Yes. Anything that can be encoded as Silverlight application content and rendered in Silverlight can be used. This includes music files such as WMA and MP3. Business logic written in JScript can also be stored and streamed to the client. In the future, you will be able to use any Silverlight Dynamic Language Runtime assemblies.
A user receives 4 gigabytes (GB) of free storage for Silverlight Streaming applications. Each media element in a Silverlight Streaming application cannot exceed a 10-minute uninterrupted video stream at 300 kilobit/s. The peak outbound bit rate for Silverlight Streaming is 700 kilobit/s. Because the limit is set based on byte size instead of duration, by using the full bandwidth of 700 kilobit/s, the video will be truncated to approximately 4 minutes.
Silverlight builds on top of Windows Media in a fashion similar to the Xbox XDK (Xbox Development Kit), enabling developers and designers to collaborate in building media experiences and RIAs. Silverlight is released by the Server and Tools Division at Microsoft as a part of the .NET Framework.
No. Silverlight is a cross-browser, cross-platform plug-in for delivering media experiences and RIAs. It is not a desktop application or stand-alone media player.
The Silverlight browser plug-in is a separate component, independent of Windows Media Player. Silverlight is designed for delivery of cross-platform, cross-browser media experiences and rich interactive applications (RIAs) inside a Web browser combining audio, video, animation, overlays, and more. Windows Media Player delivers a breadth of local playback and user focused experiences, while also offering support for application and Web page embedding.
No. Silverlight is completely independent and when installed is less than 2 MB in size.
Silverlight supports Windows Media Audio and Video (WMA, WMV7–9) and VC-1, as well as MP3 audio. Additional formats may be available by the final release based on customer feedback.
Since Silverlight is a lightweight cross-platform technology, it only carries the most common codices that are needed for Web playback. However, we are gathering information from customers about the needed codices and can update Silverlight when necessary.
VC-1 is an industry-standard video format, recognized by the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE), and most notably ships in all HD-DVD and Blu-ray Disc–certified electronics, hardware, and tools. Windows Media Video 9 (WMV-9) is the Microsoft implementation of the SMPTE VC-1 standard video codec. Microsoft initiated development of the standard with the release of WMV-9 to SMPTE.
Yes, Silverlight supports 720p, HD quality with considerable performance benefits over other solutions. Performance is dependent upon the central processing unit (CPU) capabilities of your computer and configurations. Generally, in testing, a 3-gigahertz (GHz) CPU and/or dual-core support greatly benefit the HD playback experience.
Yes, in the final release. The CTP supports progressive download and playback from any server. In its final release, Silverlight will take advantage of Windows Server features for streaming.
Yes, in the final release. The February CTP is optimized for progressive "download and play" scenarios to test the platform.
No. However, content from many of these formats can be transposed into formats that are supported by Silverlight, such as by an automated server function (many available third-party solutions support this workflow), and then incorporated into a Silverlight-based application.
We are actively speaking to customers and partners about their needs.
For content providers, Silverlight will support digital rights management (DRM) built on the recently announced Microsoft PlayReady content access technology on Windows-based computers and Macintosh computers.
Silverlight Streaming by Windows Live offers a free cloud-based hosting and streaming solution for efficiently delivering high-quality media experiences and media-enabled RIAs.
Silverlight-based applications can run in Media Center but may have rendering issues on Media Center Extenders. Applications that are implemented using the Media Center SDK will provide a better experience. The engineering team is actively evaluating customer requirements for a variety of scenarios moving forward.
Yes. The recently announced Expression Media Encoder will support live and on-demand encoding and template-based publishing of Silverlight-based experiences and applications. In addition, Silverlight works with the broad range of Windows Media encoding tools and utilities available today. Additional details will be made available shortly.