Month: January 2022

What’s the Best Kind of Lighting for Conference Calls?

Even cheap cameras can produce surprisingly good images these days, although most models are very dependent on lighting. Low light can lead to noisy or blurry images. Badly positioned lights can leave you in shadow, while very harsh lighting can highlight your face in the wrong ways. Let’s touch on each of these in more detail so can look your best with the best kind of lighting for a webcam.

Do you have the best kind of lighting for a webcam?

Cameras work by catching the light and turning it into electrical signals. If lighting is insufficient, the camera will compensate, at the expense of image quality. Here’s what might happen if there isn’t enough light:

  • Exposures can be made longer, which can lead to blurring
  • The signal can be amplified, which causes noise
  • Pixels can be combined and smoothing algorithms used, which will make the image look blurry and blocky

Your studio or office may already have enough light in it, but if it doesn’t, you can mount additional lights behind the camera. Higher-quality cameras will often work better in lower light conditions. However, for webcam lighting, you’ll want to ensure you’re giving it as much help as you can.

A person sat in front of a ring light with headphones on is one of the best lighting for a webcam.
Photo by Karolina Grabowska from Pexels

Are your lights in the right place?

It’s very important for lighting to be situated behind the camera. This is because webcam lighting needs to illuminate your face without shining into the camera itself. This applies to sunny windows, too – the camera will automatically adjust to the brightest part of the image. If there’s a window behind you, it will darken the whole image leaving your face in shadow. Ideally, you want to have the light source no more than 45° from the camera, and definitely higher than your face.

Different angles will give different effects, so try experimenting to see which one you like most. If you’re using software like XSplit’s VCam to replace the background, getting good lighting can instantly improve it’s effetiveness. But it’s still a good idea to make sure that you’re well-lit generally for your conference calls. If you’re in low-light settings or don’t get access to lots of natural sunlight, you could try a daylight bulb. They are designed to imitate the natural light of the sun.

A person, well lit, is sat in front of a laptop on a call with someone, knowing the best lighting for a webcam. A notebook is on the table as well as a water bottle and some files.
Photo by LinkedIn Sales Solutions on Unsplash

What shape is your light?

Small lights, such as phone torches, give very harsh shadows. It’s a technique sometimes used in art, but best avoided in a video conference or streams since you don’t want the lighting to distract your audience. There are two main options for adding light:

  • The best lighting for webcams is probably a softbox or key light. These have a larger light-emitting surface, which results in softer shadows and a more natural feel. You can also place them at a slight angle (no more than 45°) from the camera to give your face a bit of depth from the soft shadows. If you’re looking at softbox lighting, you can easily get your hands on an entire kit from Amazon. Check out ESDDI for a durable light with smaller dimensions or Neewer for a high-quality dual light that’s also good for a budget. For key lights, Elgato is a popular choice as it’s ultra-bright, adjustable and fully dimmable. It also keeps the heat low in comparison to softbox lights so you won’t be sweating on camera!
  • Then there are ring lights. These are compact and versatile, so you can use them whether you’re on a conference call from your phone or computer. The Cyezcor Video Conference Lighting Kit is an ideal USB light. It can be attached to your laptop and delivers an adjustable colour temperature.

You can also produce the softbox effect cheaply and easily by shining a bright light onto a wall behind the camera. This effectively uses the entire wall as the lighting surface, though make sure that you use a white wall –⁠ you don’t want to change the color of the light.

This isn’t the first time we’ve touched on lighting –⁠ if you’d like to find out more, check out our recommendations on tips for improving webcam quality. And the next time you’re setting up for a video conference, remember to make sure your lights are in front of you and not behind.

How to Live Stream a DJ Set

On my daily browse of Twitch I stumbled across a DJ set that basically played all the dance hits from the 1990s through to the 2000s. It had special effects, background dancers, everything! Now, in the world of DMCA takedowns, streaming copyrighted music, something we have discussed before, isn’t really a good idea but if it’s DMCA safe? It can be a great way to connect with a new audience! Let’s take a look at how you can live stream DJ sets with a bit of production flair!

