Embedding Videos From Video Sharing Web Sites

Our last post showed how to upload videos directly into your blog plus linked to tutorials on creating your own videos.

I love teaching people how to create digital stories and videos because it’s a skill that most learners, regardless of age, enjoy learning, experimenting with and are more likely to spend time perfecting their skills in their own time. Great way of engaging even the most reluctant educator to use technology.

However there are so many videos available online, on so many different topics, that it’s sometimes more effective to use ‘others videos’ than create your own video.

Locating Videos Online

I find the fastest way to locate videos is to search video sharing sites. These are my favourite sites:

1. Google Video

When you search Google Video it searches videos that people have added using Google’s services (YouTube, Google Video) as well as videos from other third-party video sites (e.g. Blip TV, Yahoo Video, Expo Television).

2. YouTube

YouTube searches only videos uploaded to their site. The same search term may give different results for Google Video and YouTube, even though Google owns YouTube. This is why I often search both Google Video and YouTube (check out results for aquaculture – Google Video compared to YouTube).

3. VideoJug

This video site has lots of great “how to do” videos with written transcript of the videos. Here are examples of their video tutorials on using ipods, podcasting and itunes. Only downside of this site is you definitely don’t want to send your students to the site to check out the videos. You may be better downloading videos from this site and showing from your computer.

Embedding Videos

  1. On your blog dashboard, go to Write > Post
  2. Completely write your post adding all text and images including adding your categories, tags and post title.
  3. Make sure you tell your readers that you have embedded a video below as many feed readers such as Google Reader may remove the video).
  4. It’s best to add any code you want to embed as the last step just before you click publish as you’re less likely to have problems.
  5. Click on Save and View this Post to do any final edits on your post
  6. Locate video you want to embed from Google Video or YouTube. Copy the embed code for the video.
    Image of Locating Embed Code on Google Video
  7. Click on HTML Tab
  8. Paste the embed code for the video into your post where you want it to appear then immediately press Publish.

Image of Embedding Code into post

I’ve added the Jurrasic fart video below using this method (apparently it’s funny).

[kml_flashembed movie="http://video.google.com/googleplayer.swf?docid=3953709505775506774" width="400" height="326" wmode="transparent" /]

Customizing YouTube Videos

The related video links at the end of YouTube Videos is an issue for educators who don’t want their students to checking out the other videos. YouTube now allows you to customise your player which means you can choose not to show the related videos.

  1. Locate video you want to embed from YouTube
  2. Click on customize
  3. Change to Don’t include related videos
  4. Copy the Embed code
    videoyou.jpg
  5. On your blog dashboard, go to Write > Post
  6. Write the contents of your post i.e. add all text and images plus your tags and categories. Make sure you tell your readers that you have embedded a video below as many feed readers such as Google Reader may remove the video).
  7. Just before you are ready to publish your post click on the HTML Tab.
  8. Paste the embed code of the video from YouTube in the desired location then immediately press Publish.

At the moment embedding objects into posts are a bit touchy (when you embed a YouTube video like this you are embedding an object). If you press Save and View this Post or go back into the post after it has been published it generally will break the code and you will need to re-paste the code back into your post.

I’ve embedded Evolution of Dance below to show you what a customise YouTube Video Player looks like. It’s also funny and I thought we could all do with education on the evolution of dance.

Final Thought

What is your favourite video sharing web sites? How do you use video with your learners?

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30 thoughts on “Embedding Videos From Video Sharing Web Sites

  1. @dillonsc Sploggers, who create lots of blogs to promote products, were using the JavaScript for redirects on free blogs. ‘No’ other blog hosts powered by WordPress allows embedding like we have done so far and we’ve been forced to limit it due to this abuse by sloggers.

    This is why your Vide embeds aren’t working.

    The key is we still want our users to have this ability but we had to provide it in such a way that the sploggers can’t use it.

    The only solution was to link it to Edublogs Pro and Campus like we had to do with XML-RPC.

