Asset management and scheduling graphical user interface for media streamer

• US 6,763,377 B1
• Filed: 03/03/2000
• Issued: 07/13/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 03/03/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Sandpiper CDN, LLC (Theseus LF Asset Holdings, LLC)
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Rohwer, Cary Lane, Veliah, Sundar, Farrington, Shannon Matthew, Taylor, Lucy Anita, Bender, Todd Robert, Belknap, William Russell
• Primary Examiner(s): Burgess, Glenton B.
• Assistant Examiner(s): FLYNN, KIMBERLY D
• Application Number:
  US09/518,356
• Time in Patent Office: 1,593 Days
• Field of Search: 709/203, 709/217, 709/219, 709/223, 709/225, 709/229, 725/82, 725/91, 725/114, 725/138, 725/144, 725/146, 345/704, 345/722, 345/736, 345/740, 345/749, 345/783
• US Class Current: 709/223
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1101 Session protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/613 for the control of the source by the destination control signals issued by the client directed to the server or network components specially adapted for selective content distribution H04N21/637
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1095 Replication or mirroring of data, e.g. scheduling or transport for data synchronisation between network nodes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/75 Indicating network or usage conditions on the user display
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]

Abstract

A process of managing media data in a network is provided, the system including an administrator terminal, at least one media server communicatively coupled to the administrator terminal via a network, and a plurality of end user terminals, each of the media servers being operative to store media data, and to transfer portions of media data to selected locations via the network, at least one of the media servers also being operative to stream media data to selected ones of the end user terminals. The process provides a centralized user interface for scheduling and coordinating the execution of operations performed by the media servers. The process begins with a step of displaying a graphical user interface including a plurality of interface components on a display unit of the administrator terminal, the components enabling a user of the administrator terminal to define and schedule operations to be performed by selected ones of the media servers on corresponding portions of media data. User input includes: server identification information indicative of a selected media server; operation information specifying an operation to be performed by the selected media server on a selected portion of media data, and schedule information specifying a schedule for performing the specified operation. Commands and associated parameters are generated based on the operation information and schedule information, the commands and associated parameters for instructing the selected media server to execute the specified operation in accordance with the specified schedule.

Claims

1. A process for providing a centralized user interface at an administrator terminal in a network for scheduling and coordinating the execution of operations performed on selected portions of media data by selected ones of a plurality of local and remote media servers of the network the servers being coupled with associated local and remote memory devices and operative to encode and parse portions of the media data, comprising:

displaying a graphical user interface at the administrator terminal, the interface including a plurality of interface components enabling a user to select portions of the media data, source locations and destination locations, and to specify and schedule operations to be performed by the selected ones of the plurality of media servers;

receiving information input by the user identifying the selected media servers, the specified operations to be performed on the selected portions of the media data to create media assets, and the schedule for performing the operations, the operations including;

copy operations for copying the selected portions of the media data from the selected source locations to the selected destination locations;

an adding operation for adding the selected portions of the media data from the local memory devices to a catalog of the selected media server, the adding operation including selectively parsing the selected portions of the media data;

a loading operation for loading the selected portions of the media data from selected remote memory devices to the catalog of the selected media server, the loading operation including selectively parsing the selected portion of the media data; and

,

staging the created media assets from the selected media server to the selected destination location;

generating commands and associated parameters based on the input information for instructing the selected media servers to execute the specified operations in accordance with the specified schedule; and

transmitting the commands and associated parameters to the selected media servers.

2. A process as recited in claim 1 wherein the network is an internet protocol (IP) network.

3. A process as recited in claim 1 wherein the administrator terminal also includes a processing unit, and a browser application executed by the processing unit, and wherein the steps of displaying, receiving, generating, and transmitting are performed by executing an applet over the processing unit.

4. A process as recited in claim 1 wherein the administrator terminal also includes a processing unit, and a browser application executed by the processing unit, and wherein the process is initiated by performing the steps of:

transmitting an applet to the administrator terminal via the network; and

executing the applet over the processing unit of the administrator terminal;

whereby the graphical user interface is displayed within a browser window generated by the browser application.

5. A process as recited in claim 1 wherein at least one of the media servers is further operative to encode media data received from a corresponding multimedia device, and wherein the operations further include:

delete operations for deleting portions of media data from catalogs of predetermined mapped ones of the media servers;

multicasting operations for streaming portions of media data from selected ones of the media servers to selected ones of a plurality of end user terminals via the network; and

encoding operations for encoding media data received by selected ones of the media servers.

