Windows media player

K

kfan

Registered
I'm just bought my first mac (Macbook) and love it. However, I have been unsucessfully on downloading windows media player for macs. Every time I download it I am asked what application to use? So...what do I do?

Sorry if this is a basic questions, but I need some help.

Thanks

kfan
 
AFAIK there is not currently a Windows Media Player for intel Macs. Flip4Mac (licensed by Microsoft) is working on their next version which will support intel Macs, but until that is released, the only thing you can do is to try and use VLC to play downloaded videos.
 
I've been using Flip4Mac for a while now and think it's great.

Was just wondering how Popwire compares playback-wise?

Also, Will Flip4Mac not work at all on the Intel Macs until it is Universal?

My MacBook should arrive this week and I'm wondering which product to go with.
 
You could also download StuffIt Expander... Sorry no link... and it runs the PowerPC Version... BUT IT IS EXTREMLY SLOW!!!!!

So i use iTunes and don't run WMV or WMA Files... I also use VLC... But i have WMP installed for emergencies...
 
I'm pretty sure VLC doesn't work at all for WM9 files. But now that Flip4Mac is free and Universal, what's the point of directing a user to a discontinued application that doesn't work very well?
 
What is Rosetta? I opened the original .dmg double-clicked on the .app and it installed like a charm.Works fine on my machine 10.4.8 Intel Duo iMac. No clue what Rosetta is and tried to do a search for it in Spotlight- and all I can get is IntelMacSupport.pdf. So you open an application with .pdf files now? Man looks like Mac is way better that I could ever have imagined.

Yabba Dabba Doo!!!!
 
fryke said:
AFAIK there is not currently a Windows Media Player for intel Macs. Flip4Mac (licensed by Microsoft) is working on their next version which will support intel Macs, but until that is released, the only thing you can do is to try and use VLC to play downloaded videos.
Click to expand...
Flip4Mac works on Intel Macs now. I am using it.
 
Fred Flinstone said:
What is Rosetta? I opened the original .dmg double-clicked on the .app and it installed like a charm.Works fine on my machine 10.4.8 Intel Duo iMac. No clue what Rosetta is and tried to do a search for it in Spotlight- and all I can get is IntelMacSupport.pdf. So you open an application with .pdf files now? Man looks like Mac is way better that I could ever have imagined.

Yabba Dabba Doo!!!!
Click to expand...
Rosetta is the name of the invisible emulation layer in OS X for Intel that allows you to run PPC programs. PPC programs running on Intel Macs (through the invisible "Rosetta" emulation layer) are much slower than Intel-native programs, and much slower than if they were run on comparable PPC hardware.

In addition to poorer general performance, PPC apps running under Rosetta also use a lot more RAM and take 2-3 times as long to load.

There's probably more information in that PDF you found. It didn't show up for no reason at all.

As others have said, Windows Media Player is dead. There is not, and never will be an Intel-native version for OS X. Even Microsoft promotes Flip4Mac's WMV Player now.
 
Thanks for the information about rosetta, Have to say that WMP is working fine on my Intel so I cannot figure out fot the life of me what all the fuss is about. Here's a Screenshot of it.....

Screenshot
 
Thanks for the information about rosetta, Have to say that WMP is working fine on my Intel so I cannot figure out fot the life of me what all the fuss is about. Here's a Screenshot of it.....

wmp.jpg
 
Flip4mac would be great if it didn't take so long for the video to open. i noticed a delay on my Mac Pro. I thought it was an issue on my G4 due to processor speed, but the mac Pro ruled that out. So i still use the Windows Media Player and MPlayer. Mainly because they open much faster.
 
Fred Flinstone said:
Thanks for the information about rosetta, Have to say that WMP is working fine on my Intel so I cannot figure out fot the life of me what all the fuss is about. Here's a Screenshot of it.....
Click to expand...

You can use it if you want, but as mentioned by others you might be better off with Flip4Mac. WMP for the Mac isn't going to be developed any further so unless you have to use it for a particular reason, there's no need for it. Flip4Mac uses QuickTime as the player and actually embeds much nicely on websites that use Windows Media Audio and Video than WMP for the Mac does. Also, since it's running through Rosetta (basically a PowerPC-code-to-Intel-code translator that is transparent to the user, allowing the Intel Mac user to run applications that are native to the PowerPC Mac), it's going to be slower than a native Intel Flip4Mac install and you might notice some slowdowns or other anomalies in playback (I'm speaking in theory since I've not tested the Intel version).

And Urbansory, are you sure you downloaded the Intel native version on your Mac Pro and that you're not running the PowerPC native version (this would cause problems)?
 
nixgeek said:
And Urbansory, are you sure you downloaded the Intel native version on your Mac Pro and that you're not running the PowerPC native version (this would cause problems)?
Click to expand...
Actually, I have the same issue Urbansensory mentioned on my PPC Mac. WMV Player does take a while to load movies, I guess because it performs some kind of read-ahead to do....something. Popwire's WMV9 Component didn't have this problem; it displayed files immediately and showed the "loading" time bar similar to what you get with progressive streams or large VBR mp3s. But it seems like Popwire is no more, and their page just points people to Flip4Mac. Were they bought? *shrug*

But I still prefer Flip4Mac's WMV Player to WMP because it's much faster (even on my PPC Mac that runs WMP natively!), QuickTime Player has tons of cool features like variable-speed playback, and it integrated better with browsers. (I don't think WMP could possibly work with browsers on Intel Macs, since you can't mix PPC plugins with Intel applications.)
 
Okay - enough already you have me converted - another sale - kerching!!! I think it was nixgeek's comment bout 'no further development' that did it for me. Guess I did not pick up on that point if it was mentioned before. I was merely picking up on the point that some were making that WMP does not run on Intel Mac - once again it runs fine on my machine and if anything loads faster that QT. However The assurance that there wont be any further development of WMP means also that in all likelyhood Micro$oft are gonna continue to develop bizarre codecs which most likely will not be available on the Mac and will give rise to yet another round of third parties looking for even more $'s for yet another media player Yawn!!!! So what difference is it gonna make if I have WMP or FlipMac installed? Wish to Christ they would just standardize things - For the Past 2 Years DivX has been way ahead of the rest in terms of compression and quality yet you still see the same tired .wmv/.rm/.mov rubbish littering the net. Granted the quality has improved a little bit in the past 10 years but if you look at what DivX has accomplished in just 2........... what's more I believe DivX is no truly Cross Platform and with no bullshit involved - anyone can have it and the latest codecs...... or if you're like me see it is a product well worth supporting and buy a licence. None of this b/s: It's my player and only people using my os can use it (as was the case with Bill not sharing his toys for so many years). Well let MF's like him go stick his head and the rest of his anotomy in the sandbox for all I care. Stuff him, Stuff his Company, Stuff Hasta La Vista and Stuff Zuna too - maybe it would be more appropriate to take 15 years of gripes and put it all in .sitx format!

For those who missed it - Stuffit!!!! Stuff the whole darned lot! ;)

_ The sheer pleasure of one weeks living in an OS without having to spend any time in the registry, running frequent anti- Virus scans, browsing the web for .dll's, messing with firewalls. Actually feels like I'm on vacation

As Homer would say ....Hmmmmm iMac, Tigers - doh!!!!
 
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