    So what we have done is an Edublogs Pro is automatically able to embed all code including Voicethreads, Teachertube and is able to upgrade up to 50 blogs other blogs so that the 50 other blogs can also embed code, access premium themes and their ads are disabled.

    You can read more about it here – http://help.edublogs.org/2009/09/01/difference-between-free-supporter-and-campus-blogs/

    Here is more information about Edublogs Pro –
    1. http://help.edublogs.org/2009/09/10/upgrading-your-blog-to-edublogs-supporter/
    2. http://help.edublogs.org/2010/05/23/upgrading-student-blogs-using-a-pro-blog/

  2. I cant seem to embed videos of any kind Vimeo or youtube? The moment I hit publish or update the code disappears. I also dont see any plug ins for using a url available. I run several personal wordpress blogs and havent ever had this problem. Anything Im doing wrong or is it just flaky?

  3. I’d love to start getting my students to embed videos in their posts on our Health Studies blog but I’m a bit unsure of of the useage and copyright issues surrounding video. I’ve got the hang of Creative Commons images, FlickrCC and attributing them in posts – does the same sort of thing apply to video and other types of media? I couldn’t find anything on YouTube about using or embedding videos that have been uploaded by other users?

    1. @healthstudies, If you are using from a Video sharing website they include a link back to the original location of the video so it generally isn’t considered an issue.

      And if YouTube feels it has breached copyright they will remove content which automatically removes it from playing on your blog.

  4. Sue, YouTube is blocked within my district (this includes when it is embedded in a post). In the past I have used Edublogs.tv to convert it and then embed it; unfortunately, I have not had any luck with this feature any time within the last 6 months. Is something wrong with Edublogs.tv and, if so, what is the work around? Thanks,

    1. @mrlane, I’m not sure but I thought Edublogs.TV is working. The struggle we have had with it is that the PHP code it uses is a different version which has affected it; and because it is very different from the normal coding we do we have been reliant on an outside group to fix.

      Can I get you to try uploading again? Your other alternative is to upload directly to your blog inserting as a link.

      Are Blip.TV and Vimeo blocked?

      1. @Sue Waters, Unfortunately, I am still unable to upload YouTube videos from home or school to Edublogs.tv. And, of course, Blip.tv and Vimeo are blocked as they are classified as “Adult” sites at school. : (

  5. Sue
    How do you embed a video in a comment you make on a blog? When I did it on a blog I write on, it tells me it will replace the embedding text after moderation but it never does it.

    Zack

  6. @Jim – Unfortunately the embed code from Teachertube doesn’t work at the moment.

    @Esther – We used to use Anarchy but don’t any longer

    @ Gail – Previously you could upload the video directly into your blog post and add it that way. It would then play embedded within your post. However what happens now is it adds the file to your post and when the person clicks on the link it downloads to their computer which means they play it on their own computer (here is an example of one embedded in a post on my test blog).

    I’d suggest that perhaps you should consider uploading to Edublogs.TV and embedding across from there.

    1. @Sue Waters, I have been trying to get into edublogs.tv to upload a video. It keeps on telling me that my e-mail address is already there and I need to check my e-mail for my password. But, I can’t seem to find any e-mail and can’t find a way to get the password. How do I contact them? I have a mvi video which is 50.9mb long and haven’t got the project (moviemaker) file to break it down for uploading under the edublogs 20mb limit?

      What do you suggest I do? I am getting error messages with teachertube

      Dawn

      1. @dolphinkids It indicates that the filter on your email system is blocking our emails and you need to use an alternative email such as gmail.com or hotmail. However, I recommend that you try Vimeo.com or Blip.tv.

  7. Sue
    I would like to embed a homemade video and don’t want it added to YouTube or other public sites. How do a turn the Windows MovieMaker video I’ve created into something that can be embedded? Sometimes I feel as if I’m on such a steep learning curve that I can’t hold on to what I’ve already heard!

    Gail
    poulingail.edublogs.org

  8. Do you mind if I ask what plugin you’re using?

    I’m testing Anarchy Media Player for my college’s beta WPMU install, and I’d like to try others before I commit.

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