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Frequently Asked Questions
Q - Does Real Player cost
anything to download?
A - Real Player is free.
Q - What do I need, to view the programs?
A - In order to view the programs the free RealPlayer software must be
installed on your computer and you must have access through any corporate
firewalls that may be in place between you and the Internet. The free
RealPlayer software can be downloaded from the Internet by visiting the
RealNetworks site here,
or for older versions, visit their legacy
player page.
Q - Why Real Player
and not Windows Media player or the Quicktime player?
A - Real Player is a reliable application which offers a version for
most of the popular operating systems. Real specializes in streaming
and therefore offers some important multimedia technologies not that
are not supported as well in Windows Media Player. Real also offers better
backward compatibility with its own previous versions than do the various
versions of Windows Media Player.
Q - Can I change the
size of the player screen?
A - The video for this program is actually "embedded" in an
html page which does not allow the video to be "stretched out." The
player is designed to fit in a screen display set to 800 by 600 pixels
or larger. If you would like the player to take up as much space on the
screen as possible, set your screen display to 800 by 600. This will
not increase the actual resolution of the picture, but it will seem "larger" on
the screen.
Q - Where can I get
additional information on technical problems?
A - Troubleshooting information and technical assistance can be accessed
through RealPlayer's support pages here.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION REGARDING
REAL PLAYER
System Requirements
WINDOWS
System Requirements for RealOne Player
RealOne Player is Real’s
current player version.
Recommended system requirements:
- 300 MHz Intel Pentium III
processor or greater (supports simultaneous record/playback
features)
- 128MB RAM
- 56Kpbs modem
- Full Duplex sound card and speakers
- 65,000-color video display card [set to display at 800x600](video)
- Windows 98/ ME / 2000 /NT Service Pack 4 or later / XP
- Internet Explorer 5.0 or later
Minimum system requirements for RealOne Player (will
play audio, but not video)
- 233MHz Intel Pentium [II]
processor
- 64MB RAM
- 28.8Kpbs modem (lets you play audio only)
- 16-bit sound card and speakers
- 65,000-color video display card set to display at 800x600 (video)
- Windows 98 / ME / 2000 /NT Service Pack 4 or later / XP
- Internet Explorer 5.0 or later
System Requirements for RealPlayer 8
RealPlayer 8 is one
player version older than RealOne Player. It is generally
more tolerant of older, slower systems.
Recommended system requirements:
- 120 MHz Intel Pentium processor
or equivalent (supports audio only)
- Windows 95/98, Windows ME (final release version only), Windows NT
4.0 with Service Pack 4 or later, Windows 2000, or Windows XP. Windows
NT and Windows 2000 users must have Administrative rights to install
RealPlayer.
- 16 MB RAM
- 16-bit sound card and speakers
- 65,000-color video display card
- 56Kbps modem (supports audio only)
- Internet connection and Web browser (Internet Explorer 5.0 or later
or Netscape 4.6 or later)
MACINTOSH
OSX
RealOne player is now
available for Mac OSX. It performs well and is compatible
with any Mac recognized as OSX capable.
(Users of Mac OS 9.2 or lower
will have to use RealPlayer 8.)
Recommended system requirements for Real Player
8:
PowerPC G3 processor (233
MHz or faster)
Mac OS 8.5 or later
64 MB RAM and 128 MB virtual memory for machines with less than 233MHz
G3 processor
56Kbps or faster modem
Internet connection and web browser (Internet Explorer 5.0 later or Netscape
4.76 or later)
Minimum system requirements (unlikely to yield a
satisfactory video experience) for Real Player 8:
PowerPC 604 processor (200
MHz or faster)
Mac OS 8.1 or later
32 MB RAM and 64 MB virtual memory.
56Kbps modem
Internet connection and web browser (Internet Explorer 5.0or later or
Netscape 4.76 or later)
Installation
Issues (distilled from Real sources)
Windows XP Known Issue
If you are trying to
download RealOne Player to a Windows XP computer, the computer
may show a blue screen and stop responding. Normally, to
resolve this you have to restart the computer. If this
has happened to you when you try to download:
1. Click the Windows Start
button, point to Settings, point to Control Panel, then click
Display.
2. On the Screen Saver tab,
set Screen Saver to None.
3. On the Screen Saver tab,
click the Power button.
4. On the Power Schemes tab,
make sure System Standby is set to Never.
