Ask HN: It's impossible to stop someone from downloading a stream, correct?
I just want to make sure I'm not missing something. By "[download] a stream" I obviously mean "save video that you're streaming to permanent storage". I'm doing an interview project that involves working with a "streaming as a service" (terminology?) provider, so I thought I'd go to PBS's website and download some video to use in the project. I found that all of the video there is only available to "stream", and in fact uses a video player and "streaming as a service" provider that's in the same space as the company I'm interviewing for. Five seconds on google revealed a "PBS video downloader", which I assume just locates the video segments in the browser's temp folder, stitches them back together, and saves them to a location that won't be cleared on reboot. My question is basically, "That basic procedure can always be performed and there's nothing that can be done to prevent it, right?" Isn't the distinction between "streaming" and "downloading" ultimately just about how the video data is delivered? The server is incapable of ensuring that the client doesn't save it to permanent storage, and a "cooperative" client can always be modified by the person who controls it to save the data, assuming it's physically connected to a storage medium. Am I missing something fundamental that allows there to be a hard distinction between streaming and downloading? NB: I don't have any moral qualms with providing streaming video, I just think that the business folks wish that there were a technical distinction that, AFAICT, does not exist. 6 comments on Hacker News.
I just want to make sure I'm not missing something. By "[download] a stream" I obviously mean "save video that you're streaming to permanent storage". I'm doing an interview project that involves working with a "streaming as a service" (terminology?) provider, so I thought I'd go to PBS's website and download some video to use in the project. I found that all of the video there is only available to "stream", and in fact uses a video player and "streaming as a service" provider that's in the same space as the company I'm interviewing for. Five seconds on google revealed a "PBS video downloader", which I assume just locates the video segments in the browser's temp folder, stitches them back together, and saves them to a location that won't be cleared on reboot. My question is basically, "That basic procedure can always be performed and there's nothing that can be done to prevent it, right?" Isn't the distinction between "streaming" and "downloading" ultimately just about how the video data is delivered? The server is incapable of ensuring that the client doesn't save it to permanent storage, and a "cooperative" client can always be modified by the person who controls it to save the data, assuming it's physically connected to a storage medium. Am I missing something fundamental that allows there to be a hard distinction between streaming and downloading? NB: I don't have any moral qualms with providing streaming video, I just think that the business folks wish that there were a technical distinction that, AFAICT, does not exist.
I just want to make sure I'm not missing something. By "[download] a stream" I obviously mean "save video that you're streaming to permanent storage". I'm doing an interview project that involves working with a "streaming as a service" (terminology?) provider, so I thought I'd go to PBS's website and download some video to use in the project. I found that all of the video there is only available to "stream", and in fact uses a video player and "streaming as a service" provider that's in the same space as the company I'm interviewing for. Five seconds on google revealed a "PBS video downloader", which I assume just locates the video segments in the browser's temp folder, stitches them back together, and saves them to a location that won't be cleared on reboot. My question is basically, "That basic procedure can always be performed and there's nothing that can be done to prevent it, right?" Isn't the distinction between "streaming" and "downloading" ultimately just about how the video data is delivered? The server is incapable of ensuring that the client doesn't save it to permanent storage, and a "cooperative" client can always be modified by the person who controls it to save the data, assuming it's physically connected to a storage medium. Am I missing something fundamental that allows there to be a hard distinction between streaming and downloading? NB: I don't have any moral qualms with providing streaming video, I just think that the business folks wish that there were a technical distinction that, AFAICT, does not exist. 6 comments on Hacker News.
I just want to make sure I'm not missing something. By "[download] a stream" I obviously mean "save video that you're streaming to permanent storage". I'm doing an interview project that involves working with a "streaming as a service" (terminology?) provider, so I thought I'd go to PBS's website and download some video to use in the project. I found that all of the video there is only available to "stream", and in fact uses a video player and "streaming as a service" provider that's in the same space as the company I'm interviewing for. Five seconds on google revealed a "PBS video downloader", which I assume just locates the video segments in the browser's temp folder, stitches them back together, and saves them to a location that won't be cleared on reboot. My question is basically, "That basic procedure can always be performed and there's nothing that can be done to prevent it, right?" Isn't the distinction between "streaming" and "downloading" ultimately just about how the video data is delivered? The server is incapable of ensuring that the client doesn't save it to permanent storage, and a "cooperative" client can always be modified by the person who controls it to save the data, assuming it's physically connected to a storage medium. Am I missing something fundamental that allows there to be a hard distinction between streaming and downloading? NB: I don't have any moral qualms with providing streaming video, I just think that the business folks wish that there were a technical distinction that, AFAICT, does not exist.
Hacker News story: Ask HN: It's impossible to stop someone from downloading a stream, correct?
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March 05, 2020
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