Video resolution and download speed...

[Externet]

Hi.

Watching videos on youtube, there is ocassional pauses as the real time 'play' can be used up by a slow internet connection, if am explaining properly.

 

So I select a less 'demanding' resolution.

 

I get more interruptions and slower 'spooling ahead' when a low resolution as 144 pixels is selected, than when -say 480 pixels-

 

I thought the opposite; that requesting/demanding a lower resolution, more frames or more downloading ahead would happen for a given internet speed available, yielding less interruptions.

 

----> What may be going on ? Can someone explain it ?

 

[ What I call 'spooling ahead' can be monitored by placing the tip of the mouse arrow pointer exactly on the red center of the traveling circle on the 'progress bar' at the bottom of a playing youtube screen ]

( Am running Linux + Gnome )

 

[EdEarl]

If internet performance and your computer were the only factors, low resolution should be delivered faster than high resolution video. However, YouTube server performance is also a factor. Additionaly, performance of everything varies from moment to moment, which means a few timing expirements may not give reliable data.

 

Record video times, expected and actual, and resolution for several expirements. Compute the average playback time each time you do the expirement. Repeat until the average changes by a small amount.

 

Perhaps one of our mathematicians will explain how many samples are appropriate and how to do the statistics needed.