RealPlayer

RealPlayer is a media player, created by RealNetworks, that plays a number of multimedia formats including MP3, MPEG-4, QuickTime, as well as multiple versions of proprietary RealAudio and RealVideo codecs.

The first version of RealPlayer was introduced in April 1995 as RealAudio Player, one of the first media players capable of streaming media over the Internet. Version 6 of RealPlayer was called RealPlayer G2; version 9 was called RealOne Player. Free "Basic" versions have been provided as well as paid "Plus" versions with additional features. On Windows, version 9 subsumed the features of the separate program RealJukebox.

The current version for Windows is RealPlayer 10.5 and other versions with fewer features, are available for Mac OS X, Linux, Unix, Palm OS, Windows Mobile, and Symbian OS. The program is powered by an underlying open source media engine called Helix.

RealPlayer 10.5 for Windows also contains audio CD burning capabilities, PVR-style playback buffering, multimedia search, Internet radio, a jukebox-style file library, an embedded web browser (using Microsoft Internet Explorer), and the ability to transfer media to a number of portable devices, including Apple's iPod, MP3 players, and Windows Media devices.

RealPlayer 10.1.0 (412) for Mac OS X supports web browsing via WebCore which means RealPlayer and Safari share cookies.

Criticisms

The previous logo

These criticisms apply to the Microsoft Windows version of the player. OS X and Linux versions are unaffected by these issues.

Unsolicited alerts

* RealOne Player asked the user to purchase an upgrade but did not make it clear that it was optional. At the preference of its users, RealOne bundled AIM and RealJukebox.
* RealPlayer 10 was configured to run the message center (realonemessagecenter.exe) automatically at system startup. It would do so again every time RealPlayer shuts down.
** The message center launches messages that are advertisements for bands. Some have said this could qualify as adware. There is an option to turn the messages off. However, RealPlayer 10 will automatically turn some message options back on, namely New Music Alerts, Movies, and Best Clip of the Month. The effect is that the Message Center will almost always pop up with new messages. As of version 10.5 the Message Center can be completely disabled.

Privacy violation

* A security researcher, Richard M. Smith, dissected some of RealJukebox's network traffic and discovered that it was sending a unique identifier with information about the music titles its users were listening to. RealNetworks acknowledged this, and after an outcry, they released version 1.02 which patch it. Their download page stated RealJukebox included privacy enhancements and gave a link to the privacy policy.

Wikipedia Main Page loaded in Real Player

Other information

* Version 10.5 included Harmony technology, making the Music Store compatible with iPod portable media players and Windows Media DRM-compatible players.
* RealPlayer Enterprise Edition does not contain advertisements and is free.

See also

*List of video players (software)
*Comparison of media players
*Real Alternative
*MPlayer

External links

* Official page
** RealPlayer 10 download, all platforms
** Linux version
** Mac OS X version
** RealPlayer Enterprise Edition download
** RealPlayer Legacy Software Archive
* Real Support Community
* Prevention measures to avoid RealPlayer 10 from taking over a user's computer
* "The 25 Worst Tech Products of All Time" — March 26 2006, PC World Magazine
* "Why You Should Install RealPlayer"