video integration

[default6l6wkdoafx6x]

I'm working on an annual report that has several videos. The client want to be able to share the final product with their constituents. I can use help in determining the best approach, and my understanding is this: 

1. Exporting to Interactive PDF: I tried that and video player has no controls (stop/play/volume/skip/etc.). This is not going to work for my client or me. Is there a way around it? 
2. Publish online: My client doesn't have Adobe CC account, and my account is from my work, not personal, so I don't want to use it. It's my understanding that if I choose this method, I will need to include in email to constituents a link to download some free video players to play that format. 
3. Did anyone tried IN5 plugin? 
4. I have 15 videos and each about 200-500 MB. Is that an issue? should I try and get videos to be smaller in size? any suggestions for a software or how to do it? 

Is there any other solution that you think is better? Thank you for your time and advice. 

[Derek Cross]

There's no perfect solution, you could use FXL ePub but it means the end-user has to have a suitable Reader installed and that may cause issues. If you use a Mac, have a look at CircularFLO https://www.circularsoftware.com/index.html

Using videos in PDFs is problematical, though a good solution is to include hyperlinks in an Interactive PDF to an online source, such as a YouTube, or similar, video. There are third-party hosted apps you might have a look at such as https://www.paperturn.com/uk/  http://fliphtml5.com  https://issuu.com

Publish Online is excellent and your customer can distribute the hyperlink. The disadvantage is that the end-user has to be online to access the documents and they can't be monetised. But you can add a facility so the end-user can download a (static) PDF version of the document.

in5 provides HTML5 excellent interactive documents – though the InDesign plugin is an extra cost and you will need to learn how to use it. There are excellent online video tutorials on the in5 Academy at extra cost. https://ajarproductions.com/pages/products/in5/

Alternatively, the client could add the information to their website, maybe including videos to watch and a PDF Report to download – kind of back to square one!

[rayek.elfin]

Derek already answered a number of your questions. As for the size of your videos: this depends on the encoding, quality, video resolution, and more.

My favourite video encoder is Handbrake (which is free and open source). 

https://handbrake.fr

Download, and drag one of your videos in the window. Then choose a preset - it depends on the original files what would work best, but the generic presets generally do a good job. 

[default6l6wkdoafx6x]

Thank you both very much for the advice, very helpful. I've decided to take the route of Publish Online as it seems to cover most of the goals with the fewest issues. I'm encountering an issue with the videos - they only play within the visual box that contains them, they cannot be expanded or viewed as a full screen. I use a Mac and was able to view videos full screen, but my client, who uses a PC, cannot. I appreciate any guidance, and again thank you for the detailed and variety of solutions so far. 

Ziv

[Diane Burns]

Some browsers, most notably on many iOS devices, do not allow full screen viewing. Not sure about the PC. What's the browser being used? Others here might know of solutions. Also, try a different browser on the PC just to troubleshoot.

You might enjoy these many examples of Publish Online documents, many of which include video: http://bit.ly/PubOnCollection