Microsoft has documented a
video driver incompatibility issue that can cause a blue
screen when the Operating System becomes idle; for example,
during a long download using a modem. Additional solutions
are contained in the Microsoft documentation for this issue
at:
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;q293078.
Manually configuration of Netscape Communicator
4 to work with RealOne Player.
( Netscape Communicator 4.0-4.7)
When you install RealOne Player, it automatically configures your Web
browser to start RealOne Player when you click a RealMedia link. If RealOne
Player does not start when you click a RealMedia link, you must manually
configure your Web browser:
1. Start Netscape Communicator.
2. Click the Edit menu and choose Preferences.
3. Double-click Navigator to expand the list.
4. Select Applications.
5. If the RealONE Player File type is listed, select it and click the
Edit button. If the file type is not listed, click the New Type button.
6. Enter the following information in the appropriate fields:
Description of Type: RealAudio
File
Extension: .ra, .ram
MIME Type: audio/x-pn-realaudio
7. In the Application to use
setting, type:
C:\Program Files\Real\RealONE Player\realplay.exe or
C:\Program Files\Real\RealPlayer\realplay.exe.
The path you choose to type
depends on where the program was installed to. Click the
Browse button to locate realplay.exe if you are unsure.
8. Click OK. Repeat the steps
above for each of these file types:
Description of Type: RealAudio
File
Extension: .ra, .ram
MIME Type: audio/vnd.rn-realaudio
Description of Type: RealVideo
File
Extension: .rv
MIME Type: video/vnd.rn-realvideo
Description of Type: RealMedia
File
Extension: .rm
MIME Type: application/vnd.rn-realmedia
9. Test the changes by clicking
on media links at http://realguide.real.com
Connection
Errors
"cannot connect" error messages with RealOne
Player.
"Cannot connect" errors
generally mean that RealOne Player did not connect to the
computer that serves the media content (the server); they
may also mean that the link you clicked is out-of-date. Common "cannot
connect to server" errors include:
- Cannot connect to server.
- Unable to connect to server.
- Unable to establish connection
to server.
- Check network transport
settings (or run auto-configure.)
- RealOne Player not able
to successfully connect to a server for playback.
- Cannot connect to server,
the link you requested may be inaccurate or out of date.
Connection errors that occur
on specific sites or that only occur once in a while are
not usually a cause for concern. Occasional errors are usually
caused by high traffic on the Internet or the site hosting
the files being down or the files having been moved.
Connection errors that occur
at all sites on a recurring basis may indicate a problem
with RealOne Player or your Internet connection. You may
need to reconfigure RealOne Player or your Internet Service
Provider's (ISP) connection software to allow RealPlayer
to connect.
Solution 1: Play
clips from the RealNetworks Technical Support Samples Page.
You will receive "link out of date" errors if you play a file
that has been moved. These errors occur if the Web site hosting the files
has not been updated since the file changed.
To verify the problem is caused
by out of date links, play sample clips from the RealNetworks
sample page:
- Open http://service.real.com/test/
in your Web browser.
- Click the links there that
match the connection speed of your Internet connection
(for example, 56K).
If the links from this site
play correctly, RealOne Player is not the cause of the error
you are receiving from the other site. The links at the other
site are either written incorrectly or need to be updated.
Solution 2: Play
files during "off-peak hours."
You may receive connection errors when playing files or downloading updates
for RealOne Player if the Internet or your Internet Service Provider
is experiencing high traffic.
This problem typically occurs
during "peak hours" when network traffic is highest.
Playing files or updating at an alternate time during the
day can usually correct connection problems caused by high
traffic.
Solution 3: Manually
configure RealOne Player to use HTTP only.
On some networks it may be necessary to configure RealOne Player to use
the HTTP Only option to connect to the Internet. This option allows a
player operating behind strict firewalls to access programming. However,
quality may not be as good as other connection options.
- To configure RealOne to
receive content via HTTP only:
- On the Tools Menu, click
Preferences.
- In the Categories pane,
double-click Connection and then click Network Transports.
- Click the Manually configure
connections settings check box.
- Click the RTSP Settings
button.
- Click to clear all boxes
except Use HTTP, then click OK.
- Click the PNA Settings
button.
- Click to clear all boxes
except Use HTTP, then click OK.
Solution 4: Update
your Internet Service Provider's software.
If your Internet Service Provider (America Online, Earthlink, or others)
uses custom software to connect to the Internet, updating that software
may resolve these issues. Contact your Internet Service Provider to verify
that you are using the latest version of their software available, and
to verify that their software uses a 32-bit compatible Winsock driver.
