If you have a really fast computer and a fast Internet connection most of the GBC produced videos on GBCweb.tv made during 2010 will be capable of being enjoyed in HD (High Definition). If your computer is not so up-to-date you should still be able to watch these HD capable videos in SD (Standard Definition). In fact, all of our videos, irrespective of when they were produced can be watched in SD.

Standard Definition (SD) or High Definition (HD) viewing

GBC videos filmed before 2010 are available in SD only.

GBC videos filmed during 2010 are HD capable, ie. they are available in two versions: SD and HD. You can only view in HD successfully (without jerking or stopping) if you are using a really fast computer and a fast broadband connection.

When watching HD capable videos, you can switch between SD and HD by clicking the HD button in the top right corner of the video screen - it either says HD IS ON or HD IS OFF. The HD button has a "memory" of it's own— it will stay either ON or OFF — depending on how you set it previously.

Watching the video in Full Screen mode
To make the video fill the screen, click the Full Screen button near the bottom right corner of the video player. This takes more processor power.

What if the picture doesn't completely fill the screen?
If you have pressed the Full Screen button (see above) and the picture still doesn't completely fill the screen, press the Scaling button. This takes more processor power.
The Scaling button also has a "memory" of it's own — it will stay either ON or OFF — depending on how you set it previously.

Flash video player plug-in

GBC videos made before March 2009 or after 1 January 2010 are produced in the popular Flash format. To watch these Flash videos your web browser needs the Flash player plug-in to be installed.

Any problems that occur here may be because your computer doesn't have the latest version of Flash. To check what version you have (or to install, upgrade or repair a faulty Flash player plug-in) click here - Flash version checker.

Silverlight video player plug-in

From March 2009 to January 2010 most of the GBC videos were produced in Windows Media Video format. To watch these videos your web browser needs the Microsoft Silverlight player plug-in to be installed. You can check if Silverlight is installed, install it or upgrade it by clicking here.

Recommended web browsers

Our videos play well on all popular web browsers, however our favorite web browser is Mozilla Firefox. This is a technically superior web browser which uses fewer computer resources and is available for the PC and Mac operating systems. Download Firefox here.

Why does video playback keep skipping or stopping?

This is caused mainly by the following.

a) Slow computers
If you notice that video playback keeps skipping or stopping, check and see if you have other programmes or antivirus scanners running on your computer at the same time – and close them down. If all else fails, you may find that re-booting your computer is the answer.

HD videos make big demands on your processor, especially during the download phase, and this can cause playback to skip. If your broadband connection is not fast enough you can try pausing the video to let it download completely, before resuming playback.

If the video you want to watch still won't play and there is an audio version of it on the page (before 2010), why not listen to it instead?

Another option is to look for a Podcast link. If it's there (before 2010), download it and listen to the .mp3 audio programme on your computer or portable mp3 player.

You can also copy (not burn an audio CD) a whole bunch of downloaded .mp3 podcasts onto a CD and play them in your Hi Fi, portable or car CD player.
b) Slow Internet connections
As our web videos are designed for users who have broadband Internet connections, they will not play on computers connected by slow dial-up analogue modems.

See how fast your Internet connection is by testing it here. To test the speed click the 'Begin Test' button only - no need to press the 'Download Now' or 'Free Scan' buttons.

If some of our videos won't play (and others will) there may be a temporary issue with one our video hosts – Vimeo.com or Blip.tv. Please try again later!

Computers on your employer's network or in public libraries, etc. may have been configured to prevent videos from being watched at all. If you really want to pursue this please speak to the IT department - but don't hold your breath! Perhaps you can watch our videos in a friend's home or at an Internet cafe instead?
Comments (0)Add Comment
feedSubscribe to this comment's feed
min/maxShow/hide comments

Write comment
smaller | bigger

busy
< Prev   Next >