Setting up to stream a DJ set

At a very basic level, streaming a DJ set can be very simple. It’s likely you’re DJing old school with turntables and a mixer, or via software like Traktor or Serato DJ Pro. If it’s the former all you need to do is send an output from your mixer to an input on your PC. This can be your line input or a dedicated audio interface like the EVO4.

If you’re using software and the audio is coming from your PC, all you need to do is capture your system sound. XSplit Broadcaster does this automatically so out of the box you won’t need to change anything. However, if it’s not, just head to Settings, and Audio and select the correct audio. If you’re using software with a DJ controller, like a Pioneer DDJ, then all you need to do is see if it has an audio output you can capture like a traditional DJ system.

A digital set of DJ decks hooked up to a laptop is a good start with learning how to stream a DJ set
Photo by Gabriel Barletta on Unsplash

Visuals

Now you have your audio set up correctly to stream a DJ set, let’s take a look at setting up some visuals. A good start is for people to see your lovely face, so why not add a webcam? Or, if you’re not interested in having yourself on the screen you could point the camera at your mixing decks. No matter what, the best entry-level camera for streaming is the Logitech c920 series. They can mount on a monitor or you can use the ¼ threading mounting point to add it to a tripod.

If you’re using software, you could capture the software in XSplit Broadcaster as well as your webcam by adding it from either the Game Capture menu or, if it’s not showing up there, by using Smart Capture. You could even take a cue from lo-fi hip-hop beats to chill, max and relax to and put a looping video image or gif. These can be put directly into XSplit Broadcaster, for a video simply right click and set it to loop forever. With a gif, it will just run automatically. Simply resize it to fit the way you’d like and you’re good to go!

Taking streaming a DJ set to the next level

What is a DJ broadcast without some special effects? We need some air horns! With XSplit Broadcaster you can create a variety of special effects to help you stream a DJ set! We’ve actually made a hand video that I’ll link below which shows off some of the power effects systems that are built into Broadcaster.

It’s best to use effects in conjunction with macros so you can easily trigger them with a hotkey press or even automatically depending on the conditions you set. You can learn more about Macros here but basically, you can install the Macros plugin and set “if this, then Broadcaster should do that”. The “this” could be a button press and the “that” could be changed to a different camera, for example. We’d highly recommend checking out the Elgato Streamdeck as well. It works perfectly with Broadcaster and can trigger a whole bunch of things with a physical touchpad. This makes it much easier for you to hit production buttons while you’re DJing.

Broadcasting your DJ set

Now that you have your production setup, it’s time to stream! Broadcaster supports all the popular platforms like Twitch, YouTube, Facebook, all you need to do is login to your account. Some sites that don’t support direct login through Broadcaster will require that you use the Custom RTMP option. What you’ll need from the site is the RTMP URL and your stream key.

For your streaming settings, this will depend on your PC. For minimum requirements for a 720p 30fps stream, I recommend either a 4 core 7 series processor either AMD or Intel OR an NVIDIA RTX GPU. 
The most important setting though is your audio bitrate. Make sure to set this as high as possible to give your viewers the best audio quality possible. After you’ve configured your settings, just hit the stream button and go live!

As with all things, remember consistency is key, and make sure to let your community know when you are live! Let us know in the comments how you’ve got your DJ setup ready for streaming. What DJs do you watch already and what do they do that inspires you? Be sure to let us know! If you’ve enjoyed this guide, let us know as well so we can make more things like this for you!

How to Create and Stream a VTuber: A Step-by-Step Guide

The term “VTuber” or “Virtual YouTuber” was originally created in reference to the virtual online personality Kizuna AI in 2016. Until a couple of years ago, VTubers were limited to just a handful of accounts. Due to the complications involved in rendering and animating the character model in real-time. However, recent advances in cheap and well-designed motion capture software have made creating and using a virtual avatar while streaming accessible to almost anyone. Want to try it yourself? Here’s how to stream a VTuber!

