hope you'll at least consider our advertiser's products. If it weren't for them, we'd be trying to charge you $1.99 each for downloads and then be real nasty about how you use the files. Return to top

Where did you get the name

We thought it up, because we didn't like the terms podcast, video podcast, vodcast, vidcast, vlog, or videoblog. The word has been around before, and can still be found in some Indo chinese and Korean dictionaries and in fiction. It was also the name of an RCA video camera used by NBC to cover the 1952 political conventions. But the term sounded too fifties for the "modern" Johnson-Goldwater conventions in 1964, so NBC abandoned the term in favor of Ultra-Cam. Its not too fifties for us. We think its totally retro. Return to top

Where do the Lookies come from?

Most of the material on the site at rollout is produced by Flying Pig Ranch in Palm Beach County, Florida. But we have some other production partners around the world who are in development on series that will be offered at Walkie-Lookie when they're completed and sponsored. We're always looking for producers, actors, and sponsors. Return to top

How are you feeding them?

We have a network of sites that all work together to feed this material. We think we've planned for a reasonable amount of traffic, but if you get slow downloads, broken links, or unpredictable results, please drop us a note (reachable from the menu bar). We're just making this up as we go along, and we know the first people to reach us will be the early adopters, so we want your input and bug reports. We know if you showed up here this early in our lifecycle, there's a real good chance you've got a clue when it comes to the Internets. Return to top

How do I find stuff to download on your site?

There are three main pages involved in finding and downloading a Lookie. The first is the main page, which you access if you just come here by putting the url http://www.Walkie-Lookie.com in your browser. From there, you select Lookies (video menu) (second item on the menu bar), which takes you to the "categories page." On the right hand side of the page are links to the individual lookies. Clicking on one of these links takes you to the page where you actually can download the Lookie. This is what we call the View and Load page. Return to top

What can I do on a View and Load page?

This is where individual lookies actually live. There is a page like this for every Lookie currently offered. The main features are: a short description and still frame from the Lookie, a menu along the left side of the page listing every device we support, a flash player that plays a medium-resolution version of the Lookie, and a clickable ad for our sponsor. The clickable ad for our sponsor is our favorite part of the page. We hope you like it too, at least enough to click it once in a while. Return to top

How can I buy an ad?

We're happy you asked. Call Vic Bramante at 1-866-4-LOOKIE, or use the contact information on the contacts page from the main menu. Return to top

DEVICE AND BROWSER SUPPORT

Why isn't my device on the list?

Probably because we don't know about it, or because we don't have one and/or can't get the manufacturer to answer our questions about it. We've started with the most popular devices: Mac and Windows computers, Video iPod, PSP, Archos series and devices that claim to support WMV9 Simple Profile Low Level and Simple Profile Medium Level. (link this to geek) We support devices in one of four ways:

by having one and optimizing for it,
by getting support from the manufacturer
by getting support from a knowledgeable end user (evangelist)
by taking a good guess from the specs

If you can help us because you have one, know about one, or (best of all) you actually make one, please write us (See the contact page from the menu bar). Return to top

Why doesn't the file for my device actually work

Probably because we screwed up. We figure this out by one of the four methods in the answer to the question just above. We probably took a guess, and its wrong. Write us and tell us (contact page from the menu bar), and maybe offer to help us by trying some other files (link to geek).

Why doesn't my computer play the video online?

First, you need Adobe (Macromedia) Flash 8 installed on your computer browser. Most everyone already has this. If you don't, our webpage should cause your browser to automatically ask you if you want to install it. Say yes. Trust us, you want this, and not just for Walkie-Lookie. If there's some problem and you're not prompted to install, go to Adobe's Flash Web page for help, or to the web page for your browser, which you should find a link to in the



  Help|about

drop down on your browser's menu bar. Return to top

What browser should I use?

In the Internet Age, browsers are an intensely personal choice. As with food, wine, and movies, people's preferences vary. We've checked our web pages with Firefox 1.0, IE 6.0, Netscape Navigator 6.0, Safari 1,0. (and all later versions). Our favorite at Walkie-Lookie is Firefox 1.5.0.2. (We'd also suggest the New York Strip at AJ's at the Las Vegas Hard Rock, a great wine: Alexander Valley Vineyards' Cyrus 1999, and a great movie: V for Vendetta.). Return to top

How do I get the file to download?

