Streaming, how does it work?

[AeternusDoleo]

I have started to look at streaming and have a couple of questions about ping, lag and stream lag...

What do you need to have a good stream?

Streaming basically means that you are receiving a constant stream of data, to be used/processed rightaway rather then downloading it onto a disk first and then using the information off-line. You're basically using the data you are getting before the transmission is complete.

I'll assume "a good stream" means you want to receive the content you are getting without interruptions/jitter. That means your internet connection and the transmission point both need to be able to maintain data transfer rates required for the content you are streaming. It depends heavily on the type of content what that data rate is. For instance, a low quality audio transmission can go as low as 24 kilobit (about 3KB/s, even an old analogue modem can handle that). Most voice over IP applications such as Teamspeak, Ventrilo etc run on that kind of speed - although the server needs to be able to send data to each client, so it has higher bandwith requirements. Video data requires much higher transfer rates, up to several megabits for high quality streams. This is why video sites such as YouTube offer different quality settings - slower connections can still play content at a lower quality. Higher quality tends to exponentially increase bandwith requirements.

With the information you've provided it can't be said what you need to receive a "good" stream. It depends on the type of stream, and what you're using it for. Latency requirements may also be a factor (time delay between the time a server sends the data, and you receiving it. Also known as "lag").

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