How to stream a VTuber: Creating an avatar

Creating the 3D model that will represent you while you’re on stream is the first step to streaming a VTuber. For this guide, we’re going to use an online app called ReadyPlayerMe. This program lets you create a 3D model right in your web browser. It’s admittedly not the most powerful or detailed creation tool you can find, but it’s pretty good, very easy to use, and free.

You start your avatar by choosing a body type you want to model with. Next, upload a photo of yourself (or take one with your webcam) and customize it using the app, which lets you adjust things like skin color as well as hair color and length. You can also add some accessories if you wish, like glasses. Once you’re happy with how you look, click “Next” and download your avatar file somewhere where you can find it easily.

A person playing a game across three monitors with a gaming headset on facing the screens wondering how to stream a vtuber.
Photo by RODNAE Productions from Pexels

Converting your avatar for use

The next step is to get your avatar animated. We’re going to use a program called Animaze. This is the evolution of a program you may have heard of called FaceRig. Animaze is free to use on Steam, but it doesn’t natively support the model format that ReadyPlayerMe generates. So, we’ll have to run through a couple of quick steps to convert it.

Once you’ve downloaded and installed Animaze, you’ll find a program called “Animaze Editor” in the Tools section of your Steam library. You’ll need to run this program first, and use it to open the avatar you created by going to the Assets menu tab, clicking on “Import 3D Object” and selecting the file you downloaded from ReadyPlayerMe.

After a bit of loading time, you’ll see your avatar pop up on the main screen. You can use Animaze Editor to fine-tune your avatar, but if you’d rather just move on to the fun part, right-click on your avatar’s file name in the Hierarchy Panel on the left-hand side and select “Bundle”. Choose a folder to export to, and once you get the confirmation dialogue, open the main Animaze program from the Software section of your Steam library.

Get that model moving

Now it’s time to meet your virtual self! From the main Animaze screen, click the Avatars icon on the navigation bar on the left-hand side, and then choose “Imports” from the pop-out window. Then click the big plus button, and select the file you saved in the previous step. It ends in “.avatar” – be careful not to confuse it with ReadyPlayerMe file which ends with “.glb”.

After the import completes, you’ll see your virtual self on the main program screen. Make sure that the camera window (upper right by default) is showing your main camera. If it’s not, click the drop-down arrow to change it. Once you’ve got your avatar loaded and the right camera selected, just hit “Calibrate” and follow the directions to get your model moving more accurately with your actions.

A PC set up for streaming with two monitors, two lights and other streaming hardware on a desk with large speakers, this setup would be good to find out how to stream a vtuber.
Photo by Roberto Nickson from Pexels

How To Stream the VTuber

The final step is getting your VTuber into XSplit Broadcaster so you can go live with it and introduce your audience to the new you. Within Animaze, simply click the big button at the bottom of the screen labeled “Enable Virtual Camera”. Then switch back over to XSplit Broadcaster and use the Add Source menu to add the Animaze Virtual Camera, which can be found in the Devices section. You should see your VTuber pop right up on the screen, and you’re good to go. Note that if you’re planning to use a chroma key background for your avatar coming out of Animaze, you’ll need to activate the chroma key option on the Animaze Virtual Camera input within Broadcaster. For it to work properly right-click the input name and go to the “Color” tab of the menu for chroma options.

This guide showed just one of many possible ways to model a VTuber for use in your livestreams. Looking for other ways to invest in your stream? Check out our guide to the top streaming upgrades of 2021 for some great ideas.

How to Run a Hybrid Office: Top Apps

Even before COVID-19 forced the workforce to move home, office hybridization was on the rise. It gives workers the freedom to manage their lives around their workload. Removes the need to commute, and offers a better work/life balance. However, personal choice and job necessity mean that some workers prefer to be based in an office. Managing these dual requirements can often be a challenge, especially in terms of scheduling and communication. Leaving some businesses scratching their heads over how to run a hybrid office. Thankfully, there are several software solutions to help you, including time management and video conferencing packages.

