Video does not play in MOODLE

Video does not play in MOODLE

by Jane Moore -
Number of replies: 28

Hi

Moodle 2.7.4+ (Build: 20150129)

I am using the above version of MOODLE and when I try to embed a video into a course, using a label, I can only get it to display the blue text hyperlink which then prompts the user to download the video file - I want them to watch it in MOODLE. I can embed YouTube videos with no problems, but when it comes to videos I try to upload myself it just doesn't work. I have made sure all the multimedia filters are correctly enabled and I still cannot get it to work!

I'm sure it's something really simple that I'm missing and I just can't get it to work - please help, it's driving me nuts!


Jane sad

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In reply to Jane Moore

Re: Video does not play in MOODLE

by Andy Chaplin -

Hi Jane,

Uploaded video is a bit trickier than embedding YouTube.  One thing I would certainly recommend is installing the Poodll filter, and reading the documentation on it.  Here's the link. (Make sure you get the right version!) That will solve most of your problems.  Also if you check the Poodll forum on this site, you will find a lot of help.

Hope this helps!


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In reply to Jane Moore

Re: Video does not play in MOODLE

by Ken Task -
Picture of Particularly helpful Moodlers

Two other bits of information might help to provide a solution:

1. what are you using to view the Moodle site and the video?  Browser?  Smartphone?  Tablet? (*Browser version might also be a factor)

2. what is the file/mime type ... ie, the extension on the filename of the video file?

* consideraton for the future usage of nearly all browsers ... many are moving away from the old Netscape Plugin model to HTML5/other.

'spirit of sharing', Ken

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In reply to Ken Task

Re: Video does not play in MOODLE

by Jane Moore -

Hi Ken

I have tried Chrome, Firefox and IE and every type of video file format imaginable and I can still only get it to display the hyperlink to download and save the video file. I have read the documentation that says "it will display as a link but don't panic, when you save it and return to the course it will appear in it's own player" - well, it doesn't!

Andy has recommended using the Poodll filter and I will try and read up on that but I'm slowly losing the will to live! I don't understand how it seems to work for others and keep thinking I've missed something really simple ...

Thanks


Jane sad

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In reply to Jane Moore

Re: Video does not play in MOODLE

by Usman Asar -
Picture of Plugin developers Picture of Testers

Jane,

I use JWPlayer (commercial version), but recently they have added it as a plug-in as well, good thing about JWPlayer  is its HTML5 + Flash as fall back meaning those browsers that can handle HTML5 video elements, it will show video in HTML5 Player, else it will switch to Flash Player in case of older browser. 

you can find JWPlayer plug-in here : https://moodle.org/plugins/view/filter_jwplayer

Other Notable filters related to Video are

VideoFile: https://moodle.org/plugins/view.php?id=784 (uses Video.Js as video player, and its open source video player for HTML5 browsers)

and as well Video Easy, a plug-in by Justin Hunt, can be found here: https://moodle.org/plugins/view.php?id=1384

Justin has done lot of work on Video integration in Moodle, and this plug-in incorporates all the major industry's well known players like JWPlayer, FlowPlayer, MediaElements.js, and sublime video.

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In reply to Jane Moore

Re: Video does not play in MOODLE

by Ken Task -
Picture of Particularly helpful Moodlers

What version of Moodle?

What settings do you have turned on in Moodle related to video?

Think I'd check those things out first before installing add-ons plugins which may/may not be needed (regardless if they are 'better' or not). ;)

In a version 2.8 of Moodle, use the Site Admin search box and the term 'video' to search.

That will bring up ALL settings related.

http://yoursite/admin/search.php?query=video

In particular:

http://yoursite/admin/settings.php?section=mediasettings

And again, what is the extension of the video file?   .mov, .flv, .swf, .wmv, .whatever

Also ... are you using the "media" button in the editor (which also begs which editor - TinyMCE or Autto)?

Are you choosing 'file' as the activity/resource type?   Or page then using the media button?

'spirit of sharing', Ken

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In reply to Jane Moore

Re: Video does not play in MOODLE

by Ken Task -
Picture of Particularly helpful Moodlers

Ok ... I apologize ... maybe should have asked ...

Mind looking over the process you are using to 'embed' using YouTube (that works) and compare it to the way you 'embed' when you upload a video?

