Gardening videos on the BBC

Well, I said I was going to report on the BBC gardening videos from the website devoted to their Gardeners’ World TV show. Hmmm.

Well, on my Mac at least, they're disappointing: not the content, but the presentation. They have individual segments from the show which are streamed separately – not whole shows. But the picture is ridiculously small, the screen size is just 2.5in x 1.5in – what’s the point of that? Then, if you work out how to make the change (Control-Click on the image on the Mac), the alternative is “full screen” – which is so enormous that the definition is so bad it’s not worth watching. So the picture is either clear but too small to see properly or it’s enormous and blurred! Shame... there’s some good stuff there – and it’s technically good in terms of both the horticulture and production.

Come on guys, get a grip.

Anyway, take a look here.  See if it works better for you. Just click on Watch again. If you're as unhappy with the result as I am - at least there's plenty of other good stuff to look at.

Comments

[max]

The quality is pretty poor, but you can resize however you want by doing the following:
1. find the video you want and copy the url (CTRL-Click on the link; it should look like this:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/gardening/tv_and_radio/nb/gw2006_alpines_16x9_nb.ram
2. Find "RealPlayer" on your computer, probably in the applications folder;
3. In RealPlatter, CMD-L, paste in the URL, and voila. sizing options are in the "play" menu for no discernible reason.

BTW, What kind of accent does the woman have in that alpine video I used as my example? I find it much more disturbing than the poor quality.

[Magic Cochin]

I use a Mac too. Size is 4 inches by 2.25 inches - pretty good and clear. I was watching Monty pruning. Just tried the full screen mode and it wasn't bad if you're not sitting up close! A little fuzzy in places.

Celia

[Graham Rice]

Thanks Max, I'll give that a try and report back on the accent. And Magic (great blog, by the way) I think it can also depend on the resolution at which the screen is set. But they really need a simple, non-techy way to present a good picture for everyone.

[Digger]

I think the Lady with the Accent is Carol Klein, she originates from good old Lancashire but now lives in Devon

[eliz]

Yes, the image is too small, and why should I have to mess around resizing? They should get it right on their site. Having said that, I liked the citrus segment--I am overwatering my little orange plant. Good to know!

[Graham Rice]

Yes, digger, that would be Carol Klein. She's now based near the RHS garden at Rosemoor in Devon. She's another horticulturalist in a second career, she used to be an art teacher, I seem to remember her telling me.