Using MBC on a large scale?

[cpttango30 4]

So I am a computer tech in a high school of 2000 students. I have just about 110 Classrooms. 

 

How do you think MBS would do running on a true server like an HP DL380G7 serving media to that many classrooms? Just thinking. Because right now we are using VHS (Yes I said it) and DVD for media. Then teachers supplement with youtube and others like Discovery Education. I mean really physical media is dying Cable is dying as well (But it isn't going down without a fight)... 

 

It's a slow day and I am just sitting here thinking man We could save so much space by going all digital media and having an easy to use interface like MBC or MBT. It would add 1 maybe 2 servers to my almost empty rack. 

[ebr 16169]

Using the HTPC clients (MBC/T) your server would basically just be a file server when it comes to delivering the actual content for playback.

 

As for display and navigation - theoretically, this should be fine but I don't think anyone has tried to get 110 clients going at once so you'd be the first .  MBT is likely to be faster but not production-ready yet.  MBC will also require WMC.

[Deathsquirrel 745]

Having done plenty of tech work with schools, the WMC client is not 'teacher-easy'.  I've expereinced WAY too many WMC issues to roll out MBC to teachers.  MBT might work when it's ready and there are some dead-simple themes you can roll out.  I wouldn't put the EHS in front of most teachers and school IT that I've worked with.

 

Also I suspect you would end up not liking the chore of processing metadata for educational films as I doubt it's sitting around on themoviedb.org.

 

And of course that ignores the minor question of media licensing.  Do YOU want to answer the superintendent when they ask where the forms proving you can rip that VHS and store it on a server are?

[Luke 42077]

i think it could be fine but in a classroom something lighter weight like the web client would be better. only challenge there is making sure the media can be played without transcoding, because you'd need that to handle that many clients.

[cpttango30 4]

All good and thoughtful points guys. 

 

Never thought about the untechsavyness of teachers. Most of mine still refer to a cat5 or cat 6 patch cable as "That phone cord with the big ends."

[ronvp 92]

Watch copyright issues! Don't want to get the school in trouble..

 

Sorry, just noticed Deathsquirrel already made a similar comment..

Edited January 17, 2014 by ronvp

[candybar213 7]

For the concerns of teaching some dinosaur teachers how to run MBT what if you get them the right format to just roku the class rooms again the profiles would be helpful and the interface in roku is about as simple as can be just a thought.

 

 

The Candybar213

[cpttango30 4]

We have a media system. It is basically just a server rack set up with a dozen VCR's in it. It never works and the cabling is HORRIBLE to say the least. When the VCR's are not playing old movies they are tuned to tv stations. The picture is like watching tv through a tissue in the dark. 

 

I just wish copyright was a little more laxed. It is somewhat for schools. 

[Logos302 86]

you might find that for no cost or minimal cost the publisher of the VCR can let you copy them digitally.  For Educational purposes things can be different from a copyright perspective.  

[Koleckai Silvestri 1154]

You could simplify the interface if you had different profiles for Science, History, Language, etc... Each of their videos are available to their profiles. You'd need to be able to feed "Cable in the Classroom" through and add metadata for the videos.

[ebr 16169]

Oooh, if we worked with ChromeCast, you could use a tablet or laptop (probably already there) and just cast it right to the TV...  Wouldn't that be cool...?  $35 per classroom.