One normally 'embeds' something by switching the editor to the HTML mode and pasting code clipped from whatever that provides embedded code into the label content window.   Then changing the mode back to 'normal' editor.

If uploading a file and linking to it ... IF the multimedia filters for playing such are on.   It should at least load up the player + show your link.

Search results - Media embedding

Available players

When players are enabled in these settings, files can be embedded using the media filter (if enabled) or using a File or URL resources with the Embed option. When not enabled, these formats are not embedded and users can manually download or follow links to these resources.

Where two players support the same format, enabling both increases compatibility across different devices such as mobile phones. It is possible to increase compatibility further by providing multiple files in different formats for a single audio or video clip.

Flash animation core_media_enable_swf
Default: Yes

Files with extension *.swf. For security reasons this format is only embedded within trusted text.


There's also site policies ....


Search results - Site policies

Allow EMBED and OBJECT tags allowobjectembed
Default: No

As a default security measure, normal users are not allowed to embed multimedia (like Flash) within texts using explicit EMBED and OBJECT tags in their HTML (although it can still be done safely using the mediaplugins filter). If you wish to allow these tags then enable this option.

'spirit of sharing', Ken

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In reply to Ken Task

Re: Video does not play in MOODLE

by Derek Chirnside -

From what you say Jane there are several ways you could actually be doing this.

Check out your filters:  http://yoursite/admin/filters.php

Convert URLs into links and images : this will probably need to be ON.

Are you uploading in a label, or as a file?

If it is as a file, then it will not embed, only open in a new page/or download.  (AFAIK)

If it is in a Label, then other filters can cause problems and thwart embedding.  If you have an odd filter installed, it may have this effect.

I have tried to get core Moodle to work well, but to no avail.  All the examples I can find on Moodle Orange open in N EW pages, something that is a bit clunky.  

I have installed Videoeasy filter, which I know Ken says avoid if you can.

-Derek


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In reply to Derek Chirnside

Re: Video does not play in MOODLE

by Jane Moore -
Hi guys

All info below:

  • Moodle 2.7.4+ (Build: 20150129)
  • File types tried: .mov, .flv, .swf, .wmv, .mp4
  • Editing: using a label and using the media button in the editor
  • Multimedia plugins: On
  • Convert URLs: On
  • Site policies: Allow EMBED and OBJECT tags = Yes
  • Video filters (see screenshots below):




I don't want to keep using YouTube to embed the videos (although it does work well) as some of my learners are not allowed to access YouTube.

Any other suggestions gratefully received and thanks for all those suggested so far!


Jane smile

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In reply to Jane Moore

Re: Video does not play in MOODLE

by Jane Moore -

Ahh, the screenshots don't seem to have appeared, although they were in the message when typed it?? I've attached them as a Word doc sad

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In reply to Jane Moore

Re: Video does not play in MOODLE

by Justin Hunt -
Picture of Particularly helpful Moodlers Picture of Plugin developers
Jane The really important screen is this one (see screenshot).

site admin -> plugins -> filters->manage filters

Make sure "multimedia plugins" filter is on.

There is also a "filters" settings page for each course also in the course settings block. But for the most part people don't use it, and those set in the manage filters page apply by default. But you might check there too ... just in case. 

Attachment manage_filters.jpg
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In reply to Justin Hunt

Re: Video does not play in MOODLE

by Jane Moore -

Hi Justin

Multimedia plugins is set to 'On' although I will look at individual course settings too - on another, but related topic, what is the best video format to use? I'm getting the message that it's .flv but does that work on iPads/iPhones etc?

Thanks

Jane smile

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In reply to Jane Moore

Re: Video does not play in MOODLE

by Justin Hunt -
Picture of Particularly helpful Moodlers Picture of Plugin developers

The best format is mp4  if you have a choice. flv won't play in most mobile browsers.

MP4 is really a container. Unlike people, not all mp4 videos are actually the same deep down inside. 

But they are still your best bet. If you have a choice, chose an mp4 format that will play on older iphones, and that should be about as safe as you can be with a single video file.

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In reply to Justin Hunt

MPEG-4 or Adobe Flash

by Visvanath Ratnaweera -
Picture of Particularly helpful Moodlers Picture of Translators
Sorry, if this is a moot topic. I remember people saying Flash is the safe choice for the web. Things have changed since then?

