STREAMPUNK 18 Tool of the Month
STAY OPEN Words by Nl
Product Name: OBS Studio Company: The OBS community Price: Free
pen Broadcaster Software – or, more usually, OBS – was started in 2012 by a single developer. It is now used worldwide by a
range of online broadcasters, from houses of worship to eSports enthusiasts to live- streaming corporates. It’s latest iteration, OBS Studio, is available for Windows, Mac and Linux and allows for easy video streaming and recording. It’s free to download and it’s open source - created, developed and upgraded by the users themselves. The software enables simple live streaming to most major platforms. OBS Studio also features real-time video/ audio capturing and mixing from multiple sources including window captures, images, text, browser windows, webcams and capture cards. Users can seamlessly switch between an unlimited number of scenes and use custom transitions. The software can record multiple audio tracks while streaming or recording and also includes an audio mixer with per-source filters such as noise gate, noise suppression and gain. It also supports VST (Virtual Studio Technology) plug-ins. Studio Mode lets users preview scenes and sources, and adjust them, before pushing them live. OBS Studio also includes a Multiview function, which enables monitoring of up to eight dierent scenes. OPEN SUPPORT The OBS website is dense with information, including developer forums containing tutorials, scripts and plug-ins, as well as support and troubleshooting resources. The site also features live chat, which connects users with OBS volunteer developers. OBS Studio’s API enables the creation of a variety of plug-ins and scripts to provide various customisations and functionalities. Popular add-ons include plug-ins for live chat, music streaming, graphics and transitions, and scripts for Facebook integration, countdown timers and source switching. But generally the rule on OBS is if users need a feature badly enough, someone will design it.
TO OPEN SOURCE… Why use open source software in the first place? Aren’t proprietary systems better regulated, less prone to crashes, corruption, conflicts and cyber attack? Isn’t using an open source solution asking for trouble? Viewpoints on open source software are often a case of, is the glass half full or half empty? The very benefits that open source systems confer might be seen by some as the very reasons to avoid them. So what does open source software like OBS Studio have to recommend it? First of all, it’s free. There’s no financial bar to entry in trying OBS Studio. This may not be a concern for a company that’s up and running with a good cash flow, but for a microbroadcaster, a charity, a local service or a small business, the price of a professional solution might be the dierence between starting a video oering and forgetting the whole thing. An open source system makes its code available to all, which allows for a tremendous amount of customisation (aka ‘hacking’), and the ability to add feature sets, plug-ins and implementations that the original developers might never have imagined. And because of the transparency of the system, problem-solving at a group level is dramatically simplified. Remember all those visits you’ve make to the Apple Discussion groups where the final answer in a thread was ‘I can’t figure this out. I just hope Apple fix it in the next update’? Well, with an open source system, problems are laid bare for all to see – and for all to fix. The DIY ethos that open source systems are built on is also a foundational cornerstone
of new technologies - and the spirit of creative entrepreneurship that has sprung up around them. Up and coming platforms like Twitch – the entire eSports sector, in fact – have been built around users employing free, open source software like OBS to reach audiences directly. If they needed a new feature, they or their friends designed it. They didn’t need to wait for a company to respond, they created solutions themselves. …OR NOT to OPEN SOURCE? Open source solutions are not for everyone, of course. Wikipedia and Wordpress may now be venerable institutions, but once profits become a major driver in a business, commercial products or systems designed in-house may prove more appropriate, and perhaps more secure. Also, if an open source system comes apart – whether through volunteers losing interest in maintaining it, or through changes in hardware and platforms – it can be hard to recover without a private entity swooping in. Open source software might be slower to react to sudden, dramatic shocks in technology or in markets than a private developer might. Users can download and play with OBS Studio. Once downloaded, you own it. It may not be right for everyone, but a generation of talents dominating the live-streaming industry have had it at the centre of their toolkit for a long time now.
■ Learn about OBS Studio, and download the latest version, at: http://obsproject.com
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