(Credit:
Real Networks)
Real Networks has unveiled the twelfth iteration of its RealPlayer media playback software.
Dubbed "RealPlayer SP," the new RealPlayer includes version 11's capability to grab Flash-based videos from any Web browser (albeit with the usual caveat: the streams can't be copy-protected, which rules out most Hollywood movies and TV shows on sites such as Hulu). The "SP" designation in the name stands for "social and portable." The big upgrade is the capability to easily transcode and transfer those videos to a wide array of portable devices, including many BlackBerry phones, the Zune, and--via iTunes--the iPod and iPhone. It also offers the capability to easily share online video links via social networks such as Twitter and Facebook, as well as via e-mail.
We were able to get a brief early look at the SP beta. The software made it easy to download several Flash videos from YouTube. It was also simple to choose the preset for converting and transferring the videos to a format compatible with a Palm Pre that we borrowed from a co-worker. However, once we transferred the files to the Pre, we weren't able to play them back. However, an earlier demo from a Real Networks representative successfully transferred videos to a Pre, a BlackBerry Bold, and--via a transfer to iTunes--the iPod Touch, so we're assuming we encountered an isolated glitch.
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One player to rule the Linux?
(Credit: RealNetworks)Chalk up a victory for those who crave all-in-one media integration on their Netbooks, because RealNetworks has announced a licensing agreement with many of the major Linux software companies to have RealPlayer for Mobile preinstalled on Ubuntu and Instant-On Netbook OS systems made by Xandros, Phoenix Technologies, DeviceVM, and Canonical.
An "Instant-On" system, usually Linux-based, is a miniature OS that boots up quicker than the main OS, allowing quicker on-the-fly access of files. For Netbooks, the advantage to an Instant-On system is obvious, but often these environments are significantly hobbled in usability. Presto, HyperSpace, and Splashtop, made by Xandros, Phoenix Technologies, and Device VM, will all get RealPlayer-branded players. Splashtop already comes preinstalled on Lenovo, Asus, HP, and LG Netbooks.
Ubuntu Netbooks have been achieving significant market share because of their price, but a branded all-in-one solution for various media formats will only help their share improve. In this regard, RealNetworks' Computex-timed announcement of their licensing agreement is good timing. The relative cost-effectiveness of RealPlayer, which includes most codecs, for Netbook manufacturers, also doesn't hurt.
Netbooks are rapidly becoming relied on for their media-playing capabilities, and if this helps chip away at making Netbooks even savvier at handling video, and at making cheaper Ubuntu Netbooks more versatile, then we're all for it.
If you use the RealPlayer on Internet Explorer, watch out. Researcher Elazar Broad has posted to the Full Disclosure mailing list a so-called heap overflow vulnerability that makes it possible for an attacker to modify heap blocks after they are freed and overwrite certain registers. This could allow code execution on a compromised machine. The vulnerability affects all versions of RealPlayer running under Internet Explorer.
Exploit code for this flaw has not yet been made public.
Without a patch from RealPlayer, security experts recommend disabling the killbit for the following ActiveX ClassIDs:
- 2F542A2E-EDC9-4BF7-8CB1-87C9919F7F93
- CFCDAA03-8BE4-11CF-B84B-0020AFBBCCFA
To avoid the loss of functionality, security experts recommend using RealPlayer in a browser that doesn't support ActiveX, such as Mozilla Firefox (for Windows and Mac).
StopBadware.org said Tuesday it has labeled two versions of the RealPlayer media player as "badware," or spyware.
RealPlayer 10.5, it claims, "fails to accurately and completely disclose the fact that it installs advertising software on the user's computer." And RealPlayer 11, it claims, "does not disclose the fact that it installs Rhapsody Player Engine software, and fails to remove this software when RealPlayer is uninstalled." Ryan Lukin, PR manager for RealNetworks, disputed some of the claims.
Lukin said the Message Center in 10.5 feeds only news and information, product updates, movies, video clips, and is clearly identified during installation. He said the change was that the check boxes in 10.5 were prefilled (requiring you to opt out), whereas in version 11 they were blank (requiring you to opt in). Lukin disagrees that the content served through the Message Center qualified as advertising.
As for version 11, Lukin said that by virtue of being a full-service media player, RealPlayer needs the Rhapsody ActiveX component because people may want to hear Rhapsody-encoded music clips. He agrees that once RealPlayer is uninstalled, the Rhapsody software should also be uninstalled. Lukin said RealNetworks was looking into making this change in a future release.
In the meantime, StopBadware recommends that users do not install either versions of RealPlayer, "unless the user is comfortable with the software behaviors we identify or until the application is updated to be consistent with the recommendations in this report."
Full details of the StopBadware.org alert about RealPlayer can be found on the organization's site.
Back in May, Señor Bell wrote about the new RealPlayer, which promised users the ability to download video in a variety of formats (Flash, WMV, Quicktime) from a variety of sites (YouTube, Comedy Central, and so on) using a variety of Web browsers. Somewhat unsurprisingly, I've gotten a variety of results. RealPlayer is fresh out of beta (download Version 11 for Windows from Download.com)--the perfect time to put it to the test, in my book. Personally, I don't find the latest version particularly useful for my video tastes, but you may find it compelling, depending on your preferences, when it comes to online video.
