15 replies to this topic

[SJ-David]

SNOWJAPAN.TV - NEW VERSION ONLINE

http://www.snowjapan.tv


As many of you reading this probably know, in late 2007 we launched a video website called SnowJapan.TV.

For a while now, the (.TV) site had been experiencing a number of technical issues - some minor but some major problems had arisen that were preventing a fair few people from being able to using the site properly. Since last summer we have been busily working to create a totally new version of SnowJapan.TV, concentrating on eliminating those technical problems as well as making it much easier to use and generally making it much better in almost every respect.

We were actually planning for this renewal to be one of our major updates for the summer/autumn before the 2010/2011 season, but a few months ago we made the decision that we wanted it online for at least part of this season and so pushed forward with that development.

So, today, we have put online our brand new version of SnowJapan.TV. Here it is:
http://www.snowjapan.tv


This new version is not just a simple upgrade - or even a complex upgrade - of what we had before. It is a complete re-working with totally new code built from the ground up.

We feel the new site is a really big improvement. It is easier to use, better designed, much 'sturdier', simpler to use and navigate and also offers many improved features and functionality.
Most importantly.... it just works!


There are so many changes that a list would go on and on - so I recommend you just go over there, register and have a play around. Basically it is a site where anyone can upload video clips and watch other peoples clips. Being part of SnowJapan of course, the idea is that it becomes this big collection of Japan-related winter sports video clips. They don't have to be pro-quality, just sharing clips of Japan winter sports.

Here's some of the major new points:

• totally new look and design;
• higher quality and widescreen videos now possible;
• you can embed SnowJapan.TV videos in threads on the SnowJapanForums. Please see below for instructions on how to do that;
• the videos now have more user-friendly names - for example:
  http://www.snowjapan.tv/sjtv/video/Powder_Treerun_at_Madarao
  ...rather than the confusing and meaningless code-like names they used to have;
• faster streaming and generally more responsive;
• simple search engine, filtering and sorting;
• you can actually very easily embed YouTube, GoogleVideos and DailyMotion videos within SnowJapan.TV (though we would prefer files to be uploaded direct to SnowJapan.TV);
• RSS feeds - Newest, Most Viewed and Top Rated;
• you can comment on other people's videos or even reply with a video

Anyway, please take a look.
http://www.snowjapan.tv


More information about the site:
http://www.snowjapan.tv/sjtv/t/about.php

Here is the Help & FAQ page on SnowJapan.TV:
http://www.snowjapan.tv/sjtv/t/help.php

So the work is done and it's gone online. Now, it's over to you!
If you do have any Japan video clips, please do consider registering to the site and uploading them to SnowJapan.TV. The more the better of course. While we are confident that a few months of testing has eliminated most bugs, a project of this size and complexity means that at this early stage especially it would help us troubleshoot any potential small issues that you might encounter. But hopefully there are none!

Clips don't have to be new or from this winter season - older clips from previous season are most welcome.

You will need to register a new account on the site - it's easy and should only take a minute or two, which brings us to...

If you were previously registered or had videos on SnowJapan.TV:

PLEASE READ THIS if you previously had an account/video on the old version of SnowJapan.


SnowJapan.TV Competition:

To celebrate the re-launch, we are running a "Best Video" competition. Details here:
http://www.snowjapanforums.com/ubbthreads.php/topics/351263/SnowJapan_TV_Video_Competition.html

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Hope you like it.

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How to embed SnowJapan.TV videos on a thread in these SnowJapanForums:

You can now embed videos uploaded to SnowJapan.TV on these Forums like the one shown below. Below the video are some simple instructions on how to do that.

[SKI]

Great work, glad to see it online.
Now, take a rest!

[rach]

Looks really great! Great to be able to embed on here too.
I will take a closer look over the weekend.
Otsukaresama

[griller]

It has been fun to see it change over the last few months.
Such a big improvement on the old one.

Can you let us know what kind of problems there were?

[mina2]

Fab.
Embedding in the forums is a great thing to have.
Cheers!

[SJ-David]

Originally Posted By: griller

Can you let us know what kind of problems there were?

Without going into details, quite a few. Including some hacking attempts. These problems were one of the main reasons that we have not really brought attention to it the last year or so, it just wasn't working that well.

We're much more confident that this new version works as it should do and we will be spending time in further developing it.

[Man_In_Japan]

Hell, I even tried hacking it and it was pretty secure.

[joshnii]

[Metabo Oyaji]

Looks great. Will have to start taking videos, too.

[klingon]

Been playing with it for a few days now - it is such a huge improvement on the version before. I had problems logging in there for some reason.

I have been trying to catch this new one out and find some bugs/errors but everything seems to be there and working right.
Job very well done.

[grungy-gonads]

Had a good shufty this afternoon.
Nice work.
You do spoil us.

[gnarly-dude]

Sweet.
Lots of new things, cool to see the thumbnails move when you stick your mouse over them.
Like it.
Will add some this season.

[r45]

Fanstastic.
SJF, as you know I had a fair few problems trying to upload and do things on that last site. This new one is light years ahead of the old one. Uploaded and then deleted a test one, will get some up this season. Great work. Good to see that come up to the standards

[TheOrange]

Great stuff.

I hadn't looked at the old one for a time but did have problems with it. Spent a while on the new one and it seems a massive improvement. Good all round. Otsukaresama.

[onion rings]

Hi there

Think it is great a real improvement. Thanks.

Can i ask one question - why can I only watch a certain amount before having to login?

Cheers.

[SJ-David]

Thanks.

The main reason is to protect the bandwidth for the people who are genuinely using the site so that they can enjoy a smooth experience.

We don't have unlimited resources. Video clips eat up a lot of bandwidth. If the site was totally unlimited for everyone - including robots, spiders and all those other non-people things that are out there - we would be ripping through considerably much more bandwidth, potentially a huge amount more. That would affect the experience of the people who are logged in using the site, slowing everything down.

You can watch a fair few clips - the number varies depending on size - before you get the 'please sign up' message. But once that appears, all we ask for unlimited usage of the site is for people to register and to be logged in. That's all. It is totally free and only takes a moment.

The login information is not used for any other reason than being logged in - it is not shared and you do not get bombarded with adverts etc.

When you are logged in, the experience should be smooth and the serve speed of the videos should be good. And you can use all of the functionality of the site without any limitations, and as much as you want.

Hope that explains it.