6. A process as recited in claim 1, wherein the steps of displaying a graphical user interface, and receiving input information further comprise the steps of:

displaying a source selection interface component enabling the user to select a source location by browsing a list of available locations including predetermined mapped ones of the media servers and predetermined mapped ones of the memory devices;

receiving information indicative of a selected source location;

displaying a media data selection interface component enabling the user to select a portion of media data by browsing a list of available a portions of media data stored at the selected source location;

receiving information indicative of a selected portion of media data;

determining a corresponding list of possible destination locations associated with the selected source location; and

displaying a destination selection interface component enabling the user to select a destination location by browsing the corresponding list of possible destination locations.

7. A process as recited in claim 6 wherein the steps of displaying a graphical user interface, receiving information, and generating commands further comprise the steps of:

displaying delayed copying interface components enabling the user to select a start time and a start date for a delayed copying operation;

receiving information indicative of a selected start time and a selected start date; and

generating a copy command and associated parameters for instructing the selected media server to copy the selected portion of media data from the selected source location to the selected destination location at the selected start time on the selected start date.

8. A process as recited in claim 7 further comprising the steps of:

displaying a location mapping interface component enabling the user to define a path to a new location in the network;

receiving information indicative of a selected path for accessing the new location; and

adding the new location associated with the selected path to the list of available locations.

9. A process as recited in claim 1, wherein the scheduling information includes a start date and a start time for copying the selected portion of media data from the selected source location in the network to the selected destination location in the network.

10. A process as recited in claim 1 wherein the operations include encoding operations, and wherein the network further includes at least one multimedia device operative to generate media data, each of the multimedia devices being communicatively coupled with a corresponding encoder one of the media servers which is further operative to selectively activate the corresponding multimedia device, and to encode a selected portion of media data generated by the multimedia device.

11. A process as recited in claim 10 wherein the step of displaying a graphical user interface includes displaying an encoder select interface component providing for the user to select one of the encoder media servers, wherein the input information includes information indicative of a selected multimedia device, and wherein the commands and associated parameters include encoding commands and associated encoding parameters for instructing the selected media server to encode a selected portion of media data received from the selected media device.

12. A process as recited in claim 11 wherein the steps of displaying a graphical user interface, receiving information, and generating commands further comprise the steps of:

displaying encoding operation scheduling interface components enabling the user to select a start time and a start date for a delayed encoding operation;

receiving information indicative of a selected start time and a selected start date for initiating an encoding operation; and

generating encoding comments and associated parameters for instructing the selected media server to encode media data received from the selected multimedia device at the selected start time on the selected start date.

13. A process as recited in claim 12 wherein the steps of displaying the encoding operation scheduling components, and receiving information further include the steps of:

displaying duration interface components enabling the user to select from time duration specification operations including,

selecting a scheduled stop date and stop time for terminating the encoding operation, and

selecting a time duration for which the encoding operation is to continue following the selected start time on the selected start date; and

receiving information indicative of a selected time duration specification option.

14. A process as recited in claim 11 wherein the operations further include recording operations for recording selected portions of encoded media data that are encoded during corresponding ones of the encoding operations, and wherein the steps of displaying a graphical user interface, and receiving information further comprise the steps of:

displaying a record-to selection interface component enabling the user to select a storage location by browsing a list of available storage locations including predetermined mapped ones of a plurality of memory devices associated with the selected encoder media server; and

receiving information indicative of the selected storage location;

wherein the commands and associated parameters further include a record command and associated record parameters for instructing the selected encoder media server to store the selected portion of encoded media data at the selected storage location.

15. A process as recited in claim 14 wherein the steps of displaying a graphical user interface, and receiving information further comprise the steps of:

displaying an asset name selection interface component enabling the user specify a name for the encoded portion of media data to be stored at the selected storage location;

receiving information indicative of a specified asset name; and

wherein the record commands and associated record parameters provide for instructing the selected encoder media server to store the encoded portion of media data at the selected storage location under the specified asset name.