How to run a hybrid office with Chat tools – Slack and Teams

Two of the top apps for a hybrid office are Slack and Microsoft Teams. For years, Slack has been the go-to tool for managing remote teams, such as a group of freelancers. Offering a clean, easy-to-use app for both mobile and desktop computers. At one point, Microsoft was considering buying the company for $8 billion, before it decided to create its similarly-styled Teams software. At first glance, both offer many of the same features including:

  • File storage
  • Audio and video calls
  • Screen sharing
  • Chat messages

There are some notable differences worth calling out, however. Teams currently offer a higher storage capacity – 10GB vs Slack’s 5GB – and also allows guest access. Users of Slack’s free version will also only be able to see the last 10,000 messages, which you can quickly reach in large organizations. Teams users, on the other hand, can go back through any of their chats without limitations.

Microsoft’s offering has its own limitations, however. Prior to the pandemic, meetings were restricted to 60 minutes. Afterward, this was increased to 30 hours, with no word on if it would eventually revert back. It’s also designed for integration with Microsoft Office 365, so if you work in a different ecosystem, it may not be the best choice.

A person sat on a sofa using a laptop in a room with large paintings behind them on the wall as they learn how to run a hybrid office.
Photo by Brooke Cagle on Unsplash

The best video conferencing apps – Zoom and GoToMeeting

While Teams and Slack are handy for day-to-day comms between colleagues, sometimes you might want something a little bit more advanced to fulfill your video conferencing requirements. Tools like Zoom and GoToMeeting, for example, offer more features and cater to larger conferences for big business.

Zoom became synonymous with video calls in 2020, although the company was founded almost a decade earlier. Zoom supports up to 100 participants for free, and up to 1,000 with its premium packages. With 49 participants (plus the host) being displayed on the screen at any one time. It also has useful features such as polling, screen share, calendar integration, breakout rooms, and the option to go old-school and dial in on a phone.

Another option is GoToMeeting from LogMeIn. It offers similar features to Zoom, but with arguably better mobile app integration and quality (based on reviews). The other advantage is that its highest price tier can accommodate up to 3,000 participants – three times that of Zoom. LogMeIn also offers a cloud-based phone system with GoToConnect included as part of that package, so larger businesses looking for a VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) solution may find that it saves them money in the long run.

Video presenting software – XSplit Suite

When managing a hybrid office, you need to have solutions for running remote presentations and other interactive sessions such as training or pitching. The XSplit Suite has a wide range of top apps for a hybrid office, including:

  • Presenter
  • Capture
  • VCam

Presenter gives you the tools to create stunning and engaging presentations. You can import slides from PowerPoint or Google Slides, videos from YouTube or Vimeo, and then run the presentation through Zoom, Teams, or any video call service. You can even add your own camera with background removal enabled and add guest speakers! Recording the presentation to be shared later is just as easy!

Capture is like a handy snippet tool for both screenshots and videos. You can specify the area of the screen you want to capture, record, or take a still image, and then add annotations or even a voice-over.

Finally, VCam takes the features to blur or replace your background on Teams or Zoom and ramps it up. The intelligent software can add a blur or simply strengthen the depth of field, giving your presentation a more cinematic quality. It also offers a high-quality background replacement, removing the need for a green screen while keeping you in focus. You can even use videos or YouTube videos as your backgrounds, adding lower thirds or company logos with ease for external calls.

Top Apps for time management and organization – RescueTime and Toggl Track

Calendar meetings and reminders are useful for scheduling, but what about the rest of your workday? That’s where you may want to try using an app to help you maximize not just your time, but that of your entire team as well.

RescueTime vows to help you take back control of your time. It does this in a number of smart ways, including tracking websites, blocking distractions when required, and assessing your schedule. It also has a smart coaching feature to keep you on track of what they term ‘Focus Work’.

While RescueTime is more focused on an individual, Toggl Track has a wider scope. It is more focused on your internal teams and external clients. With the aim of reducing time wasted on timecards, billing, and invoicing. It also has tools to look at new projects, with the ability to forecast timelines, budgets and track the overall progress. It can generate easy-to-read reports for clients that show them the progress being made.

With these tools at your disposal, you should find your hybrid office team working in a more streamlined way as they achieve a better work-life balance. If your team members are continuing to WFH, they may find our blog on the importance of keeping a schedule at home useful.

