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A streaming content distribution network for e‐learning support

M. Esteve (Departamento de Comunicaciones, Universidad Politecnica de Valencia, Camino de Vera s/n, 46022 Valencia, Spain)
B. Molina (Departamento de Comunicaciones, Universidad Politecnica de Valencia, Camino de Vera s/n, 46022 Valencia, Spain)
C. Palau (Departamento de Comunicaciones, Universidad Politecnica de Valencia, Camino de Vera s/n, 46022 Valencia, Spain)
G. Fortino (Dipartimento di Elettronica, Informatica e Sistemistica (DEIS), Universitá della Calabria, Via P. Bucci cubo 41C, 87036 Rende (CS), Italy)

Interactive Technology and Smart Education

ISSN: 1741-5659

Article publication date: 1 February 2006

278

Abstract

To date e‐Learning material has usually been accessed and delivered through a central web server. As the number of users, the amount of information, the frequency of accesses and the volume of data increase, together with the introduction of multimedia streaming applications, a decentralized content distribution architecture is necessary. In this paper we propose the adaptation of the well‐known scalable Content Distribution Networks (CDN) schema for media streaming supported e‐Learning using a novel architecture named COMODIN SCDN (COoperative Media On‐Demand on the InterNet ‐ Streaming Content Distribution Network). COMODIN SCDN utilises surrogates as edge content delivery nodes, incorporates a redirection mechanism able to route requesting clients to the closest copy of the content, encompasses distributed content delivery and management mechanisms to improve the speed, reliability, and scalability of user access to prevent flash‐crowds. Preliminary results in testbeds have shown that COMODIN SCDN increases the efficacy of information distribution through intra and inter‐campus area netwoks. This overlay network will provide learners and educators a scalable, balanced and expeditious access to e‐Learning contents.

Keywords

Citation

Esteve, M., Molina, B., Palau, C. and Fortino, G. (2006), "A streaming content distribution network for e‐learning support", Interactive Technology and Smart Education, Vol. 3 No. 1, pp. 9-19. https://doi.org/10.1108/17415650680000049

Publisher

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Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2006, Emerald Group Publishing Limited

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