16. A process as recited in claim 15 wherein the steps of displaying a graphical user interface, and receiving information further comprise the steps of:

displaying an overwriting option selection interface component enabling the user to select from a plurality of overwriting options for specifying attributes of the recording operation if a file having the specified asset name exists at the selected storage location at the time of execution of the recording operation, the overwriting options including,

a prompt option for specifying that the user is to be prompted if a file having the specified asset name exists at the selected storage location at the time of execution of the recording operation,

an overwrite option for specifying that any file having the specified asset name, existing at the selected storage location at the time of execution of the recording operation, is to be overwritten with the encoded portion of media data, and

an overwrite option for specifying that any file having the specified asset name, existing at the selected storage location at the time of execution of the recording operation, is to be appended with the encoded portion of media data.

17. A process as recited in claim 14 wherein at least one of the media servers is further operative to stream media data to selected ones of a plurality of end user terminals via the network, and wherein the operations further include playback operations for streaming the stored portion of encoded media data from the selected encoder media server to corresponding selected ones of a plurality of end user terminals via the network.

18. A process as recited in claim 17 wherein the steps of displaying a graphical user interface, and receiving information further comprise the steps of:

displaying playback destination selection interface components enabling the user to select at least one of the end user terminals as a destination for streaming the encoded portion of media data in accordance with a user defined playback schedule;

displaying play-back schedule interface components enabling the user define a play-back schedule; and

receiving information indicative a user defined play-back schedule;

wherein the commands and associated parameters further include a play-back command and associated play-back parameters for instructing the selected encoder media server to stream the stored portion of encoded media data to the selected end users via the network in accordance with the user defined play-back schedule.

19. A process as recited in claim 18 wherein the play-back schedule interface components comprise:

a first group of components enabling the user to select a start time and a start date for the play-back schedule; and

a second group of components enabling the user to select from a plurality of options for specifying a play-back schedule duration.

20. A process as recited in claim 17 wherein the operations further include notification operations associated with corresponding ones of the playback operations, the notification operations for sending notification messages to selected network addresses associated with selected ones of the end user terminals and the administrator terminal.

21. A process as recited in claim 11 wherein at least one of the media servers is further operative to stream media data to selected ones of a plurality of end user terminals via the network, and wherein the operations further include real time streaming operations for streaming the encoded portion of media data from the selected encoder media server to corresponding selected ones of the end user terminals via the network.

22. A process as recited in claim 21 wherein the steps of displaying a graphical user interface, and receiving information further comprise the steps of:

displaying streaming destination selection interface components enabling the user to select at least one of the end user terminals as a destination for streaming the encoded portion of media data; and

receiving information indicative of at least one selected end user;

wherein the commands and associated parameters further include a streaming command and associated streaming parameters for instructing the selected encoder media server to stream the encoded portion of media data to the selected end users.

23. A process as recited in claim 22 wherein the streaming destination selection interface components include:

manual destination selection interface components enabling the user to select a destination internet protocol (IP) address and port number associated with a selected one of the end user terminals; and

predefined destination selection interface components enabling the user to select a group from a plurality of predefined groups of destination end user terminals, each of the user terminals having an associated IP address and port number.

24. A process as recited in claim 1 wherein at least one of the media servers is operative to stream media data to selected ones of a plurality of end user terminals via the network, and wherein the operations further include multicasting operations for streaming selected portions of media data from selected media servers to corresponding selected ones of the end user terminals via the network.

25. A process as recited in claim 24 wherein the steps of displaying a graphical user interface, and receiving information further comprise the steps of:

displaying multicasting destination selection interface components enabling the user to select at least one of the end user terminals as a destination for multicasting the selected portion of media data in accordance with a user defined multicasting schedule;

displaying multicasting schedule interface components enabling the user define a multicasting schedule; and

receiving information indicative a user defined multicasting schedule;

wherein the commands and associated parameters further include a multicasting command and associated multicasting parameters for instructing the selected media server to stream the selected portion of media data to the selected end users via the network in accordance with the user defined multicasting schedule.

26. A process as recited in claim 25 wherein the multicasting schedule interface components comprise:

a first group of components enabling the user to select a start time and a start data for a multicasting schedule; and

a second group of components enabling the user to select from a plurality of options for specifying a multicasting schedule duration.

27. A process as recited in claim 24 wherein the operations further include notification operations associated with corresponding ones of the multicasting operations, the notification operations for sending notification messages to selected network addresses associated with selected ones of the end user terminals and the administrator terminal.

28. A process as recited in claim 1 wherein the input information includes server identification information specifying the selected media server, operation information specifying the operation to be performed by the selected media server, and schedule information specifying the schedule, and wherein the process further comprises the step of displaying graphical indicia indicative of a plurality of user scheduled operations that have been previously defined and scheduled by the user, each of the scheduled operations being associated with corresponding previously specified information including previously specified server identification information, previously specified input information, and previously specified schedule information.

