Strange PlugIns proglems in playing online clips

[WirelessInn]

New to MAC here - Still trying to grapple with what seems to be one after another slight "incompatibilty" of the Mac system with the "world out there"!
In this case, I am getting random messages about plugins and other such - often not well documented - incomplete aspects of my Mac's configuration.
2 Illustrations attached, showing such occurrences regarding websites I have had no trouble accessing with my other (Win based) systems.
I do realize that I have to install some things (plugins, apps???) but it would be nice to be directed to such installations. I am not sure I even have Flash plugin installed properly at this point.
Thanks for the help: I really do not want to have problems in accessing such popular items as BBC, CNN clips for example!
Seems that the blue "lego block" shows up in lieu of video playing all too often!
- Roger T

 

[iMeowbot]

Start with the Flip4Mac plugin and see how it goes. Perian will let you play yet another pile of common video formats. And finally, RealPlayer for sites using that one.

 

[WirelessInn]

Strange PlugIns proglems in playing online clips

Thanks for the prompt reply. I'll try those solutions. Seems that things on the Mac are more mysterious than Win where I come from... Very proprietary in a way (Apple seems to be very much so regarding pretending that all that's needed is what Apple offers: hardly of course!) I just wish that something popped up asking for actual Yes/No installation.
By the way, what's the difference between a PLUGIN and and actual installation, say, for example, of Real Player?
- Roger T

 

[iMeowbot]

Seems that things on the Mac are more mysterious than Win where I come from...

It's just the fish out of water thing. Once you've had it for a while, you'll find that things really aren't as different between the two platforms as they first seem, it's really just a different set of habits to learn.

On the plugin thing, that's mostly a matter of poorly written Web sites. They wrongly assume that everyone is running a specific computer platform and don't bother to include code pointing you to download resources.

By the way, what's the difference between a PLUGIN and and actual installation, say, for example, of Real Player?

In the case of Real, there are two parts: a full standalone playback program for things you download, and the plugin portion that gets hooked in by the browser. You install one, you get both parts. This is pretty much the same way it works on Windows.

Flip4Mac pretends to have a player, but it really just starts up QuickTime player It hooks itself into QuickTime for Web playback too (in other words, it's really a plugin for QuickTime rather than for the browsers).

For Perian, it's a collection of QuickTime plugins, they don't even pretend to include a player.

 

[WirelessInn]

Strange PlugIns proglems in playing online clips

OK, that clears up a few things. But, since you know about all this much better than I do, what then does the following error window I get upon trying to view a BBC broadcast mean (see my screen print):


[....has content of MIME type “application/x-mplayer2”. Because you don’t have a plug-in installed for this MIME type, this content can’t be displayed...]

How the heck do I get that plug-in? It is certainly NOT in my list of plugins, as obtained thru Safari>>Help>>Installed Plugins. I seem to have seen somewhere that the "mplayer2" may have to do with a *.asx format.
Know anything about this???

As to my other unssuccessful attempt to view some clip which I have had no trouble viewing with Win IE, also, what does ["Some content on this page requires an Internet plug-in that Safari doesn’t support. The application “Windows Media Player.app” may be able to display this content. Would you like to try?"] mean???

I hate to continue thinking that the Mac stuff, in its assertive (if not arrogant) proprietary-ness is somehow crippled in the real e-world out there. Are the Mac OS/Safari what's really fish out of the water???

Thanks again. This should be such automated, simple stuff indeed!!!


- Roger T

 

[WirelessInn]

Strange PlugIns proglems in playing online clips

iMeowBot,

I got another thing 4 u. If u do not mind of course!
I pulled a screen print of one of my two clips playing on a Win machine. The infornaion provided via Win indicates that this is a Window Media Player 9 file. Should it not just play on my Mac?

Thanks again for the help: i am trying to put all this silly stuff behind me!

- RT

 

[iMeowbot]

okay, on one of the pages ( http://www.animatedlighting.com/products/animatedUSA.asp ) that video is playing fine for me (it's using Flip4Mac to play through QuickTime). .asx and application/x-mplayer2 are Windows Media things, and Flip4Mac provides what you need to play them.

For the BBC News clips, they can use either Windows Media (Flip4Mac) or RealPlayer. If the site detects that you have both installed, it will let you choose which one to use.

[ edit: one important note: after you install new plugins, you need to quit and restart your browser for them to be available. And if you want arrogant, look no farther than Microsoft, who only produce video plugins for their own operating systems, screw everyone else. ]

 

[WirelessInn]

Strange PlugIns proglems in playing online clips

AWRIGHT... i am glad u tried it all ou. Flip4mac is hereby being installed indeed. If u do not hear another rant from me again http://images.macrumors.com/vb/images/smilies/rolleyes.gif, means I'm OK for now!
Lile I said, I am trying to get 2 the bottom of all that chickenfeed stuff now rather than later!
- rt

 

[WirelessInn]

Strange PlugIns proglems in playing online clips

iMeowBot,

Thanks for your patience: got that one resolved!

NOTE: since I a downloading/installing necessary stuff right now - prior to get into BootCamp and Win (got to: my business has 3 networks including about 13 Win machines including Point Of Sale workstations with scanners, etc... And then again, I MUST have MS Flight Sim X on this machine also!). Frankly, I got the Mac for that compatibility reason, and keeping in mind of course that I want to use its vaunted video/audio editing capabilities. I run a B&B among other businesses and I need frequent a/v stuff put together and sent to Travel agencies and Tourism departments. I trust - for what I have read - that iLife for one thing will be helpful. I have used Pinnacle Studio on Win so far. So, back to the purpose of my NOTE do you advise me to install some other essential utilities, progs, plugins, etc...?

- rt

 

[iMeowbot]

For creating video, I'd suggest stepping into our Digital Video forum and having a look around. That's where our resident video geeks hang out. If the stuff you want to know doesn't seem to be in the threads that are already there, you could start a new one explaining just what you want to accomplish, and for suggestions on what the best tools are to get where you want to go. Good luck.

 

[WirelessInn]

Strange PlugIns proglems in playing online clips

Thanks iMeowBot, for everything. Off I am to the Digital Video area!
- rt