Solution 5: Reconnect
if AOL's Idle Timer disconnects you or adjust AOL's Parental
Control settings.
AOL has an idle timer feature
that automatically disconnects your computer from AOL if
your computer has been inactive for a predetermined amount
of time. You will receive a "Cannot connect to server" error
if AOL has terminated your connection and you try to access
the Internet with RealOne Player.
If this occurs, reconnect
to AOL. Once you have reconnected to AOL, you will be able
to access content with RealOne Player.
If the AOL screen name you
are using has restricted access levels (Parental Controls),
the AOL access level specified may prohibit RealOne from
connecting to content for playback. To correct this problem,
change the access restrictions for that AOL screen name.
The Parental Controls feature
allows the user to create specific levels of access for each
screen name or edit existing settings on AOL. For more information
on parental controls in AOL, visit http://www.aol.com/info/parentcontrol.html.
Dealing with
firewalls (For Firewall Administrators)
Application-level firewalls (proxy servers)
Network-level firewalls (packet filters)
Application-level Firewalls
Your firewall must be RealPlayer-aware.
If it is not, RealNetworks has a free RTSP proxy service
which includes source code and specifications for building
your own proxy. It's simple and easy to set up. To get your
copy, send an e-mail request to firewall@real.com. You will
get an immediate response telling you where to download the
proxy.
Most major firewall vendors
support RealPlayer. If your firewall vendor is not listed
as supporting RealPlayer, ask your firewall representative
to contact us about joining our firewall developers program.
Network-level Firewalls
Network-level firewalls, such as
packet filters, use access control lists to allow traffic destined for
some ports to pass from the Internet to the organization's internal network
and to block packets for other ports. To allow any version of RealAudio
Player or RealPlayer to play correctly, it is only necessary for the
router to allow packets to pass to the inner network that are bound for
the following range of ports:
TCP port 7070 for connecting to pre-G2 RealServers
TCP port 554 and 7070 for connecting to G2 RealServers (used by slp3D)
UDP ports 6970 - 7170 (inclusive)
for incoming traffic only
The TCP port is used by RealPlayer
to initiate a conversation with an external RealServer, to
authenticate RealPlayer to the server, and to pass control
messages during playback (such as pausing or stopping the
stream). RealSystem G2 uses two TCP protocols for conversations
between Players and Servers.
For an even safer firewall,
configure the router's access control list to allow TCP connections
on port 7070 and/or port 554 to be initiated from the inside
network exclusively. Incoming traffic, on the other hand,
should only be allowed if it is part of an ongoing connection.
This is assured by requiring incoming TCP packets to have
the ACK bit set in the TCP header carried by every packet.
The syntax for setting the ACK bit varies with the kind of
router you own. For Cisco routers the flag "ESTABLISHED" can
be put at the end of the line in an access rule to specify
that an incoming packet must be part of an ongoing conversation.
The range of UDP ports, on
the other hand, carries the incoming stream. These ports
begin to carry traffic only after RealPlayer and RealServer
have performed the authentication routine, and should be
enabled only for incoming traffic.
You may also want to use a
proxy server in conjunction with a network-level firewall.
When RealPlayer versions G2,
7, or 8 are in use:
Do one of the following:
Open ports 6970 - 7170 in
your firewall for UDP.
Open ports 7070 - 7071 and 554 in your firewall for TCP and instruct
RealPlayers to use TCP for all content. Playback quality will not be
as good with this option.
Configure your firewall to receive UDP through only one port and instruct
Players to use UDP with the port you chose.
Tell users to configure RealPlayer to request that RealServer send all
media in HTTP format. This creates more overhead on your network than
any of the other options.
When RealPlayer versions 4.0
or 5.0 are in use:
Do one of the following:
Open ports 6970 - 7170 in
your firewall for UDP.
Open ports 7070 - 7071 in your firewall for TCP and instruct RealPlayers
to use TCP for all content. Playback quality will not be as good with
this option.
Configure your firewall to receive UDP through only one port and instruct
Players to use UDP with the port you chose.
Tell users to configure RealPlayer to request that RealServer send all
media in HTTP format. This creates more overhead on your network than
any of the other options.
When RealAudio Player version
3.0 is in use:
Do one of the following:
Open ports 6770 - 7170 in
your firewall for UDP.
Open ports 7070 - 7071 in your firewall for TCP and instruct RealPlayers
to use TCP for all content. Playback quality will not be as good with
this option.
