Ingex
Encyclopedia
Ingex is an open-source suite of software for the digital capture of audio and video data, without the need for traditional audio or video tape or cassettes. Serial digital interface (SDI)
capture is supported, as well as real-time transcoding (with MXF
). Portions of the software suite also act as a network file server for media files, as well as archiving to LTO-3
data tape. Audio and video media files can also be stored on USB hard drives or Network Attached Storage. The software is heavily used by the BBC
, and was developed by the BBC Research Laboratory.
Some of the early production projects which have used Ingex include a Foo Fighters
music video, and the BBC television series Dragons' Den
.
Media Harmony is a module for Samba
Virtual file system (VFS)
. This allows editing clients, such as Avid
, to use low-cost commodity storage for video and media files.
Ingex Studio provides studio-style recoding, capture, transcode, and MXF
wrapping for multiple cameras, also known as multi-camera tapeless recording. The software runs on commodity PC hardware and SDI
IO cards. The media can then be edited by MXF-based editors, for example, Avid Media Composer.
Supported high-definition
(HD) codecs are:
libMXF supports:
MediaHarmony supports:
Ingex archive supports:
Metadata:
Whitepapers:
Case studies:
From the Open Source Observatory and Repository (OSOR), a project of the European Commission's IDABC project:
Serial Digital Interface
Serial digital interface is a family of video interfaces standardized by SMPTE. For example, ITU-R BT.656 and SMPTE 259M define digital video interfaces used for broadcast-grade video...
capture is supported, as well as real-time transcoding (with MXF
MXF
Material eXchange Format is a container format for professional digital video and audio media defined by a set of SMPTE standards.- A brief summary of MXF :...
). Portions of the software suite also act as a network file server for media files, as well as archiving to LTO-3
Linear Tape-Open
Linear Tape-Open is a magnetic tape data storage technology originally developed in the late 1990s as an open standards alternative to the proprietary magnetic tape formats that were available at the time. Hewlett-Packard, IBM and Seagate initiated the LTO Consortium, which directs development...
data tape. Audio and video media files can also be stored on USB hard drives or Network Attached Storage. The software is heavily used by the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
, and was developed by the BBC Research Laboratory.
Some of the early production projects which have used Ingex include a Foo Fighters
Foo Fighters
Foo Fighters is an American alternative rock band originally formed in 1994 by Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl as a one-man project following the dissolution of his previous band. The band got its name from the UFOs and various aerial phenomena that were reported by Allied aircraft pilots in World War...
music video, and the BBC television series Dragons' Den
Dragons' Den (UK)
Dragons' Den is a British television series, hosted by Evan Davis. The format of the show is owned by Sony Pictures and is based on the original Japanese series, which has been sold around the world...
.
Features
The different software products in the suite support:- Multi-camera video capture in a studio environment
- Video tape archive preservation
- Acting as a server to AvidAVIDAVID stands for:* Advancement Via Individual Determination, a college-readiness system designed to increase the number of students who enroll in four-year colleges in the U.S....
editing clients
Media Harmony is a module for Samba
Samba (software)
Samba is a free software re-implementation, originally developed by Andrew Tridgell, of the SMB/CIFS networking protocol. As of version 3, Samba provides file and print services for various Microsoft Windows clients and can integrate with a Windows Server domain, either as a Primary Domain...
Virtual file system (VFS)
Virtual file system
A virtual file system or virtual filesystem switch is an abstraction layer on top of a more concrete file system. The purpose of a VFS is to allow client applications to access different types of concrete file systems in a uniform way...
. This allows editing clients, such as Avid
AVID
AVID stands for:* Advancement Via Individual Determination, a college-readiness system designed to increase the number of students who enroll in four-year colleges in the U.S....
, to use low-cost commodity storage for video and media files.
Ingex Studio provides studio-style recoding, capture, transcode, and MXF
MXF
Material eXchange Format is a container format for professional digital video and audio media defined by a set of SMPTE standards.- A brief summary of MXF :...
wrapping for multiple cameras, also known as multi-camera tapeless recording. The software runs on commodity PC hardware and SDI
Serial Digital Interface
Serial digital interface is a family of video interfaces standardized by SMPTE. For example, ITU-R BT.656 and SMPTE 259M define digital video interfaces used for broadcast-grade video...
IO cards. The media can then be edited by MXF-based editors, for example, Avid Media Composer.
Supported formats
Currently supported standard-definition (SD) codecs are:- Avid-compatible JPEGJPEGIn computing, JPEG . The degree of compression can be adjusted, allowing a selectable tradeoff between storage size and image quality. JPEG typically achieves 10:1 compression with little perceptible loss in image quality....
codec resolutions known as 2:1, 3:1, 10:1, 20:1, 15:1s, 10:1m, 4:1m - DVCPRO50 (50Mbps) and DV (25Mbps)
- IMX 50/40/30 (50/40/30Mbps)
- Uncompressed standard-definition video at 8 bits-per-sample and 10 bits-per-sample
Supported high-definition
High-definition video
High-definition video or HD video refers to any video system of higher resolution than standard-definition video, and most commonly involves display resolutions of 1,280×720 pixels or 1,920×1,080 pixels...