On the View and Load Page, along the left hand side, there are links for each device model, organized by device manufacturer, and then device model number. Clicking on the device model number should cause your browser to either download automatically, or open a child window and ask you where to save the file. If that doesn't work, right clicking should open a context-related menu that lets you "save file as" or "save link as" which should download the file and put it in the directory you choose. You can either save these in directories where you normally save video, or save them right to the proper directory on a connected device. Return to top

How do I make this work with Windows Media Player 10

If your portable video device is set up to be synchronized with Windows Media Player 10, you have to get the Walkie-lookies you want into directories that are automatically scanned by the Player for video content, and you need to make sure they are marked to be synchronized. In most cases, you can set this up to happen automatically. When the file is downloaded by you, Media Player will detect it and synchronize it. For more information, open the media player, select help (pressing F1 works,) and find the section "Synchronizing content to devices" in the "Using the Player" section in the "Contents" tab of the help menu. There you'll find a detailed description written in the uniquely Microsoft manner. Return to top

How do I make this work with iPod

There are lots of ways to get video into your iPod. Most likely you have a directory in your computer called "IPOD" and in that, a sub directory called "MOVIES" simply move the Lookie you download into this directory. Then in the iPod software select add to my list, then select the above named directory and click on the name of the Lookie. All that is left is to sync to your iPod and there you have it you can Walkie and Lookie. Return to top

How do I make this work with the Sony PSP

We are working on a better implementation, but for now, we suggest either Sony PSP Media Manager or PSP Video Manager as a way to transcode and move files to your device The PSP is next on our list, but its the craziest implementation of MPEG4 we've ever seen. We have an evangelist who is helping us, so expect direct support soon. Return to top

DEVICE SUPPORT AND FILE TYPES

Why are there different files for different devices?

We're really early in the personal video revolution, so the standards aren't real clear yet. Even when there are standards, there are different ways different manufacturers implement them, plus a few "gotchas" thrown in along the way. We want to make this as simple as possible for most users; ideally its just a point and click for a particular device. But if you are the kind who can't resist taking something apart (even if history tells you it may not go back together without duct tape), this section is for you. Many of the device-specific links point to the same file. Return to top

How many kinds of files are there, really?

At this point, there are around a dozen, but the more we learn about the devices out there, and the more devices that are rolled out, the more file types there will be. Its our goal to support every device we can find to the limit of its real capabilities (not just is reported minimum specs), so we'll add file types as often as we need to, so that the end user gets the best quality they can from their device. Return to top

What kinds of files are there for Windows computers?

There are 6. Go to any Load and View page (link) and the top set of item in the left hand column are the wmv files. The first is 480x270 WMV. This is our highest quality Windows-platform file, with a stream rate as high as 700 Kbps, which is considerably faster than most broadband can support, but is supported by most computers and high end portable video devices. If you run a Windows variant, or have a portable device that can handle higher-resolution wmv files at high stream rates, this is the file you want. If you have a slower connection and/or a slower system, the 384x216 is highly compressed with a stream rate no higher than 160Kbps. At this low a stream rate, its not pretty, but its better than a file that won't play. Return to top

Are there other windows files customized for handheld devices?

The are four other windows file types. Two of them are customized for Windows PDAs (one high rate one low rate), one for high stream rate players with smaller displays, and one for Smartphones. Technically, these are described by Microsoft as Simple Profile Low Level, and Simple Profile Medium Level files. If you don't find your device directly supported, select either PDA_hi, PDA_low, SP (smartphone). Select the Creative Zen to download the high stream rate file customized for smaller displays. You can also select PDA_low if you want smaller, less demanding files for a Windows-based PDA that could support bigger ones, such as the HP iPAQ GW 6515. Return to top

What kind of files are there for Apple computers?

There are 3. Go to any Load and View page (link) and the second set of items in the left hand column are the Quicktime files. The first is the high quality Quicktime MOV file. At 480x270, it represents our highest quality Quicktime file, with a stream rate higher than most broadband connections can support for real-time playback. The second file in the group (384x216) is a highly compressed smaller file for slower connections and older playback systems. There is also an m4v file customized for the iPod which you'll find under Apple Video iPod. These are large, high stream rate files, but with 320x180 resolutions because that's the way the iPods like them. Return to top

RSS and AGGREGATION SUPPORT

Why don't you offer RSS support?

We love RSS, and will fully support it as a part of our member program. We want to have so much material on so many diverse subjects, that you will need to pick and choose, so we will be supporting custom RSS feeds soon after we roll out. You can reserve a space early by signing up as a "Walkie-looker," on any of the view and load pages. Just click the ad "want to be a Walkie-looker" (which will become sponsor ads when we get sponsors) on any of the View and Load pages. Speaking of which CLICK HERE TO CHANGE THE SUBJECT Return to top

How soon will RSS be available?

Everything takes longer than we expect. (We planned to roll Walkie-Lookie out last fall.) But if you've got a flair for masochism, and are running (or writing) applications like FireAnt, HappyFish, TVTonic, or Videora, drop us a note at beta@Walkie-Lookie.com, and maybe you can help us try and break each other's systems. Return to top

WHO'S BEHIND THE CURTAIN?

Who owns this content?

The copyright owner is the production company whose logo appears before the "Walkie-Lookie.com" graphic at the end of every Lookie. In most cases at rollout, that's Flying Pig Ranch, but we hope others will join us quickly. Any Lookie that appears at Walkie-Lookie.com or is distributed from its site and under its control has been licensed by the copyright owner for distribution in this manner. All commercials are the property of the product or service owner or its agency. If you claim ownership rights of any Walkie-Lookie content and believe that it either is not licensed or is not being used in a manner consistent with the doctrine of Fair Use, please send a message to the IntelProp contact on the contact page. Return to top

Who is Flying Pig Ranch?

