authorSTREAM HD Video Output: Conversation with Dinesh Awasthi

Dinesh Awasthi is Product Manager for authorSTREAM.com. In addition to developing the strategic product roadmap and implementation of various features on authorSTREAM, he works with the development team and keeps an eye on user feedback to formulate new releases. Dinesh holds a Masters degree in Computer Applications.

In this conversation, Dinesh discusses authorSTREAM's new HD Video output options for PowerPoint presentations.

Geetesh: Tell us about your PowerPoint to HD video conversions, and what sets these high quality videos apart from the regular video output that PowerPoint 2010 provides?

Dinesh: As HD compatible devices (like iPads and LEDs) are rapidly connecting people all over the world, we naturally thought to introduce HD video conversion of PowerPoint presentations.

Before we introduced this feature, our users shared presentation videos on YouTube and at times the video quality was not exactly the way they wanted to see on YouTube. This was because YouTube encoded the converted presentation video again, compromising the quality. Now, when our users share HD videos created out of PowerPoint presentations, the quality is much better, even in non HD mode on YouTube.

HD video quality of a presentation delivers enhanced user experience as compared to a regular video output. The image quality is more sharp, crisp, detailed, and clear, accompanied by impactful sound quality. The pictures are more beautiful to look at and sound is more powerful to hear.

PowerPoint 2010's regular video output delivers good quality, but only in the WMV format. However, authorSTREAM lets the users convert PowerPoint presentations into MP4 HD quality video, or into non-HD video formats like FLV, AVI, MPEG II, and WMV. We also offer users an option to send the video directly to YouTube and share with anyone they want.

Here’s a list of differences between authorSTREAM and Microsoft PowerPoint 2010 in their PowerPoint to video conversion capability:

Geetesh: What are the typical uses of HD videos that you can create from PowerPoint?

Dinesh: With HD videos, you can reach out to anyone across the world, even to remote places. It can be played on devices with no PowerPoint software installed such as TVs, LEDs, iPads, and mobiles.

Here are some reasons to convert your PowerPoint to HD video:

• Content theft and misuse: As videos are not editable and content can't be copied, your content is safer in the video output.
  
• Retain PowerPoint effects: The video of your presentation retains all the effects of your original presentation: animation, sound, and other multimedia effects.
  
• Send directly to YouTube: You can send your HD video to YouTube right from within your authorSTREAM account, with a few clicks.
  
• HD videos work on mobile devices too: Play video on your favorite devices: LED, DVD, Blackberry, iPod, iPhone, iPads -- and that too in high quality HD video format.
  

Not just this, you can even capture sweetest moments with your friends and family in the form of pictures, place them onto slides, accompanied by music, and convert them into HD video. If you are a marketer, you can create high quality HD videos of your products, and use it for digital signage for advertising purposes. As an educator, you can create class lectures coupled with narration, content and images, and ship it on DVDs or Flash drives.

One PowerPoint to HD video conversion of up to 100 minutes costs $5. Users can get non-HD video for $3 per presentation.

See Also: authorSTREAM Video Improvements: Conversation with Harman Singh.

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