Telestream updates encoder Episode for Mac, Windows
updated 07:30 pm EDT, Fri September 24, 2010
New UI boasts WebM support, YouTube uploading
Digital video transcoding software maker Telestream have revamped the user interface of their flagship encoding program Episode as part of a major update to version 6.0, now available for Mac and Windows, which also includes a simplified "one click" cluster setup and a new workflow builder along with new support for Google's WebM format and YouTube uploading.
The new graphical interface focuses on the easy creation of workflows, either using presets or generating custom settings that can be saved for future reference. Users just drag icons representing files, settings and destinations together into a "flowchart" that reduces the need for special training to use the product. Watch folders and multiple and/or network destinations can also be set up.
The program now offers support for WebM and the high-quality Main Concept H.264 and MPEG formats, as well as Apple's ProRes codec (with native decoding and encoding on the Mac version) using 10-bit processing. This is in addition to existing support for Flash v8 and v9, Windows Media, MPEG 1/2/4, VC-1, DV, 3GPP and others.
Cluster capabilities have also been enhanced, allowing easy pooling of processing resources (wither PC or Mac) and sharing of encoding tasks. File sharing is integrated, meaning easy delivery of content to multiple local or internet-connected destinations, and also offering direct uploading to social video sites like YouTube.
Episode v6 standard edition is $495 and limits users to processing one job at a time (but includes unlimited batch processing). Episode Pro v6 ($995) adds support for other pro formats and allows parallel encoding of two jobs simultaneously. Episode Engine ($3,995) offers unlimited parallel encoding plus "Split-and-Stitch" distributed encoding for clusters. Upgrades from v5 to v6 are $145 (Standard) and $295 (Pro).