How To Record Any Video Conference, No Matter The Platform

In the new age of hybrid office working, the ability to record video conference content and share it with your workforce can be crucial. However, the quality of your recording may vary wildly depending on the platform you’re using. There are also questions surrounding data protection and permissions to take into consideration when recording a conference. Let’s look at these points in more detail and see what software is best suited to your specific needs.

Why do you need to record a conference?

In some instances, you might not strictly need a recording, but here are a few reasons why it’s a good idea. First of all, it means that if any colleagues are absent, they can easily catch up. By offering a recording, it means that no one feels excluded in your company.

Depending on the type of conference in question, it might also be something that you can reuse at a later date, without having to go to the trouble of setting up a new live stream. It also allows you to watch the footage back with a critical eye so that you can refine your next presentation and make it even better.

Four people are sat around a table with someone on a video call on a large screen at the end of the room they have the ability to record video conference with XSplit Broadcaster
Photo by Surface on Unsplash

Video conferences as reference points

Along with the immediate benefits of recording your video conference, there are also some potential long-term bonuses for your company. Video conferences can be used as an audit log for details, allowing external collaborators to quickly get up to speed on a specific project’s timeline by watching the relevant meetings.

It also means that you can compile a video library of all of your conferences, which can prove to be a valuable compendium if set up correctly. This databank will give interested parties access to knowledge and history about the company that may be lost once those who are speaking during the video conference have left the company.

Things to do before recording

The most important thing to do is to make sure that all the people who will be appearing and speaking on the conference call are aware that they are being recorded, and have given their permission to do so. You should make this explicit in the invitation.

The other thing to do is to check the quality of the audio and video. The best way to do this is to do a test run of the conference and then play the footage back. Just because it says it’s recording, it doesn’t mean you’ll be getting exactly the output you expect.

A laptop computer is on a desk with a mug next to it, on the screen is a Zoom call which you could easily record video conference with XSplit Broadcaster.
Photo by Chris Montgomery on Unsplash

Which video conference software should you use?

Most video conferencing software will have the ability to record, so if you want to know how to record a Zoom meeting, one option is to simply hit ‘Record’ on the video call itself. However, this will only track the conference as it appears on the screen.

There are better software options that work across multiple platforms, such as XSplit Broadcaster, which will easily capture your screen from Zoom, Teams, or even Discord. Not only does it allow you to record from multiple outlets including websites and videos, but also features multiple audio tracks and noise suppression filters to make your video conference crystal clear.

Using Broadcaster gives you a lot more flexibility, allowing you to live mix the recording people will get. You could add a “starting soon” screen so it skips the chatter at the beginning of a call, leaving out the audio and video people don’t need to hear. You could put any links or media up in Broadcaster so the viewer gets it in a much clearer vision. There are a lot of options when you can run your recording like a live TV show!

As already mentioned, recording your video conferences can save duplication if you have to give the same information to several groups. If you want to save even more time at work, you could also pre-record your presentations so they’re ready to go, rather than having to battle through a live broadcast.

Improve Teaching with XSplit Presenter

When the Coronavirus pandemic struck in 2020, children around the globe were taught at home by teachers using video conference software such as Zoom or Webex. And, though students have now largely returned to schools, teachers are still discovering how software and technology can improve teaching methods and help students to focus. While XSplit Presenter can be seen primarily as an online application, it can also be deployed in schools to bring lessons to life in new and exciting ways. Let’s take a look to see how it can be used in a physical classroom.

How to use XSplit Presenter to improve teaching

Modern classrooms will have some form of screen that teachers can use to show video clips or images such as graphs and charts. By connecting this to a laptop, teachers can seamlessly move between speaking to a class and displaying their presentation.

Not only can teachers use existing presentation software such as PowerPoint or Google Slides, but they can switch between different sources with ease, allowing for a more dynamic and engaging lesson. This can be achieved with a few simple clicks and allows teachers to select specific windows or applications to share, avoiding any embarrassing faux pas on the desktop in front of their class.

