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.ra file (Real Audio)

M

mfarris2

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jan 3, 2012
25
0
Can anyone tell me of any way to open .ra files on a Mac?
I know that it is an old file system from Real Player. But it appears that Real Player does not support that file system any longer. I tried VLC and it does not work. Also tried Audio City. Tried to download older Real Players for Mac. They either do not even open,...or do not support intel Macs. Someone suggested something called M-player. Tried that,.....but I either do not know what I am doing, (Highly possible) or it does not work. This is for my father,....whom I have talked into making the big switch to Mac. But he has a web site that he refuses to abandon that still uses the .ra files. I have tried everything but cannot get them to play.
Our OS will be Lion. Willing to install anything that will work.
Thanks in advance for any help. (Been trying to resolve this for several weeks.)
 
If you have Windows, get the StreamboxRipper. I don't know if the version available today will work on the .ra files though.

There was a lawsuit a long time ago with them and Real over this and StreamBox had to pull their program from the Internet.
 
Tried that-no luck

Followed that thread,...that is where I got the info for M-Player and VLC. As the previous questioner noted,....it did not work. The new Real Player for Mac no longer supports .ra files. Or I cannot get them to play.
I need to be able to play the files on a Mac. And my father is even less tech savoy then I,.....so converting the files will not be an option. I am surprised as to how we do not have a way to listen to the files considering how many web sites still use them for their audio playback.
Thanks again
 
mfarris2 said:
Followed that thread,...that is where I got the info for M-Player and VLC. As the previous questioner noted,....it did not work. The new Real Player for Mac no longer supports .ra files. Or I cannot get them to play.
I need to be able to play the files on a Mac. And my father is even less tech savoy then I,.....so converting the files will not be an option. I am surprised as to how we do not have a way to listen to the files considering how many web sites still use them for their audio playback.
Thanks again
Click to expand...

The *.ra file format was replaced by *.rm a few years ago so I don't understand why any website would use *.ra as a standard media type.
 
The only websites still using .ra are very likely to be quite old. Like dating back to the 1990's and early 2000's.
 
Audio Bible

http://www.audio-bible.com/bible/bible.html

That is the link to the web site my father refuses to abandon. If anyone can explain in detail exactly how I can listen to each chapter on a Mac without it being overly complicated,.....I would be forever in your debt. I have spent literally hundreds of hours trying to figure a way. Please be specific and talk to me as though I have never owned a Mac. Been using one for six years and never really looked under the hood....so to speak.
Again,.....if you figure this out,......you are a genius in my eyes.
 
mfarris2 said:
http://www.audio-bible.com/bible/bible.html

That is the link to the web site my father refuses to abandon. If anyone can explain in detail exactly how I can listen to each chapter on a Mac without it being overly complicated,.....I would be forever in your debt. I have spent literally hundreds of hours trying to figure a way. Please be specific and talk to me as though I have never owned a Mac. Been using one for six years and never really looked under the hood....so to speak.
Again,.....if you figure this out,......you are a genius in my eyes.
Click to expand...
There are alternative sites that can do what he wants: http://classic.biblegateway.com/resources/audio/

You can also use All2MP3 to quickly convert .ra files to .mp3 files, which can be played in iTunes or other players. Just drag a .ra file onto the All2MP3 window and click convert!
 
Thank you all very much

Thank you all. I am aware of other sites. Fathers though can be very stubborn and set in his ways. I have shown him other sites and explained how his preferred site needs to update. He wants what he wants and simply refuses to abandon the web site.
I just wanted to touch base with those of you whom are smarter than I to see if I missed a simplistic way to make him happy. It appears this will not happen unless Audio Bible updates it's web site.
Again, Thank you all very much for your quick responses.
 
mfarris2 said:
Thank you all. I am aware of other sites. Fathers though can be very stubborn and set in his ways. I have shown him other sites and explained how his preferred site needs to update. He wants what he wants and simply refuses to abandon the web site.
I just wanted to touch base with those of you whom are smarter than I to see if I missed a simplistic way to make him happy. It appears this will not happen unless Audio Bible updates it's web site.
Again, Thank you all very much for your quick responses.
Click to expand...
As I said, you can easily convert the .ra files from that site, either individually or in batch.
 
Peace said:
The problem is figuring out how to associate the extension with the app.
Click to expand...

Right click any .ra file > Get Info > Open with 'MPlayerX' > Change All...

Works great for me - Click any of the links and the ra opens straight up in MPlayerX :)
 
GGJstudios said:
The site mfarris2 posted in post #11 has plenty. Just click on any chapter number.
Click to expand...

That doesn't allow for downloading.

It just links to the *.ra file itself. And it can't be saved because safari doesn't have a plug in for it.

Only problem is all it does is download the file.

/vicious circle


Ok. figured it out.

Make sure real player is not installed and there are no plist files for real audio so Safari doesn't try to open Real player.

Install MPlayerX

Click on one of those links and it just downloads the file to the download folder. Then you can get info and associate the extension with MPlayerX.
 
Thank you

Thank you, thank you, thank you!
I do not care if it downloads. He can toss the files when he is finished. You did it! You found a player that plays .ra files! The link to the Mplayer X worked perfectly. I associated Mplayer to .ra files and it now opens automatically and plays the files. You are the best. Thanks for all the help. I really, really appreciate it.
 
mfarris2 said:
Thank you, thank you, thank you!
I do not care if it downloads. He can toss the files when he is finished. You did it! You found a player that plays .ra files! The link to the Mplayer X worked perfectly. I associated Mplayer to .ra files and it now opens automatically and plays the files. You are the best. Thanks for all the help. I really, really appreciate it.
Click to expand...
I'm glad you got it worked out!
 
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