How to Get Started Streaming on Twitch

I gave a lunch and learn for my Virtual Coffee community on getting started with streaming on Twitch. https://youtu.be/aDofyI6E2t4 Slide deck: https://iamdeveloper.com/stream2021 If you’re interested in learning in public, Twitch is a great place to do it. Alright, let’s get to it! Open Broadcaster Software (OBS) The first thing to do is install . It is the standard when it comes to streaming. There are tools built on top of it, but typically I recommend using bare-bones OBS or (SLOBS) which is OBS with some plugins from Streamlabs. OBS Streamlabs OBS The main reason to use OBS or SLOBS is more flexibility when streaming, and as far as I know, OBS is the only one that allows you to stream closed captioning. For the remainder of the post, I will refer to just OBS instead of OBS/SLOBS. I won't do a deep dive into all the things you can do with OBS, but know that you can . A scene can be for example a starting soon page, and when you're ready to start talking you transition to another scene, perhaps called chatting or coding view. create scenes with many sources There are many sources you can add to a scene: images browser sources, e.g. a web page used for an overlay in your stream display capture, e.g. an external monitor video capture device, e.g. a webcam etc. Streaming Checklist It's important to go over your setup before going live on a stream. You want to make sure audio is good, video etc. Here is a sample checklist that I created for the purpose of this post. It's a reduced version of my own checklist. Turn off notifications for any software on laptop Ensure closed captioning is working with OBS Check audio is not muted and is working for you and your guests Have Twitch chat open in a browser or the entire stream (make sure stream is muted!) Ensure you’re on the right scene to start Going Live Here's some typical steps to take when going live on a stream. Go over checklist Tweet out that you are going live on your stream with a link to your stream. SLOBS has this built-in Start Stream Check the stream to make sure you’re streaming You should be good to go at this point Streaming Tips Here are some streaming tips that I've found useful Interact with the Twitch chat It’s not going to be perfect, that’s OK Have fun, really! If you’re live coding, talk through what you’re doing Tweet midway through your stream that you’re still streaming about topic X or live coding https://twitter.com/nickytonline/status/1405219963045036033 Post your streams to Polywork, LinkedIn and Twitter. Here are some examples at , , and Twitter timeline.iamdeveloper.com my LinkedIn https://twitter.com/coffeecraftcode/status/1384980393770815488 Have a consistent schedule Don’t worry if no one or few people are watching your stream when you get started out Zoom in your editor and browser to help folks see things better If you use , @john_papa created an amazing extension for hiding environment files called Visual Studio Code Cloak {%twitter 1421683536952709120 %} If you plan on uploading your streams to YouTube or want to create clips later, ensure that you have Store past broadcasts on in your stream settings Having Guests on Your Stream There is no native way for guests to join a stream in OBS, so a third party application is required. These are the common ones that are out there: Zoom Discord (previously called OBS.Ninja) VDO.Ninja For Discussions You should have one or more topics to discuss, but they do not need to be scripted. It should feel natural. I also tend to go on tangents sometimes. Maybe this is good, maybe it's bad. 🙃 Extras Here's some not necessarily crucial stuff for your stream, but some nice additions to spice up your stream. Add interactivity to your stream. A browser source in a scene that loads a page using is a great for this. ComfyJS Automate things as much as possible Scheduled tweet that you’re going live Use a stream deck if it’s in your budget. I bought one about a year into streaming. Use service like StreamLabs or for moderation bots, interactivity, like when someone follows your stream. StreamElements Additional software Below is a list of additional software that can help you out during a stream or post-stream. , for merging audio or creating other virtual audio devices Loopback , for subtitles, removing filler words, and video editing if you plan on publishing your streams to YouTube descript , noise-cancelling software krisp Hardware Although not required when starting out with streaming, these are things you can add to your stream over time. Light ring An external microphone Better Web Cam or Camera Streaming Deck https://twitter.com/ania_kubow/status/1420685669479985152 Additional Resources Web Captioner Add live captions in OBS Studio (creator of VDO.ninja) Steve Seguin’s YouTube channel by The Invisible Zoom Streaming method Rachael Wright-Munn Pair Programming with Jhey (shows how to use ComfyJS) https://youtu.be/DDJB8KSh-Sw ’s livecoding.ca interactions using ComfyJS (software and hardware I use) My Uses Page And last but not least, some shameless plugs! DEV Twitch Stream DEV's YouTube My Stream My YouTube Until next time folks! Also published here.