Xing Technology: Difference between revisions
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{{Infobox company |
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| industry = [[Software]] |
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| founded = {{Start date and age|1989}} in [[Arroyo Grande, California]], United States |
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| founder = Howard Gordon |
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| defunct = {{End date|1999}} |
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| fate = Acquired by RealNetwork |
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| key_people = Chris Eddy |
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| products = {{ubl|XingIt!|[[Picture Prowler]]|StreamWorks|Audio Catalyst|MP3 Grabber}} |
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}} |
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'''Xing Technology''' was a live audio broadcast software company founded in [[Arroyo Grande, California]] in 1989 by former networking executive Howard Gordon. |
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==History== |
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On the basis of this, Xing expanded from Gordon's home to a dedicated house (still in Arroyo Grande). Chris Eddy actually lived in the room where he worked, keeping his minimal stuff in the closet and showering at the gym next door. Xing expanded to seven employees: Laurie Beam, Tom Chen, Ken Mascaro, Rich Fife and Ray Bunnage filling out the staff in addition to Gordon and Eddy. Later on, the company moved to new offices above and to the side of a KMart down the road, gaining room to expand. |
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| ⚫ | Gordon founded Xing on the basis of a simple [[JPEG]] decoding library that he had developed. It attracted the attention of Chris Eddy, who had developed a technique for processing [[Discrete cosine transform]]s (DCT) efficiently through software. Eddy's technique helped create the first Xing [[MPEG]] video player, a very simple [[MS-DOS]] app that could play an [[I-frame]]-only MPEG video stream encoded with constant [[Quantization (image processing)|quantization]], at 160x120 resolution. |
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Over the next |
Over the next years, Xing expanded in several directions: [[Windows]] support for the XingMPEG player, a software MPEG audio decoder, a real-time [[Industry Standard Architecture|ISA]] 160x120 MPEG capture board ([[XingIt!]]), a [[JPEG]] management system ([[Picture Prowler]]), and networking. Xing released a handful of network products before StreamWorks, the first streaming audio and video system for the [[Internet]], with support for both live and pre-encoded sources. [[RealVideo]] appeared in 1997 (just before StreamWorks), but at the time, the company behind the technology ([[Progressive Networks]]) had only published [[RealAudio]] and its flagship technology was primary for broadcasting audio. |
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After the launch of StreamWorks, the company raised $5M in venture capital, but Progressive Networks (which was renamed "[[RealNetworks]]") raised considerably more in its [[initial public offering]] and acquired many of Xing's competitors (e.g. [[Vivo Software]]). Despite that, Xing experienced a period of expansion through its "Audio Catalyst" MP3 software and "MP3 Grabber". |
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Xing is also famous for being the company that allowed the [[DVD]] encryption scheme [[Content-scrambling_system|CSS]] out of the bag, leading to [[DeCSS]]. |
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In 1998, Xing partnered with SimplyTV to launch a service to offer near-broadcast quality [[video on demand]]. This service would require a 200 kilobits/s [[broadband]] connection, which was not popular at that time. Forrester Research and RealNetwork were skeptical about its success.<ref>{{Cite magazine|last=Ashbrook Nickell|first=Joe|date=3 March 1998|title=New Xing Effort: Too Much Anticipation?|url=https://www.wired.com/1998/03/new-xing-effort-too-much-anticipation/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080815050022/http://www.wired.com/techbiz/media/news/1998/03/11276|archive-date=15 August 2008|magazine=[[Wired (magazine)|Wired]]}}</ref> |
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In 1999, RealNetwork acquired Xing. |
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==References== |
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{{Reflist}} |
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== Further reading == |
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*Bert J. Dempsey, Paul Jones ''Internet issues and applications 1997-1998''. [[Scarecrow Press]], Lanham, Maryland 1998. {{ISBN|0-8108-3430-8}} (0-8108-3430-8) |
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== External links == |
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* [http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/1996_articles/aug96/internetradio.html SoundOnSound.com Early adoption of StreamWorks by NBC] |
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* [http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0EIN/is_1996_April_22/ai_18214615 Findarticles.com: Harvard Law School Usage] |
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* [http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0EIN/is_1997_Feb_11/ai_19105293 Findarticles.com: Early use of Streamworks for live video webcasts] |
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* [http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0EIN/is_1999_Jan_4/ai_53503662 Findarticles.com: Xing releases first Mac MP3 Encoder] |
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[[Category:Defunct software companies of the United States]] |
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[[Category:Arroyo Grande, California]] |
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[[Category:Companies based in California]] |
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[[Category:Software companies disestablished in 1999]] |
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[[Category:1989 establishments in California]] |
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[[Category:1999 disestablishments in California]] |
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Latest revision as of 20:16, 9 August 2024
| Industry | Software |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1989 in Arroyo Grande, California, United States |
| Founder | Howard Gordon |
| Defunct | 1999 |
| Fate | Acquired by RealNetwork |
Key people | Chris Eddy |
| Products |
|
Xing Technology was a live audio broadcast software company founded in Arroyo Grande, California in 1989 by former networking executive Howard Gordon.
History
[edit]Gordon founded Xing on the basis of a simple JPEG decoding library that he had developed. It attracted the attention of Chris Eddy, who had developed a technique for processing Discrete cosine transforms (DCT) efficiently through software. Eddy's technique helped create the first Xing MPEG video player, a very simple MS-DOS app that could play an I-frame-only MPEG video stream encoded with constant quantization, at 160x120 resolution.
Over the next years, Xing expanded in several directions: Windows support for the XingMPEG player, a software MPEG audio decoder, a real-time ISA 160x120 MPEG capture board (XingIt!), a JPEG management system (Picture Prowler), and networking. Xing released a handful of network products before StreamWorks, the first streaming audio and video system for the Internet, with support for both live and pre-encoded sources. RealVideo appeared in 1997 (just before StreamWorks), but at the time, the company behind the technology (Progressive Networks) had only published RealAudio and its flagship technology was primary for broadcasting audio.
After the launch of StreamWorks, the company raised $5M in venture capital, but Progressive Networks (which was renamed "RealNetworks") raised considerably more in its initial public offering and acquired many of Xing's competitors (e.g. Vivo Software). Despite that, Xing experienced a period of expansion through its "Audio Catalyst" MP3 software and "MP3 Grabber".
In 1998, Xing partnered with SimplyTV to launch a service to offer near-broadcast quality video on demand. This service would require a 200 kilobits/s broadband connection, which was not popular at that time. Forrester Research and RealNetwork were skeptical about its success.[1]
In 1999, RealNetwork acquired Xing.
References
[edit]- ^ Ashbrook Nickell, Joe (3 March 1998). "New Xing Effort: Too Much Anticipation?". Wired. Archived from the original on 15 August 2008.
Further reading
[edit]- Bert J. Dempsey, Paul Jones Internet issues and applications 1997-1998. Scarecrow Press, Lanham, Maryland 1998. ISBN 0-8108-3430-8 (0-8108-3430-8)