Stream is Microsoft's video hosting platform that allows users to create, share, and interact with video content. 

 

This article documents the process for sharing videos with students in your courses. For information on using Stream to facilitate student video assignments, check out our Setting up Student Video Assignments in Stream article. 

Step 1: Access Stream

Stream is part of the Office 365 suite available to all KU faculty, staff, and students. To access Stream, navigate to www.office.com and login with your KU email address and password. 

 

Note: You will initially enter your email address on Microsoft's login screen. Once you've entered your full email address, you may be redirected to the KU login screen to complete your login.

 

Select Stream from the list of available apps. If Stream does not appear in the main list, click "All apps" to view the full list.

 

 

Step 2: Upload Your Video

It is recommended that you upload your videos directly to the Stream video library.

 

  1. Click “My Content” and choose “Videos.”

     


  1. Drag and drop the video file into the space at the top of the screen, or click “browse” to locate your video.

 


  1. Adjust any of the details, if necessary, before moving to the “Permissions menu” (Step 3).

 

 

Tip: Stream does not currently provide folders for video organization. If you name your videos with a course or topic identifier as the first part of the video name, you can sort your videos by this identifier to make locating videos easier.

 


Step 3: Set Your Viewer Permissions

In the Permissions menu:

  1. “Allow everyone in your company to view this video” will allow anyone from KU to view and search for your video in Stream. It will also include your video in trending videos on the Stream homepage. This option is NOT recommended.

  2. If you want to share with only specific individuals, you can add KU users by searching for their email address with the “People” option.


  1. Recommended: To share your video with a class, change the “Share with” drop down to “My Groups” and then add the automatic unified group that has been created for your class. Groups are created with the following format:
    • Term = 2212 (Spring 2021)
    • Subject = Math (MAT)
    • Course/Catalog Number = 115
    • Section = 010
    • Group Name = 2212MAT115010



Notes: 

  • Unified groups are semester-specific. Each semester, you’ll need to apply the new group to the videos.
  • Unified groups are always section-specific; merged sections in D2L are not reflected in these groups. Be sure to add all section groups to your video permissions.

 

Step 4: Set Your Options

  1. Determine if you will allow comments on your videos. This would be similar to YouTube video comments.
  2. Recommended: Enable the “Auto generate captions” option to ensure your video is accessible. Captions and a transcript will be automatically generated. You can edit captions for accuracy after the video has finished processing.

 


Step 5: Publish and Share Your Video

  1. Click the “Share” button to obtain the direct link to the video.
  2. This is the link you want to share with your students in D2L.
  3. Be sure to return to the video page and click “Publish.” If the video is not published, it will not be viewable.

 

 


Optional: Create Channels to Organize for Your Videos

Similar to YouTube channels, channels are a way to organize videos by assignment, topics, modules, etc. A channel also allows you to share a single link to a “playlist” of videos.

 

Note: Once a group channel has been created, it cannot be updated to share with additional groups. If you decide to use group channels to organize your course videos, you’ll need to recreate them every semester.

 

  1. On the group page, navigate to the “Channels” tab and click “+ New Channel.”

 

 

  1. Provide a name for your channel that helps to identify the subject of the videos. You can also add an optional description.

 

  1. Assign a group to your channel by searching for your groups. Remember, the automated unified groups are created in the following format:
    • Term = 2212 (Spring 2021)
    • Subject = Math (MAT)
    • Course/Catalog Number = 115
    • Section = 010
    • Group Name = 2212MAT115010

 

 

  1. After creating the channel, you can open it to share the channel by clicking the “more actions” menu and choosing “Share.”

 

 

  1. Copy the “direct link to the channel.” We recommend adding this link to your D2L course so students can easily access it throughout the course. The link can also be shared on webpages or via email.