(HD) codecs are:
- DNxHD (VC-3) at 120Mbps and 185Mbps
- DVCPRO HD
- Uncompressed high-definition video at 8 bits-per-sample
libMXF supports:
- MXF
- uncompressed video or audio, DV25/50, IMX, JPEG, DNxHD and DVCProHD files
- writes MXF OP-Atom files which can be used directly in Avid Media Composer and related editors
MediaHarmony supports:
- media_harmony - per-client .pmr and .mdb database files so there are no conflicts between Avid editors
- mxf_harmony - on-the-fly unwrapping of MXF-wrapped DV essence so that a Final Cut Pro client can share the same DV media files as an Avid client
Ingex archive supports:
- MXFMXFMaterial eXchange Format is a container format for professional digital video and audio media defined by a set of SMPTE standards.- A brief summary of MXF :...
OP-1A file container, containing audio, video, and timecode data (also known as OP-1A MXF) - LTO-3Linear Tape-OpenLinear Tape-Open is a magnetic tape data storage technology originally developed in the late 1990s as an open standards alternative to the proprietary magnetic tape formats that were available at the time. Hewlett-Packard, IBM and Seagate initiated the LTO Consortium, which directs development...
data tape - Video SMPTE 384M uncompressed 4:2:2 video at 8 bits per sample in UYVY format
- Audio SMPTE 382M uncompressed PCM audio at 48 kHz and 20 bits per sample
- LTOLinear Tape-OpenLinear Tape-Open is a magnetic tape data storage technology originally developed in the late 1990s as an open standards alternative to the proprietary magnetic tape formats that were available at the time. Hewlett-Packard, IBM and Seagate initiated the LTO Consortium, which directs development...
barcode information - POSIX.1-2001 archive format (also known as pax Interchange format), a superset of the tarTarTar is modified pitch produced primarily from the wood and roots of pine by destructive distillation under pyrolysis. Production and trade in tar was a major contributor in the economies of Northern Europe and Colonial America. Its main use was in preserving wooden vessels against rot. The largest...
format which overcomes the 8 GiB limitation of tar format, to ensure future access to programmes
Metadata:
- Advanced Authoring Format (AAF)Advanced Authoring FormatThe Advanced Authoring Format is a professional file interchange format designed for the video post production and authoring environment. The AAF was created by the Advanced Media Workflow Association . The AMWA develops specifications and technologies to facilitate the deployment and operation...
is used for storing edition metadata.
Supported operating systems
- libMXF: Microsoft WindowsMicrosoft WindowsMicrosoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
, Mac OS XMac OS XMac OS X is a series of Unix-based operating systems and graphical user interfaces developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc. Since 2002, has been included with all new Macintosh computer systems...
, LinuxLinuxLinux is a Unix-like computer operating system assembled under the model of free and open source software development and distribution. The defining component of any Linux system is the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released October 5, 1991 by Linus Torvalds... - Ingex Studio: openSUSEOpenSUSEopenSUSE is a general purpose operating system built on top of the Linux kernel, developed by the community-supported openSUSE Project and sponsored by SUSE...
Linux
External links
Project Pages:Whitepapers:
- Improving workflow in practice for low-cost programme-making using MXF & AAF file formats
- Tapeless and paperless: Automating the workflow in TV studio production
- File-based Production: Making It Work In Practice
Case studies:
From the Open Source Observatory and Repository (OSOR), a project of the European Commission's IDABC project:
- Low-cost high tech: BBC tries out Open Source-based tapeless recording
- Low-cost high tech: BBC tries out Open Source-based tapeless recording, as ODT document
- Low-cost high tech: BBC tries out Open Source-based tapeless recording, as PDF document
See also
- Comparison of video editing softwareComparison of video editing softwareThis is a comparison of non-linear video editing software applications. See also a more complete list of video editing software.-General information:This table gives basic general information about the different editors:- System requirements :...
- Video serverVideo serverA video server is a computer based device dedicated to delivering video.Unlike personal computers, being multi-application devices, a video server is designed for one purpose; provisioning video, often for broadcasters. A professional grade video server records, stores, and playout of multiple...
- Video editing softwareVideo editing softwareVideo editing software, is application software which handles the post-production video editing of digital video sequences on a computer non-linear editing systems...
- Photo slideshow softwarePhoto slideshow softwareA photo slideshow software is a computer software application used to display a range of digital photos, images and videos in a predefined order...
- Video scratchingVideo scratchingVideo scratching is a video editing technique used within the music industry. It is a variation of the audio editing technique scratching.It is typically used in either music videos or live performances, with one or more individuals manipulating a video sample to make it follow the rhythm of...
- Edit Decision ListEdit decision listAn edit decision list or EDL used in the post-production process of film editing and video editing. The list contains an ordered list of reel and timecode data representing where each video clip can be obtained in order to conform the final cut....