Apache As An MP3 Server

From the list of odd things you can do with your Apache web server, how about an Apache module to turn your Apache webserver into your basic RIAA hating, but every college student loving, MP3 streaming server? Supports Icecast/Shoutcast protocols. It's an early beta, but it does work.

Comments

This is SOOOOOO Old!

[szyzyg]

At least I was doing this back in 1997.....

Myplay.com , mp3.com and a load of other sites use apache clusters to serve streaming audio, it's not exactly difficult..

Then again... /. never likes to give companies like myplay any credit for innovation.

Pretty Slick.

[EMR]

So far it's pretty slick.. A lot nicer then using Icecast. And for adding more streams.. apache's .htaccess file make it REAL easy no need to create a port 8000 virtual host just allowoveride in a directory and put this in there.

here is my .htaccess file
-- .htaccess BEGIN --
<Files all>
SetHandler mp3
MP3CastName "My Mp3s"
MP3Genre "Various"
MP3 /home/ftp/pub/mp3
MP3Random On
</files>
-- .htaccess END --
then just access it like

http://myhost/streamdir/all

And in other news...

[wunderhorn1]

The Apache Foundation will be forced by the RIAA to pay damages from alleged copyright violation unless the module is altered to disallow the streaming of copyrighted content...

Well that *started out* as a joke post, but now I'm not so sure...

Apache::MP3

[don_carnage]

There is a Perl module that does the same sort of thing written by Lincoln Stein on CPAN: Apache::MP3.

--

Net is not the threat to the RIAA

[Zeinfeld]

The net is not much of a threat to the RIAA compared to my Archos MP3 jukebox. With the net you get to swap a track at a time and the transaction is inherently observable.

With the archos device I have a 6Gb hard drive that is slightly smaller than a walkman and connects to a PC via USB. To the PC it looks just like a hard drive (I often use it to swap large files between office and home, it is much faster than burning a CDROM and bigger capacity).

Unlike the crappy SDMI influenced systems the archos device allows tracks to be copied to or from the drive.

With napster or any net based system it would take weeks to snarf a thousand tracks. With the archos device the CD collection becomes the unit of exchange. I have 120CDs on mine, I could copy them onto someone else's machine in about 10 minutes and then replace them by 120 from their collection.

Interestingly enough this probably passes for 'fair use' as currently understood

I am not currently disposed to do this, I believe that artists have a right to an income. However the RIAA is making it harder and harder for folk like myself to be influential. Ultimately the only means by which laws are observed is if there is a general consensus that they should. The RIAA made it very difficult for me to sympathize with their position after their legislative grab for the 'returned rights' that previously belonged to their artists. Meanwhile the DVD 'zone control' system is designed to maintain differential pricing across markets - Europe will pay most, Asia least.

The RIAA need to understand that buying congressmen and legislation will be counterproductive.