Children in a classroom all looking at a teacher who is using an old projector to show the class what they're learning, using XSplit Presenter in this scenario is a good way to improve teaching.
Photo by NeONBRAND on Unsplash

Improve teaching with media

XSplit Presenter has an integrated virtual green screen, which allows teachers or pupils to appear within the presentation. The ability to appear on the screen and interact with what is on the display could prove to be a fun and powerful tool to keep children and adults engaged in the subject being taught.

Another useful tool within the presentation software is the ability to annotate the presentation in real-time, the digital equivalent of writing on the chalkboard. Teachers can use a variety of colors to call out different parts of their presentation, drawing attention to smaller details, or even add reminders to find a solution to an unsolved problem.

How does XSplit Presenter make teaching easier?

XSplit Presenter can help make lesson planning quicker and easier. Rather than having to build a presentation and linking to videos and images for later consumption, you can play videos and display media directly from the presentation during the lesson.

If you need to amend part of your presentation after you’ve loaded it, you can sync the files. You can also access presenter notes from your original presentation file, so there’s no need to be searching through multiple sources while trying to teach the lesson. This will help you to deliver more polished and professional online lessons to your students.

A child sat at their desk wearing headphones with a laptop in front of them while they write in a school book, on their desk is a water bottle, pens, a hat, another note book and some snacks looking for ways to improve teaching.
Photo by Compare Fibre on Unsplash

Other benefits of using XSplit Presenter

One of the great benefits of XSplit Presenter is that it not only allows you to present but also stream or record your presentation. This could prove useful for absent students or those self-isolating. You can also use it as a reviewing tool to help improve your own teaching methods or to offer classroom tips to your colleagues.

If, as part of your lesson, you would like a guest to speak to your class, you no longer have to arrange permission for them to enter the school. You can add remote guests through XSplit Presenter, so they can simply dial in through a video call and be added to the presentation to speak to the class. 

Now that you know how to use XSplit Presenter in the classroom, you can explore other aspects of your professional or personal life where it could also be useful. Why not check out this post on how XSplit Presenter can improve your presentation.

Being an Esports Host from Home – WFH Podcast with Eri Neeman

Here at XSplit, we’ve always been interested in how people use our apps, but beyond that, how people get their work done. From the apps and systems they use to how they focus on the task ahead. We used to love the side chats at trade shows and conventions with industry friends. Sitting down sharing stories, and discussing how we work. Since we’ve all been unable to go to shows in the last few years we wanted to take these conversations online and we thought they might be interesting to you. With that, this podcast with Eri Neeman was born!

In our first episode, the content team, Louis Vigil and Chris Slight sat down to talk to Eri Neeman. Eri is a popular esports host from the Philippines who has hosted events such as the Manila Major and ESL One Katowice. We spoke with Eri Neeman on this podcast about how he shifted his business to working remotely. We also discussed some tips for others in a similar situation.

Eri Neeman Podcast Interview

The following is a brief excerpt from the show:

Chris Slight: So when the pandemic hit and everything started getting canceled, how did you pivot your work?

Eri Neeman: First of all, it was just kind of accepting that OK, this was the situation. This is it. I knew there was going to be no work. Like, your entire calendar, however many events I had, that was just wiped, right? And I kind of saw it as an opportunity to do things I’ve always wanted to do but never really had the time to do it. Because it was just meetings, hosting, meeting with clients, and that cycle would go on for a year and you’d rarely get breaks.

Eri, Louis, and Chris go on to discuss everything from Eri’s background in the industry. As well as the equipment they use, and advice for transitioning as a host to a work-from-home environment.

You can watch the show on YouTube or listen on Apple Podcasts and Spotfiy or download it directly as an MP3 from our Soundcloud page.

Tips to Keep Your Twitch Channel Safe and Avoid DMCA Takedowns

It’s the email that every streamer dreads: the DMCA takedown notice. Remember, when it comes to copyright, Twitch has changed from a policy of muting audio to one of fully removing the offending clips. Repeat offenders run the risk of being banned completely, so streamers constantly need to be on their guard with the music and audio they’re allowing to go live on stream. Don’t worry though, we’ve got the tips and tools to help you avoid DMCA strikes on Twitch right here.