29. A process as recited in claim 28 further comprising the steps of:

providing interface components allowing the user to select one of the displayed scheduled operations;

receiving information indicative of a selected scheduled operation;

determining a portion of the interface components of the graphical user interface that is associated with the selected scheduled operation; and

displaying the determined portion of the interface components having previously specified information associated with the selected scheduled operation displayed therein, the displayed portion of the interface components enabling the user to edit the previously specified information associated with the selected schedule operation in order to generate revised information associated with a revised operation, the revised information including revised server identification information, revised operation information, and revised schedule information.

30. A process as recited in claim 29 further comprising the steps of:

linking to a previously specified media server indicated by previously specified server identification information associated with the selected scheduled operation;

generating delete commands and associated parameters for instructing the previously specified media server to cancel execution of the selected scheduled operation; and

transmitting the delete commands and associated parameters to the previously specified media server.

31. A process as recited in claim 30 further comprising the steps of:

generating new commands and associated parameters based on the revised information associated with the revised operation, the new commands and associated parameters for instructing a particular media server to execute the revised operation in accordance with the revised schedule information; and

transmitting the commands and the associated parameters to the particular media server via the network.

32. A process as recited in claim 28 wherein the network further includes a global asset management server communicatively coupled to the administrator terminal via the network, the global asset management server also being communicatively coupled to a memory device for storing global information including server identification information, operation information, and schedule information associated with corresponding scheduled operations that have been defined and scheduled by corresponding users, the process further comprising the steps of:

transmitting information indicative of a particular user from the administrator terminal to the management server; and

transmitting the server identification information, the operation information, and the schedule information associated with the specified operation to the management server for storage.

33. A process as recited in claim 32 wherein the management server is further operative to access the global information, the process further comprising the steps of:

accessing the management server from the administrator terminal;

transmitting user identification information indicative of a specified user to the asset management server; and

receiving previously specified information associated with each user scheduled operation that has been previously defined and scheduled by the specified user.

34. A process as recited in claim 32 wherein the global asset management server is further operative to generate a global schedule document including the graphical indicia indicative of the user scheduled operations, the previously specified information corresponding with each of the graphical indicia, executable code for implementing the steps of displaying a graphical user interface, receiving information, generating commands and associated, and transmitting the commands and the associated parameters, and active areas for initiating the executable code, and wherein the step of displaying graphical indicia indicative of a plurality of user scheduled operations further comprises:

transmitting information indicative of a particular user to the asset management server; and

downloading the global schedule document associated with the particular user from the asset management server to the administrator terminal.

35. A process as recited in claim 34 wherein the document comprises a HTML document and wherein the executable code comprises a Java applet.

36. A method for providing a centralized user interface at an administrator terminal in a network for scheduling and coordinating the execution of operations performed on media data by selected ones of a plurality of media servers of the network wherein each of the media servers is operative to access a memory device for storing media data, and transfer portions of media data to selected locations via the network and the operations include copy operations for copying selected portions of media data from selected source locations in the network to selected destination locations in the network, the method comprising:

displaying a graphical user interface at the administrator terminal, the interface including at least a source selection interface component enabling the user to select a source location and a media data selection interface component enabling the user to select a portion of media data;

determining a corresponding list of possible destination locations associated with the selected source location and prompting the user to select at least one destination location; and

generating commands and associated parameters based on the input information for instructing the selected media server to execute the copy operation in accordance with the specified schedule, wherein the memory devices include local disks included within corresponding ones of the media servers, and remote disks and archives communicatively coupled with corresponding ones of the media servers, and wherein each of the media servers is further operative to encode and parse portions of media data to create media assets, and wherein each of the media servers is further operative to maintain a catalog including pointers to catalogued ones of the media assets stored on the local disk of the media server, and the copy operations performed by the selected media server include;

an adding operation for adding selected portions of media data from the local disk of the selected media server to a catalog of the selected media server, the adding operation including a sub-step of parsing a selected portion of media data if it is not parsed;

a loading operation for loading selected portions of media data from selected remote disks coupled with the selected media server to a catalog of the selected media server, the loading operation including a sub-step of parsing a selected portion of media data if it is not parsed; and

staging assets from the selected media server to a destination location selected from the archives and the media servers.