Configure your firewall to receive UDP through only one port and instruct
RealPlayers to use UDPwith the port you chose.
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Configuring Microsoft Proxy Server 2.0
Please Note: These configuration
instructions assume that you have correctly installed the Microsoft Proxy
Server 2.0 and the Microsoft Winsock Proxy Client.
Server Configuration:
- Open the Internet Service
manager in IIS 3.0 and the Management console in IIS 4.0.
- Right click on WinSock
Proxy Service and select Properties.
- Click on the Service tab.
- Select Client Configuration.
- In the Client Installation/Configuration
window, select Client connects to Microsoft WinSock Proxy
Server by Computer name, and ensure the NetBIOS name of
the machine appears in the block to the right.
- Put a check in the box "Automatically
configure Web browser during client setup." The Proxy
field should also contain the NetBIOS name of the Proxy
Server.
- Port should have the correct
port number for the Proxy Server (generally port 80).
- Put a check in the box "Configure
Web browsers to use Automatic Configuration."
- If you do not have a RealServer
inside the Proxy Firewall, proceed to step 8. If you have
a RealServer inside the Proxy Firewall, click the Properties
button.This brings up the Advanced Client Configuration
page. Check the box "Do not use proxy for the following
IP addresses." Then fill in the IP Address of the
RealServer(s) inside the Proxy Firewall. Click OK.
- Click the Protocols tab.
- Click on the first RealAudio
in the list and click Edit. Initial connection should be
on port 554, type should be set to TCP out bound.
- Highlight and remove all
entries in the "Port ranges for subsequent connections."
- Click Add, then add UDP
6970-32000 inbound and select OK.
- Clid Add, then add TCP
6970-32000 inbound and select OK.
- Click on the only remaining
RealAudio in the list and click Edit. Initial connection
should be on Port 7070 outbound, Type should be set to
TCP.
Highlight and remove all entries in the "Port ranges for subsequent
connections."
- Click Add, then add TCP
6970-7170 inbound and select OK.
- Click Add again, then add
UDP 6970-7170 inbound and select OK.
This completes the configuration
of the Proxy Server.
Client Configuration, RealPlayer G2:
- Open the control panel
and double click on the WSP icon, this will open up the
Microsoft Winsock Proxy Client configuration page.
- Ensure the server NetBIOS
name is in the Server Name field.
- Put a check in the "Enable
WinSock Proxy Client" block, and then choose Update
Now.
- You should now reboot the
client machine. When the machine restarts, open the RealPlayer.
- In the RealPlayer, select
Options then Preferences.
- Click the Proxy tab. Make
sure the PNA Proxy and RTSP Proxy options are Unchecked,
and the No HTTP Proxy radio button is selected.
- Click the Transport tab
and select "Automatically select the most efficient
transport."
- Click on Auto Configure.
Then select OK.
- Once auto configuration
is complete Click OK at the bottom of the Preferences window.
The client and RealPlayer
G2 are now configured to work with the Proxy Server.
Alternate Configuration Method for RealPlayer G2:
- Open the Control Panel
and double click on the WSP icon. This will open the Microsoft
Winsock Proxy Client configuration page.
- Ensure the server NetBIOS
name is in the Server Name field.
- Put a check in the "Enable
WinSock Proxy Client" block, and then choose Update
Now.
- You should now reboot the
client machine. When the machine restarts, open RealPlayer
G2.
- In RealPlayer G2, select
Options then Preferences.
- Click the Proxy tab then
select, "Manually configure HTTP Proxy."
- Input the NetBIOS name
of the Proxy Server in the Proxy Server field.
- Input port 80 in the Port
field.
- Click OK.
- The client and RealPlayer
are now configured to work with the Proxy Server.
Client Configuration, RealPlayer 5.0
- Open the Control Panel
and double click on the WSP icon. This will open the Microsoft
Winsock Proxy Client configuration page.
- Ensure the server NetBIOS
name is in the Server Name field.
- Put a check in the "Enable
WinSock Proxy Client" block, and then choose Update
now.
- You should now reboot
the client machine. When the machine restarts, open RealPlayer
5.0.
- In the RealPlayer, select
View then Preferences.
- Click the Proxy tab at
the top. In the Proxy window, make sure the Use Proxy box
is NOT checked
- . Click the Transport tab
and select "Automatically select the most efficient
transport."
- Click on Auto Configure
then select OK.
- Once auto configuration
is complete, click OK at the bottom of the Preferences
window.
- The client and RealPlayer
are now configured to work with the Proxy Server.
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