Let me just get this out of the way first: The RealPlayer software interface is...unattractive. Mostly it's just cluttered, but the utilitarian look and feel leave something to be desired, as well. It's relatively easy to get the hang of, at least, but I frankly expected better from the peeps who bring us Rhapsody. All that being said, the inconspicuous, integrated "Download This Video" button is both well-designed and useful, and videos are saved in an obvious spot (under Downloads & Recordings) for future access. Now if they could integrate this button's functionality with another jukebox for media organization (say, Rhapsody), I believe we would have something here.
Of course, simple downloading of Internet video is a compelling feature for some. And the fact that it's free makes it all the more user-friendly. However, if you want to actually take your newly downloaded video "to go" on an iPod, you'll need to plunk down $40 (a one-time fee) for RealPlayer Plus. The Plus version also includes several other advanced features (outlined in the screenshot above) that some users might find handy. I tested both the downloading functionality and the iPod transfer feature, and both were pretty slow. It took about 12 minutes to download a 24-minute video clip from Google Video; RealPlayer then took its sweet time--about an hour--encoding and transferring that video to the iPod. It's definitely an exercise in patience, though--to be fair--the video-grab feature is really intended for short video clips of about 5 minutes or less. More unforgivable is the fact that the app refused to play nice with Outlook, causing the e-mail client to crash when any encoding or transferring was taking place.
So what kinds of video can you expect to work with RealPlayer's download feature? The short answer is "nothing with DRM protection of any kind." So if you're thinking of capturing the latest episode of Heroes to watch on your iPod (an especially enticing idea now that the iTunes store is NBC-less) you can forget about it. I also went after some Bravo, FoodTV, Netflix, and Comedy Central content--all to no avail. For Bravo, FoodTV, and NBC, the "Download This Video" button popped up, but the resulting grab was just the commercial segment. Sadly, while Comedy Central videos worked during the beta period, the site has since switched to streaming flash, with which RealPlayer 11 is incompatible (the button changes to "Video cannot be downloaded," though--somehow--commercials are downloadable). Netflix uses a proprietary format that the software doesn't even recognize as video. In any event, this adherence to DRM is better for RealPlayer in the long run, but it's really too bad about the FoodTV restriction--how handy would it be to have quick and easy recipe clips on your iPod?
There are, naturally, plenty of video sites that work just fine with the software. Google Video, YouTube, Metacafe, and any other site with user-generated content are all fair game. Also, there are some TV network sites that keep their formats open and free of restriction--Cartoon Network, Discovery Channel, and National Geographic, for example--though you often have to sit through a loud, unmutable ad while you wait for the video to come on. Of course, this is dependent on the sites and not RealPlayer, but I can't help complaining here. Also, it's worth noting that you don't actually have to watch the video while it's recording: You can pause, mute, or even move onto another video and cue that up for downloading. That's definitely a big plus.
In the end, the usefulness of this new RealPlayer 11 feature depends largely on the type of content you are interested in saving for offline viewing (if you're into music videos, for example, it's great)--and also how enterprising you are (I came across a couple of questionable sites with plenty of network TV content that was readily compatible with the software). It is free, so there's no harm in trying it out--unless you count the harm to your eyes/brain by having to deal with the RealPlayer interface. If you're an iPod user who wants to take videos on the go, just make sure you test out the free version with your favorite content providers before you dole out the cash for the Plus option.
Related stories:
To address a security hole being exploited by hackers, RealNetworks has issued a security fix for the Windows versions of RealOne Player, RealOne Player version 2, RealPlayer 10.5 and RealPlayer 11 beta. The Windows versions of RealPlayer 8 and earlier versions of RealNetworks are not vulnerable. Linux and Macintosh versions of RealPlayer are also not affected.
The attack targets an ActiveX object installed by RealPlayer, and affects how that object interacts with the Internet Explorer browser. The exploit, if executed, can corrupt process memory and execute arbitrary code.
Affected users should upgrade to RealPlayer 10.5 or RealPlayer 11 beta and install the the latest patch, which was released Friday.
The new RealPlayer allows you to download embedded video content right from your browser.
(Credit: Real Networks)Real Networks has announced a new version of their RealPlayer today that will be available as a PC-only public Beta in June. The player allows users to download and organize nearly all embedded internet video content (Flash, WMV, QuickTime) including content from popular video sites like YouTube, Comedy Central, and of course, CNET. The player was demonstrated for me and actually looks pretty impressive. The new video download feature integrates fairly elegantly into your Web browser (yes, it works on Firefox). It works by temporarily displaying a small, fairly unobtrusive download tab in the right top corner of any video content it detects on a given Web page. It's even able to record streaming internet video in real time.
It looks like a great improvement over the slow, intrusive RealPlayer I remember. One feature it lacks, however, is the ability to export your downloaded video content to an iPod-compatible format. You can, however, use RealPlayer to burn your downloaded videos to CD, and if you pony up some money for RealPlayer Plus, they give the ability to burn video content to DVD. Some small improvements have also been made to speed up the load time of the application and cut out many of the annoying installation questions.
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