37. A method as recited in claim 36 wherein the step of determining a corresponding list of possible destination locations comprises:

determining whether the selected source location is a media server, and if the selected source location is a media server, defining the list of possible destination locations to include predetermined mapped ones of the media servers other than the selected source media server, and predetermined mapped ones of the archives;

determining whether the selected source location is an archive, and if the selected source location is an archive, defining the corresponding list of possible destination locations to include predetermined mapped ones of the archives other than the selected source archive, and predetermined mapped ones of the media servers; and

determining whether the selected source location is a disk, and if the selected source location is a disk, defining the corresponding list of possible destination locations to include predetermined mapped ones of the media servers, and predetermined mapped ones of the archives.

38. A process for providing a centralized user interface at an administrator terminal in a network for scheduling and coordinating the execution of operations performed on media data by selected ones of a plurality of media servers of the network wherein the operations include at least recording operations for recording selected portions of the media data and play-back operations, the process comprising:

displaying graphical user interface screens at the administrator terminal enabling the user to select at least a record-to storage location, a media server, at least one of the end user terminals as a destination for streaming a recorded portion of the media data, and define a play-back schedule, which user interface screens enable the user to specify a play-back schedule duration by one of;

specifying a loop count value for repeating the streaming of the recorded portion of the media data a number of times equal to the loop count value;

specifying a repeat schedule wherein the streaming of the recorded portion of the media data is repeated until the recorded portion of the media data is removed from a schedule list; and

specifying an interval schedule wherein the streaming of the recorded portion of the media data is performed in accordance with the user defined schedule.

39. A process for providing a centralized user interface at an administrator terminal in a network for scheduling and coordinating the execution of operations performed on media data by selected ones of a plurality of media servers of the network, the process comprising:

displaying graphical user interface screens at the administrator terminal which screens enable a user to select media servers, specify and schedule operations to be performed by the selected media servers,

wherein a notification process is utilized to determine success or failure of the corresponding scheduled operation, and the graphical user interface displays notification circumstance specification interface components enabling the user to select;

a first notification option for sending a notification message to selected network addresses if the corresponding scheduled operation fails,

a second notification option for sending a notification message to selected network addresses if the corresponding scheduled operation is successful, and

a third notification option for sending a notification message to selected network addresses whether the corresponding scheduled operation fails or is successful;

receiving information indicative the selected notification circumstance option;

wherein the commands and associated parameters further include a notification command and associated notification parameters for instructing the selected media server to send notification messages to the selected network addresses in accordance with the selected notification option.

40. A process for providing a centralized user interface at an administrator terminal in a network for scheduling and coordinating the execution of operations performed on media data by selected ones of a plurality of media servers of the network wherein the operations include multicasting operations for streaming selected portions of media data from selected media servers to corresponding selected end user terminals via the network, the process comprising:

displaying graphical user interface screens at the administrator terminal which screens enable a user to select media servers, at least one of the end user terminals as a destination for multicasting the selected media data and define a schedule of the multicasting operations, which interface screens enable the user to specify a duration of the multicasting schedule by at least one of;

specifying a loop count value for repeating the streaming of the selected media data a number of times equal to the loop count value;

specifying a repeat schedule wherein the streaming of the selected media data is repeated until the selected media data is removed from a schedule list, and

specifying an interval schedule wherein the streaming of the selected media data is performed in accordance with the user defined schedule.

41. A process for providing a centralized user interface at an administrator terminal in a network for scheduling and coordinating the execution of operations performed on media data by selected ones of plurality of media servers of the network wherein at least one of the media servers is operative to stream media data to selected ones of a plurality of end user terminals via the network, and the operations include multicasting operations for streaming selected portions of media data from selected media servers to corresponding selected ones of the end user terminals via the network, the process comprising:

displaying notification circumstance specification interface components enabling the user to select from the notification options including,

a first notification option for sending a notification message to selected network addresses if the corresponding multicasting operation fails,

a second notification option for sending a notification message to selected network addresses if the corresponding multicasting operation is successful, and

a third notification option for sending a notification message to selected network addresses if the corresponding multicasting operation fails or is successful; and

receiving information indicative a selected notification circumstance option;

wherein the commands and associated parameters further include a notification command and associated notification parameters for instructing the selected media server to send notification messages to the selected network addresses in accordance with the selected notification option.