How to avoid a DMCA takedown on Twitch

After multiple massive, platform-wide DMCA headaches on Twitch in 2020 and 2021, it should be clear that you can’t use copyrighted music in your content. The most common way this has happened in the past is by listening to Spotify or some other music service during your livestream. But there are other ways that may not be as obvious for problematic audio to creep into your channel.

Got the football game on your tv in the background? If your mic picks it up, that’ll probably get flagged. Playing a trailer off YouTube that uses a pop song? A takedown notice could be headed your way. It’s important to keep your stream as clean as possible when it comes to audio. Come to mention it, if you need help getting your audio set up perfectly, we’ve got a guide for that too!

One person enjoying watching another stream a game on a PC, they both have gaming headsets on it would be useful to know how to avoid DMCA takedowns on Twitch
Photo by RODNAE Productions from Pexels

Will deleting clips and VODs protect your channel?

The DMCA rules on Twitch are in a constant state of flux. Early on, the platform would simply mute audio on VODs where it detected copyrighted music. There was no real way for live detection to happen. Technology and policies have both changed, however, and these days there is increasingly active live detection of copyright infringement. This is especially for TV and sports audio!

Twitch will remove or require the removal of any offending clips and VODs if flagged. It all adds up to potentially massive problems for streamers of all levels. Most importantly, the penalties for repeat offenders can still be very stringent, with permanent bans on the table. Really, the only thing to do is just be very diligent and make sure you’re sticking to music you have the rights to play.

So what can you safely play?

The good news is, there are a number of options out there that can provide music that’s safe for your channel to use. Gamecaster even has its own library of copyright-free music! Called Grooves, available for anyone to download and stream for free and use in their broadcasts. No registration or credit card is required, just click and go! There are more than 150 professionally produced tracks in a variety of genres that you can throw into your stream to set the mood without worrying about a DMCA claim ruining your day.

Music can be not only a great background to your content but sharing your favorite tracks with your community or other streamers can be a great way to connect further. Now that your channel is safe from the threat of DMCA strikes, learn how to secure the rest of your online life with our guide to protecting your privacy while streaming on Twitch.

Online Security When Working From Home

With the increase in working from home, there are a number of things we need to think about in order to stay secure online. These new challenges aren’t too difficult, but keeping your data safe is very important! We’ll take you through some of the key things to consider for online security in this blog.

Stay secure online

When data is at risk, it’s very important to ensure that your connection is secure. The best way to do this is to have a VPN set up so that all your connections go through a network. This ensures that any data that goes across the internet is fully encrypted, even if you’re using insecure protocols such as SMTP or HTTP. A VPN will also protect you if you’re using a public wifi connection, such as at a coffee shop – you’ll be protected even if someone else on the network is trying to snoop your data.

If you’re part of a company, the other big advantage of using a VPN is that it allows you to access all of the network services in the office as if you were actually there yourself. This includes servers, printers, projectors, and anything else that’s available on the network. With everyone on a VPN, those services don’t have to be made open to the internet in general, greatly improving the office network security.

A person sat on a bed using a laptop with a large open window behind them looking out on to a tree looking to stay secure online.
Photo by DocuSign on Unsplash

Personal data security

If you’re using a laptop outside the home or office you need to think about keeping your data secure. The first things to consider to stay secure online are:

  • Anti-virus software, which helps protect from viruses that could steal or encrypt your data – ransomware attacks where a criminal demands money to unencrypt your files are sadly getting more frequent.
  • Disk encryption will protect the data on your computer if somebody steals it – without your password, they won’t be able to read any of the data on the computer or even start it up without wiping it. This doesn’t get you your computer back, but at least it means you can be sure the data is safe!

Speaking of losing your computer, making regular backups is important as well. Keeping files on the office servers means you don’t have to worry about hardware loss or failure, and your IT department should already be backing up the servers. It’s also a good idea to make sure you’re familiar with what real and scam emails look like. Phishing attacks, where an email tries to convince you to go to a dodgy website, are also common. Remember to check the domain name in any links to help stay secure online.

