As the audio plays, the player continues to put some of the file in memory. If the file has been correctly encoded for the size of the listener's connection and network traffic does not interrupt the stream, the listener experiences a smooth, broadcast quality transmission. Most streaming audio files do not require that special software be loaded on the host Web server. To serve archived audio to more than one listener at a time, or to stream real-time events, specialized server software is required. Today's streaming audio encoders use lossy compression techniques to lower file sizes, as does the jpeg image format.
Compression is achieved by dropping certain digital information from the sound file.
Because our ears are unable to perceive the loss of certain sounds, we hear the sound as higher quality than it actually is. Streaming audio can be used in the language lab, for electronic delivery of audio reserves, for storage and delivery of classroom lectures, to webcast campus events, and to provide access to audio materials in archives and special collections. But that hasn't happened yet. There are still at least eight companies with somewhat different solutions to delivering streaming media-and different, incompatible players. Academic media managers should look in consumer and trade journals and on commercial web sites.