A couple of guys in Florida with too many ideas, and not enough equipment or time. Ray Smithers and Jerry Trowbridge got out of the radio business just in time, back in the 1970s when cable television started to erode the listener base. We've worked in computer media since then, providing systems that let you find things or vote using touch-tone phones, and have consulted Time-Warner, Dick Clark Productions, and Watermark on interactive media systems, and have provided interactive voice systems for banking and broadcasting networks, pharmaceutical suppliers, and other service industries. Ray does video, program development (and writes most of the Lookies) and web authorship and design. Jerry does audio, program development, and systems development. Return to top

Who is Walkie-Lookie, Inc?

Its Flying Pig Ranch, plus Vic Bramante, Chris McGuinn and Tammy Suren. Vic does sales, program development and marketing. Chris does network infrastructure, development and support, and content mastering. Tammy pays the bills, and keeps her eye on the rest of us to make sure we run smoothly and don't screw up more than usual. Return to top

How are you producing the video

The Flying Pig Ranch video suite is an HD-capable non-linear digital video production suite. The Adobe family of products are the primary production applications. Most lookies are edited in Adobe Premiere Pro, and Audition. Digital Fusion 5 is used for compositing. Effects packages include After Effects, Boris Red, Boris Continuum and Final Effects. Acquision is done using the Panasonic HVX-200 digital HD camera, and the Sony DSR-1000 with anamorphic lens by Century Optics for high risk capture. Avid Express Pro HD is used for digital capture from the HVX-200 and from analog sources like Betacam SP. Return to top

How are you producing the audio

The audio suite uses Sonar Producer 5.2 as the primary audio engine, supported by the East West Quantum Leap Symphony Orchestra Platinum sampler set, a Kurzweil 2000, and K1200 used as a keyboard. The suite uses a Tascam FW-1884 control surface, Audio Technica condenser mikes, and has 1000 watts of monitor power using Tannoy PBM-8s for 5.1 surround with a Mirage subwoofer. The Video suite includes Acid 5.0 for loop-based tracks. Return to top

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY and LEGAL

What are your definitions of Fair Use and Copyright Infringement?

A lot of people far smarter than us haven't been able to say this succinctly. Somewhere between Campbell v. Acuff Rose and Estate of Martin Luther King, Jr., Inc. v. CBS, Inc. lies what we all can do, and what we can't. We do and will use material we haven't created under the doctrine of fair use. It will always be used in a transformative manner, where it is being parodied or used for descriptive or critical analysis. It will always be used in an amount and substantiality at the minimum required to identify which material it is that is the subject of the satire or criticism. Return to top

What are your definitions of Fair Use and Copyright Infringement when its your material others are taking?

We claim a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivs 2.5 copyright on all material on our site, including all downloads. We encourage our viewers to Load, send, save and copy our material. We use no digital rights management; we want the widest distribution possible. There is one exception; we make one demand: that you don't chop, cut or edit the lookies, particularly in a way that removes the commercial. Excerpting them as fair use for critical analysis, teaching, or to parody them is fine (please be gentle, its our first time), but please use less than 30 seconds or include the commercial as part of your excerpt. Return to top

Are you all attornies?

No, and we don't want to be! Nor is any of this to be construed as legal advice. In a society of laws, we all need to know and understand them as well as we can, so that we can all get along. As we move into a world where more of us are content creators as well as content consumers, we are rethinking a lot of what used to be taken for granted when electronic media was the province of a priviledged few. (Its a strange world when video producers like us are big fans of a Stanford Law Professor, who himself is a big fan of an alternative rock band.) Return to top

What are my rights as a site visitor or member

We will make every attempt to keep your private information private. Visit our terms of use for a more detailed version, but here's our intent in plain language. We hate spam, and we don't like being the target of a constant barrage of ads. But we also run an ad-supported site, and we like advertising when it brings us products or services that we might actually want to buy. So we will try to walk a delicate balance between yelling product names at you, and total peaceful enjoyment. Return to top

Will you sell my email address if I give it to you.

No. But remember, that we are not running a secure site, and that we utilize third-party companies to help us and to host our sites and downloads. We also will have click-through ads, which will take you to advertiser sites, some of which may not even be those of our direct sponsors. We can't control what these people do with information they gather about you, nor can we control what happens to your information should we or our partners get hacked. If you suspect we've compromised you, please let us know so we can at least get pissed off about it. Return to top

How do you get demographic information?

We have another site called lookied.com, where we bribe you to give it to us. That's where you can rate lookies, and sign up to win a video iPod. Its also where we may ask you to fill out more detailed surveys. We've been hanging around the Internet since 1994, so we know how cool it can be to tell somebody asking you too personal questions that you're a 102-year old Asian Czechoslovakian lesbian living in Sierra Leone, when you're a 16 year old from Irvine, California. Please don't do it to us. We are only going to be able to keep on bringing you free video if we know who's watching so we can sell your attention span to advertisers. Surveys are showing that people want advertiser-supported video more than they want to pay iTunes $1.99 per. This is only going to work if we all tell the truth. Return to top