42. A machine readable storage device having stored therein encoding instructions for executing a process of providing a centralized user interface at an administrator terminal in a network for scheduling and coordinating the execution of operations performed on media data by selected ones of a plurality of media servers of the network, the process comprising:

displaying a graphical user interface at the administrator terminal, the interface including a plurality of interface components enabling a user to specify and schedule operations to be performed by selected ones of the media servers;

receiving information input by the user identifying a selected one of the media servers, the specified operations to be performed by the selected media server, and the schedule for performing the operations, which operations include at least copy operations for copying portions of media data from selected source locations including local and remote memory devices to selected destination locations including;

an adding operation for adding the selected portions of the media data from the selected local memory devices to a catalog of the selected media server,

a loading operation for loading the selected portions of the media data from the selected remote memory devices to the catalog of the selected media server, and

a staging operation for staging assets from the selected media server to the selected destination locations;

generating commands and associated parameters based on the input information for instructing the selected media server to execute the specified operation in accordance with the specified schedule; and

transmitting the commands and associated parameters to the selected media server.

43. A machine readable storage device as recited in claim 42 wherein the administrator terminal also includes a processing unit, and a browser application executed by the processing unit, and wherein the steps of displaying, receiving, generating, and transmitting are performed by executing an applet over the processing unit.

44. A machine readable storage device as recited in claim 42 wherein at least one of the media servers is further operative to encode media data received from a corresponding multimedia device, and wherein the operations further include:

delete operations for deleting portions of media data from a source location selected from locations including predetermined mapped ones of the media servers and the memory devices;

multicasting operations for streaming portions of media data from selected ones of the media servers to selected ones of a plurality of end user terminals via the network; and

encoding operations for encoding media data received by selected ones of the media servers.

45. A machine readable storage device as recited in claim 42 wherein each of the media servers is operative to access at least one corresponding memory device for storing media data, and is also operative to stream media data to selected locations via the network.

46. A machine readable storage device as recited in claim 45 wherein the steps of displaying a graphical user interface, and receiving information further comprise the steps of:

displaying a source selection interface component enabling the user to select a source location by browsing a list of available locations including predetermined mapped ones of the media servers and predetermined mapped ones of the memory devices;

receiving information indicative of a selected source location;

displaying a media data selection interface component enabling the user to select a portion of media data by browsing a list of available a portions of media data stored at the selected source location;

receiving information indicative of a selected portion of media data;

determining a corresponding list of possible destination locations associated with the selected source location; and

displaying a destination selection interface component enabling the user to select a destination location by browsing the corresponding list of possible destination locations.

47. A machine readable storage device as recited in claim 42 wherein the operations include encoding operations, and wherein the network further includes at least one multimedia device operative to generate media data, each of the multimedia devices being communicatively coupled with a corresponding encoder one of the media servers which is further operative to selectively activate the corresponding multimedia device, and to encode a selected portion of media data generated by the multimedia device.

48. A machine readable storage device as recited in claim 47 wherein the step of displaying a graphical user interface includes displaying an encoder select interface component providing for the user to select one of the encoder media servers, wherein the input information includes operation information indicative of a selected multimedia device, and wherein the commands and associated parameters include encoding commands and associated encoding parameters for instructing the selected media server to encode a selected portion of media data received from the selected media device.

49. A machine readable storage device as recited in claim 48 wherein at least one of the media servers is operative to stream media data to selected ones of a plurality of end user terminals via the network, and wherein the operations further include real time streaming operations for streaming the encoded portion of media data from the selected encoder media server to corresponding selected ones of the end user terminals via the network.

50. A machine readable storage device as recited in claim 49 wherein the steps of displaying a graphical user interface, and receiving information further comprise the steps of:

displaying streaming destination selection interface components enabling the user to select at least one of the end user terminals as a destination for streaming the encoded portion of media data; and

receiving information indicative of at least one selected end user;

wherein the commands and associated parameters further include a streaming command and associated streaming parameters for instructing the selected encoder media server to stream the encoded portion of media data to the selected end users.

51. A machine readable storage device as recited in claim 48 wherein at least one of the media servers is operative to stream media data to selected ones of a plurality of end user terminals via the network, and wherein the operations further include playback operations for streaming the stored portion of encoded media data from the selected encoder media server to corresponding selected ones of the end user terminals via the network.

52. A machine readable storage device as recited in claim 51 wherein the operations further include notification operations associated with corresponding ones of the playback operations, the notification operations for sending notification messages to selected network addresses associated with selected ones of the end user terminals and the administrator terminal.