Ref:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MPEG-4_Part_14
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adobe_Flash
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In reply to Visvanath Ratnaweera

Re: MPEG-4 or Adobe Flash

by Howard Miller -
Picture of Core developers Picture of Documentation writers Picture of Particularly helpful Moodlers Picture of Peer reviewers Picture of Plugin developers

It used to be, but now Flash is getting less popular and browsers are getting much better at playing video natively. 

Having said that, I've never had a great deal of success in playing any kind of video in Moodle such that it works consistently across all "usual" browsers and devices. You really need (something like) YouTube for video as, I suspect, it just isn't simple. 

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In reply to Visvanath Ratnaweera

Re: MPEG-4 or Adobe Flash

by Rick Jerz -
Picture of Particularly helpful Moodlers Picture of Testers

For around 5-7 years, Flash has been able to play mp4 videos.  That's what I do.

So, I have only one video, such as "Who is Dr. Jerz."  This is an mp4 video.  I can play it by just linking to the file, or I can play it from my Flash player, give it a try.

When I give student's this link (within my Flash player), around 99% of them say that they can play it.

Yep, from a iDevice, they can't, but that is why I podcast my videos.  The podcasted videos are the very same mp4 files.

Personally, I still like my Flash player because it offers the most flexibility for me and for my students.

I do agree with Howard, there is not one solution that works perfectly across every platform and device, which is why I build four types of redundancy into my methods.  Even with these four types of redundant methods, I only have one copy of each video, and it is h.264 mp4.

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In reply to Visvanath Ratnaweera

Re: MPEG-4 or Adobe Flash

by Derek Chirnside -

Visvanath, I think the answwr is yes.

I'm with Rick and Justin etc on this: MP4

-Derek

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In reply to Derek Chirnside

Re: MPEG-4 or Adobe Flash

by Visvanath Ratnaweera -
Picture of Particularly helpful Moodlers Picture of Translators
In short, +1 for an open standard!
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In reply to Visvanath Ratnaweera

Re: MPEG-4 or Adobe Flash

by Usman Asar -
Picture of Plugin developers Picture of Testers

MP4 though widely used, but is not declared as standard for video on web by W3C, but WebM format only which is not as widely used as MP4, so until all browsers come up to a acceptable standard that meets or exceeds the qualities of MP4 we are stuck.

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In reply to Justin Hunt

Re: Video does not play in MOODLE

by AL Rachels -
Picture of Core developers Picture of Particularly helpful Moodlers Picture of Plugin developers Picture of Testers

I've struggled with this over the past few years because no matter what format I use, at least one of my students would always complain that they couldn't watch the video. And then of course someone would always try to use that as an excuse for needing more time, another chance to do the assignment, etc., etc., ad nauseam.

Recently, thanks to Justin's Generico filter, I make a video in mp4, convert it to ogg and webm, and add all three videos using one Generico filter. The files are all stored in a video-on-demand folder on my server. The filter points to that folder and loads the videos named when inserting the filter in the location I want it to appear in a course. Students only see one video on the page and it is whichever is the first one their device will play, in the order they are listed in the filter. So far, this has worked with every OS, smart phone, computer, tablet, and any other device my students and I have tried it with.

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In reply to AL Rachels

Re: Video does not play in MOODLE

by Justin Hunt -
Picture of Particularly helpful Moodlers Picture of Plugin developers

Al's is probably the ultimate self hosted solution. If you automate via a script the creation of the ogg and webm files, it would be pretty efficient. I just fear its beyond the non techie teacher. 

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In reply to Justin Hunt

Re: Video does not play in MOODLE

by AL Rachels -
Picture of Core developers Picture of Particularly helpful Moodlers Picture of Plugin developers Picture of Testers

I don't even bother with a script as I am usually working only on one video at a time. I installed the firefogg add-on for Firefox and do the video conversions with my web browser. Since I am usually in Moodle when working with the videos, it really simplifies the work flow.

If I have a bunch to do, like now at the end of term when my students have created a bunch of music videos, I do batch converts with Any Video Converter, especially if we created closed caption files that need to be added in to the video.