Giving away information

Sometimes the simplest security slip-ups are the most damaging when you’re trying to stay secure online. Imagine doing a presentation to a supplier or client, but when you share your screen, you accidentally show your desktop where there’s a document about a deal with their competitor. Or perhaps, during a meeting, you’re sharing your screen when an email notification about a sensitive or personal matter comes through and a notification pops up. You can avoid these moments by using XSplit Presenter to share just a single application, rather than sharing your entire screen.

You can also use XSplit VCam to blur the background of your webcam if you’re in a call, which helps if your home office isn’t quite as private as you would like it to be.

Using complicated, random passwords and saving them in a password manager also helps enormously, giving you all the security of never repeating a password whilst still only having to remember one.

Whilst there are plenty of potential pitfalls in online security, there are also a lot of solutions. As long as you’re careful, you shouldn’t have any problems and can be confident that you will stay secure online.

The Twitch Affiliate Contract Explained

Every streamer on Twitch is out there shooting to get their channel to the level where they snag a Twitch Partnership invitation. That purple checkmark is a badge of honor for the content creators who work on the platform. But the first step to your streaming success is probably the Twitch Affiliate program. Today we’re going to help you understand a little bit about what the Twitch Affiliate contract looks like and what you can and can’t do with the program.

How is an Affiliate different from a Partner?

The Affiliate program exists to allow early-stage streamers who are serious about their careers to start earning money on Twitch. The differences between Affiliate and Partner are primarily in how much they earn. It’s probably easiest to think of the Affiliate program as the younger sibling of the Partner program. Affiliates can…

  • Receive payouts from viewers cheering bits on their channel
  • Earn commissions on paid and Prime subscriptions
  • Earn revenue on ads watched on their streams 
  • Earn commissions on games and merch sold through their channels
  • Activate channel points for viewers
  • Run polls directly through Twitch chat
  • Access five sub emotes

Partners get all of the above but also get custom Cheermotes, can access up to 60 emotes for subs, and earn ad revenue at a significantly higher rate than Affiliates.

A man standing in front of a bay of gaming PCs with his arms outstretched and a smile as he wears a gaming headset wondering about the twitch affiliate contract being explained.
Photo by RODNAE Productions from Pexels

What is ‘exclusivity’, and what does it mean for Affiliates?

The Twitch Affiliate contract has a clause that may be a little confusing, dealing with “exclusivity”. Essentially, it says that by becoming an Affiliate, you are giving up the right to go live on Twitch and another platform at the same time. That means Twitch has exclusive rights to your stream when you’re live. The important thing to understand, however, is that they only have exclusive rights to you when you’re live on Twitch. You’re free to end your Twitch stream then start a Facebook Gaming/YouTube multistream right after. You’re also allowed to embed your live Twitch stream on another site, such as your personal webpage, as many times as you like. Plus you can still upload any non-live content like VODs to other platforms as well.

It may seem a little limiting, but the tradeoff is being able to make money directly from your channel and start building towards Partner.

Twitch Affiliate requirements

Becoming an Affiliate does have some requirements, and technically there’s also an application process, but it’s more of a formality. Compare that to the Partner application, which, as most streamers know, is pretty heavily scrutinized. The Affiliate standards are:

  • you’ve reached 50 followers
  • you’ve streamed for eight hours total
  • you’ve streamed on seven different days in the previous month
  • you’ve averaged at least three viewers per stream

Once you’ve hit all of those milestones (it will track them on your dashboard in the ‘Road to Affiliate’ achievement) a button will appear on the page to let you apply to the Affiliate program. Just click that, wait a few days for a response, and you’ll be all set to start earning your keep as a professional streamer!

One big note we want to add is remember you still need to pay taxes, depending where you are located globally, on your Twitch earnings. So do keep this in mind!

It’s much easier to get on your streaming grind when you’re making a little money from your channel, and securing Twitch Affiliate is an important first step to becoming a Partner. Need help hitting those requirements? Check out our guide to finding your voice as a new streamer for ways to nudge that viewer count up.