53. A machine readable storage device as recited in claim 42 wherein at least one of the media servers is operative to stream media data to selected ones of a plurality of end user terminals via the network, and wherein the operations further include multicasting operations for streaming selected portions of media data from selected media servers to corresponding selected ones of the end user terminals.

54. A machine readable storage device as recited in claim 53 wherein the steps of displaying a graphical user interface, and receiving information further comprise the steps of:

displaying multicasting destination selection interface components enabling the user to select at least one of the end user terminals as a destination for multicasting the selected portion of media data in accordance with a user defined multicasting schedule;

displaying multicasting schedule interface components enabling the user define a multicasting schedule; and

receiving information indicative a user defined multicasting schedule;

wherein the commands and associated parameters further include a multicasting command and associated multicasting parameters for instructing the selected media server to stream the selected portion of the media data to the selected end users via the network in accordance with the user defined multicasting schedule.

55. A machine readable storage device as recited in claim 54 wherein the operations further including notification operations associated with corresponding ones of the multicasting operations, the notification operations for sending notification messages to selected network addresses associated with selected ones of the end user terminals and the administrator terminal.

56. A machine readable storage device as recited in claim 42 further comprising the step of displaying graphical indicia indicative of a plurality of user scheduled operations that have been previously defined and scheduled by the user, each of the scheduled operations being associated with corresponding previously specified input information including previously specified server identification information, previously specified operation information, and previously specified schedule information.

57. A machine readable storage device as recited in claim 56 further comprising the steps of:

providing interface components allowing the user to select one of the displayed scheduled operations;

receiving information indicative of a selected scheduled operation;

determining a portion of the interface components of the graphical user interface that is associated with the selected scheduled operation; and

displaying the determined portion of the interface components having previously specified information associated with the selected scheduled operation displayed therein, the displayed portion of the interface components enabling the user to edit the previously specified information associated with the selected scheduled operation in order to generate revised information associated with a revised operation, the revised information including revised server identification information, revised operation information, and revised schedule information.

58. A machine readable storage device as recited in claim 57 further comprising the steps of:

linking to a previously specified media server indicated by previously specified server identification information associated with the selected scheduled operation;

generating delete commands and associated parameters for instructing the previously specified media server to cancel execution of the selected scheduled operation; and

transmitting the delete commands and associated parameters to the previously specified media server.

59. A machine readable storage device as recited in claim 58 further comprising the steps of:

generating new commands and associated parameters based on the revised information associated with the revised operation, the new commands and associated parameters for instructing a particular media server to execute the revised operation in accordance with the revised schedule information; and

transmitting the commands and the associated parameters to the particular media server via the network.

60. A server operative to provide an applet to a client via a network, the applet including encoding instructions for executing a process of providing a centralized user interface at the client for scheduling and coordinating the execution of operations performed on media data by selected ones of a plurality of media servers of the network, comprising the steps of:

displaying a graphical user interface at the client, the interface including a plurality of interface components enabling a user to specify and schedule operations to be performed by selected ones of the media servers;

receiving information input by the user identifying a selected one of the media servers, the specified operations to be performed by the selected media server, and the schedule for performing the operations, which operations include at least copy operations for copying portions of media data from selected source locations including local and remote memory devices to selected destination locations including;

an adding operation for adding the selected portions of the media data from the selected local memory devices to a catalog of the selected media server,

a loading operation for loading the selected portions of the media data from the selected remote memory devices to the catalog of the selected media server, and

staging assets from the selected media server to the selected destination location;

generating comments and associated parameters based on the input information for instructing the selected media server to execute the specified operation in accordance with the specified schedule; and

transmitting the commands and associated parameters to the selected media server.

61. A server as recited in claim 60 wherein at least one of the media servers is further operative to encode media data received from a corresponding multimedia device, and wherein the operations further include:

delete operations for deleting portions of media data from catalogs of predetermined mapped ones of the media servers;

multicasting operations for streaming portions of media data from selected ones of the media servers to selected ones of a plurality of end user terminals via the network; and

encoding operations for encoding media data received by selected ones of the media servers.

62. A server as recited in claim 60 wherein at least one of the media servers is also operative to encode and parse portions of media data to create media assets, and wherein each of the media servers is further operative to maintain a catalog including a plurality of pointers to catalogued ones of the media assets stored in a local disk included within the media server.

63. A server as recited in claim 60 wherein each of the media servers is operative to access a memory device for storing media data, and also operative to transfer portions of media data to selected locations via the network.

