RE: Interactive Television

Silvia, Thanks for the link to MetaVid. With regard to the HTML5 specification, "If the attribute is present, or if scripting is disabled for the media element, then the user agent should expose a user interface to the user. This user interface should include features to begin playback, pause playback, seek to an arbitrary position in the content (if the content supports arbitrary seeking), change the volume, change the display of closed captions or embedded sign-language tracks, select different audio tracks or turn on audio descriptions, and show the media content in manners more suitable to the user (e.g. full-screen video or in an independent resizable window). Other controls may also be made available." can become something similar to: "If the attribute is present, or if scripting is disabled for the media element, then the user agent should expose a user interface to the user. This user interface should include features to begin playback, pause playback, seek to an arbitrary position in the content (if the content supports arbitrary seeking), select intervals of content and to provide an extensible context menu upon selections, change the volume, change the display of closed captions or embedded sign-language tracks, select different audio tracks or turn on audio descriptions, and show the media content in manners more suitable to the user (e.g. full-screen video or in an independent resizable window). Other controls may also be made available." The described JavaScript layer could also then include a specified means of indicating and accessing user selection intervals. Additionally, the context menu functionality can include extensibility for both platform shell extensions and browser plugins. Extensions and plugins can also access selections as they can for other hypertext document selections. The matter can be phrased as extending the functionality of document, hypertext document, in that regard, to the new hypertext document elements of <audio/> and <video/>. While website developers can implement custom user interfaces for multimedia components, it is posited that the HTML5 specification can describe the selection of intervals for cross-platform and cross-browser functionality and extensibility. The selecting of multimedia content is viewed as a new verb that enhances the previous set of play, pause, seek and so forth. Website developers can have the flexibility to make use of the default user interface or to customize the various user interface details of the enhanced functionality of the <audio/> and <video/> hypertext document elements.  
Kind regards, Adam Sobieski
 > From: silviapfeiffer1@gmail.com
> Date: Sun, 14 Aug 2011 14:57:45 +1000
> Subject: Re: Interactive Television
> To: adamsobieski@hotmail.com
> CC: public-web-and-tv@w3.org
> 
> Hi Adam,
> 
> On Fri, Aug 12, 2011 at 5:59 PM, Adam Sobieski <adamsobieski@hotmail.com> wrote:
> > Some scenarios that interest me are searchable and navigable transcripts
> > such as illustrated at http://www.cspan.org.  Video tracks can provide data
> > for JavaScript to make use of DHTML for user interfaces for navigation
> > within and between videos.
> 
> Just wanted to point out http://metavidstorage03.ucsc.edu/ to you as
> an example of searchable and navigable transcripts using open source
> technology that is very similar to what is now specified in HTML5. It
> should demonstrate some of what would already be possible with the
> given HTML5 specification and WebVTT once implemented in Web browsers.
> 
> Cheers,
> Silvia.