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In reply to AL Rachels

Re: Video does not play in MOODLE

by Ken Task -
Picture of Particularly helpful Moodlers

+20,000!!!   Thanks for sharing this tip, Al!   Feel like 'duh, coulda had ...' kinda thing like in V-8 commercials on TV (USA).   Have installed the Firefox addon and successfully converted MP4's to wbm's on the fly - as advertised.   Will probably still end up using but recently purchased a commercial product to do video conversions ... Faasoft Video Converter.   Naturally, I'd like a way to convert without spending a lot of $'s to do so.

Next step is to work with those in a Moodle.

Another adventure. ;)

Again ... thanks!

'spirit of sharing', Ken

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In reply to Ken Task

Re: Video does not play in MOODLE

by AL Rachels -
Picture of Core developers Picture of Particularly helpful Moodlers Picture of Plugin developers Picture of Testers

Ken, you just gave me a 'duh, coulda had ...' moment myself!

Since the last time I used firefogg, they have blocked the site here at school, but Teamviewer to the rescue. In your Moodle, make a URL resource and set it to be embeded. Set the url to http;//firefogg.org/make/index.html.

While in Moodle on my home computer from here at school, I have just converted an flv video to webm and played it via remote control over teamviewer. It was even "watchable" this way.

Thanks for the idea! Of course this will only work if firefogg is installed in the web browser being used when clicking on the URL link in Moodle.

Thanks,

AL

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In reply to AL Rachels

Re: Video does not play in MOODLE

by Derek Chirnside -

And while we are philosophizing about tools:

I've been using Handbrake recently.  Huge improvements in thje last 18 months in useability.

They have a neat option to do the encoding to all videos in a folder or just one file:

Conversion has been a dream for some of my recent mpg>mp4 projects.

Cheers

-Derek

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In reply to Derek Chirnside

Re: Video does not play in MOODLE

by Usman Asar -
Picture of Plugin developers Picture of Testers

Only minus to Handbrake is output in MP4 only, else the best application I used so far in terms of resizing the videos without loss of quality.

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In reply to Usman Asar

Re: Video does not play in MOODLE

by AL Rachels -
Picture of Core developers Picture of Particularly helpful Moodlers Picture of Plugin developers Picture of Testers

For the past three years I have been using the free version of Any Video Converter. It will take in any type of video I have ever come across and output anything you might want. It comes with a whole bunch of predefined outputs but it will let you change any of the video and or audio settings you might want to change. It will also let you include a closed caption file and then add the words into the rendered output. My students and I used this a lot this year. We used another very nice free program, Agesub, to create the closed caption files.

So far as I know, AVC doesn't let you specify a folder and then convert anything it finds in there, but it does let you drag and drop multiple files into it's gui and then it will batch convert them one after another. It will even let you play videos in the gui and take snapshots and it will let you flip video horizontally or vertically as well as crop it. Comes in handy for fixing phone videos when the phone was held the wrong way. big grin

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In reply to AL Rachels

Re: Video does not play in MOODLE

by Justin Hunt -
Picture of Particularly helpful Moodlers Picture of Plugin developers

Oh man when the students hold the ipad/phone the wrong way its such a hassle to edit out. 

Many of those video conversion tools are front ends with FFMPEG doing all the heavy lifting on the back. I think thats fine, because it certainly takes the complexity out of it. It just means you have to put on your goggles and sit at the controls when the time comes. 

It is possible to script to look for new uploads to a directory and run FFMPEG to create different versions of new files. This is good when its for the drama dept or somewhere where you aren't , or when you just want a hands off solution. 

PoodLL in the latest versions uses the new adhoc task api to convert new recordings to MP4 / MP3. This works pretty well, albeit with a delay of a minute or two before the video/audio is viewable. I think most people are not using this feature yet, and I am not sure what will happen if 40 students all record 1 minute videos at the same time.  

One of the changes coming this year is to expand that adhoc task to just convert anything that comes in, PoodLL or not.

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In reply to Justin Hunt

Re: Video does not play in MOODLE

by Jane Moore -

Hi Justin

I have somehow, and I don't know how I managed it, got it to work! I converted the video to .flv, checked and changed all the settings people mentioned and hey presto the video runs; although you're right, it doesn't work on my phone (android) or tablet.

Still, I've got something to start with and I'm going to experiment with .mp4 now as I use Camtasia Studio and it can output to an MP4 Flash / HTML5 player option.

Thanks everyone for your help and expertise.


Jane smile

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