64. A server as recited in claim 63 wherein the steps of displaying a graphical user interface, and receiving input information further comprise the steps of:

displaying a source selection interface component enabling the user to select a source location by browsing a list of available locations including predetermined mapped ones of the media servers and predetermined mapped ones of the memory devices;

receiving information indicative of a selected source location;

displaying a media data selection interface component enabling the user to select a portion of media data by browsing a list of available a portions of media data stored at the selected source location;

receiving information indicative of a selected portion of media data;

determining a corresponding list of possible destination locations associated with the selected source location; and

displaying a destination selection interface component enabling the user to select a destination location by browsing the corresponding list of possible destination locations.

65. A server as recited in claim 64 wherein the steps of displaying a graphical user interface, receiving information, and generating commands further comprise the steps of:

displaying delayed copying interface components enabling the user to select a start time and a start date for a delayed copying operation;

receiving information indicative of a selected start time and a selected start date; and

generating a copy command and associated parameters for instructing the selected media server to copy the selected portion of media data from the selected source location to the selected destination location at the selected start time on the selected start date.

66. A server as recited in claim 63 further comprising the steps of:

displaying a location mapping interface component enabling the user to define a path to a new location in the network;

receiving information indicative of a selected path for accessing the new location; and

adding the new location associated with the selected path to the list of available locations.

67. A server as recited in claim 60 wherein the input information includes server identification information specifying the selected media server, operation information specifying the operation to be performed by the selected media server, and schedule information specifying the schedule, and wherein the process further comprises the step of displaying graphical indicia indicative of a plurality of user scheduled operations that have been previously defined and scheduled by the user, each of the scheduled operations being associated with corresponding previously specified information including previously specified server identification information, previously specified input information, and previously specified schedule information.

68. A server as recited in claim 67 further comprising the steps of:

providing interface components allowing the user to select one of the displayed scheduled operations;

receiving information indicative of a selected scheduled operation;

determining a portion of the interface components of the graphical user interface that is associated with the selected scheduled operation; and

displaying the determined portion of the interface components having previously specified information associated with the selected scheduled operation displayed therein, the displayed portion of the interface components enabling the user to edit the previously specified information associated with the selected scheduled operation in order to generate revised information associated with a revised operation, the revised information including revised server identification information, revised operation information, and revised schedule information.

69. A server as recited in claim 68 further comprising the steps of:

linking to a previously specified media server indicated by previously specified server identification information associated with the selected scheduled operation;

generating delete commands and associated parameters for instructing the previously specified media server to cancel execution of the selected scheduled operation; and

transmitting the delete commands and associated parameters to the previously specified media server.

70. A server as recited in claim 69 further comprising the steps of:

generating new commands and associated parameters based on the revised information associated with the revised operation, the new commands and associated parameters for instructing a particular media server to execute the revised operation in accordance with the revised schedule information; and

transmitting the commands and the associated parameters to the particular media server via the network.

71. A server as recited in claim 67 wherein the network further includes a global asset management server communicatively coupled to the client via the network, the global asset management server also being communicatively coupled to a memory device for storing global information including server identification information, operation information, and schedule information associated with corresponding scheduled operations that have been defined and scheduled by corresponding users, the process further comprising the steps of:

transmitting information indicative of a particular user from the client to the management server; and

transmitting the server identification information, the operation information, and the schedule information associated with the specified operation to the management server for storage.

72. A server as recited in claim 71 wherein the management server is further operative to access the global information, the process further comprising the steps of:

accessing the management server from the client;

transmitting user identification information indicative of a specified user to the asset management server; and

receiving previously specified information associated with each user scheduled operation that has been previously defined and scheduled by the specified user.

73. A server as recited in claim 71 wherein the global asset management server is further operative to generate a global schedule document including the graphical indicia indicative of the user scheduled operations, the previously specified information corresponding with each of the graphical indicia, executable code for implementing the steps of displaying a graphical user interface, receiving information, generating commands and associated, and transmitting the commands and associated parameters, and active areas for initiating the executable code, and wherein the step of displaying graphical indicia indicative of a plurality of user scheduled operations further comprises:

transmitting information indicative of a particular user to the asset management server; and

downloading the global schedule document associated with the particular user from the asset management server to the client.

74. A server as recited in claim 73 wherein the document comprises a HTML document and wherein the executable code comprises a Java applet.