User Guide

480 Chapter 24: Using Shockwave Player
Run the movie on slow and fast connections; problems can arise from fast as well as slow
connections.
Check for display problems on systems set to 8-, 16-, 24-, and 32-bit color. Also test as many
types of monitors and display adapters as you can.
Check for font mapping problems in your movie. If your movie uses nonstandard fonts, use
embedded fonts. For more information, see “Embedding fonts in movies” on page 164.
Check for sound problems, particularly if you stream sounds with SWA.
About downloading speed
Developers distributing multimedia over the Internet usually limit file size, primarily because
most users connect at relatively slow speeds. At 28,800 bps, it takes 30 seconds to 1 minute to
download a 60K file. Using streaming playback can help you avoid some of the delays caused by
downloading large files.
Movies and streaming SWA sounds always compete for control of the network, which can cause a
noticeable problem on slower connections.
The following chart shows theoretical throughput times for various types of network access
technology. The rates calculated for this chart are based on the average throughput rate shown—
actual download times vary, and are highly dependent on the network conditions that exist at the
time of download.
Content 28.8 Kbps 56K modem DSL T1
Small graphics and animation, 30K 15 sec 7 sec 1 sec or less 1 sec or less
Small complete movie, 100K 45 sec 21 sec 3 sec 1 sec or less
500K movie 220 sec 107 sec 15 sec 4 sec
1 MB movie -- 213 sec 30 sec 8 sec