RealPlayer

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Windows users have two choices for playing RealMedia: the official Real Player or the ad-free Real Alternative. Both will work in Firefox and SeaMonkey, but Real Alternative version 1.32 or later has the advantage of including a "modified plugin" that overcomes a problem with incorrect coding on certain webpages containing embedded Real media, as explained here.

Installation

  • Remove any older versions which may be on your system.
  • Download the Real Player or Real Alternative installer.
  • Close all instances of Firefox or SeaMonkey and any other unnecessary programs.
  • Run the setup program.
  • If installing Real Alternative, make sure that the "Firefox/Mozilla/Netscape/Opera Plugin" is checked when selecting which components to install.

After the Player installation is complete, start Firefox/SeaMonkey and enter about:plugins into the Category:Location Bar. "RealPlayer(tm) G2 LiveConnect-Enabled Plug-In (32-bit)" and should be listed.

RealPlayer Browser Record Plugin extension

RealPlayer includes a Web Download & Recording feature that adds a Browser Record Plugin add-on, which despite the name is actually an extension, not a plugin, and appears in the Add-ons Manager Extensions list. This extension has been known to cause issues with Flash content or other problems in Mozilla browsers (see the Problematic extensions article).

Because of issues with Flash content, the RealPlayer Browser Record Plugin extension was added to the Add-ons Blocklist on June 12-14, 2012 for versions 15.0.4 and below. [1] [2] Version 15.0.5 was blocklisted on July 10, 2012. [3] [4] This block disables the extension but allows you to re-enable it from the Firefox or SeaMonkey Add-ons Manager. If you still experience problems with Flash content, even though the extension is disabled, you can turn off the Web Download & Recording feature in RealPlayer preferences (open RealPlayer, go to "Preferences -> Download & Recording" and uncheck "Enable Web Download & Recording for these installed browsers", then click OK, close RealPlayer) and then restart Firefox or SeaMonkey. This will remove the RealPlayer Browser Record Plugin extension from the Add-ons Manager. [5] [6]

Flash 11.3 issues

Starting in Flash Player 11.3, the Flash plugin used in current versions of Firefox and SeaMonkey runs in a Protected Mode on Windows Vista and above. This new security feature can cause An error occurred. Please try again later messages at YouTube, or other problems with Flash content if RealPlayer is installed, because of conflicts with RealPlayer's Web Download & Recording feature. An updated RealPlayer 15.0.5 (15.0.5.109) reportedly "deactivates" the Browser Record Plugin when Adobe Flash 11.3 is running in Protected Mode. Even so, you may still need to disable the RealPlayer Browser Record Plugin extension in the Add-ons Manager (if enabled). Updating to RealPlayer 15.0.6 (or above) should resolve the issue. [7] [8] [9] [10]

Workarounds for Flash 11.3 issues

First try updating RealPlayer to the latest version (15.0.6 or above) and then re-enable the RealPlayer Browser Record Plugin extension (if disabled) to see if that resolves the issue. [11] [12]

If you are unable to update RealPlayer or if it doesn't resolve the problem, use one of these workarounds to continue using the RealPlayer Browser Record Plugin extension in Firefox or SeaMonkey:

  • Disable Flash 11.3 Protected Mode
  • Uninstall the Adobe Flash Player 11.3 plugin (which you can do using Windows Control Panel or by downloading Adobe's Flash uninstaller) and then download and install an earlier version, such Flash Player 10.3 (available here) which includes all known security patches. Note: If you use the Flash uninstaller linked from Adobe's site, this also removes the Adobe Flash Player ActiveX for Internet Explorer, which RealPlayer needs for certain functions. You will then need to reinstall Flash Player ActiveX for Internet Explorer, in addition to the Flash Player plugin for other browsers such as Firefox or SeaMonkey. [13] [14]

You can then re-enable "Web Download & Recording" in RealPlayer preferences (if you turned it off) and you can re-enable the RealPlayer Browser Record Plugin extension from the Add-ons Manager Extensions list (if it's disabled).

For more information, see Flash Player 11.3 Protected Mode - Windows, RealPlayer's help article, RealPlayer plugin blocked by Firefox, and Adobe's How do I revert to an earlier version of Flash Player FAQ page.

Windows plugin issues

Plugin crashes

In recent Mozilla browsers (e.g., Firefox 4 and above) the RealPlayer G2 LiveConnect-Enabled Plug-In (file name: "nppl3260.dll") will crash on sites with embedded Real Media such as the Test your Real media player page at www.slp3d2.com linked from Testing plugins (see bugs 667399 and 460864). You can disable the "RealPlayer(tm) G2 LiveConnect-Enabled Plug-In" in the Add-ons manager Plugins list to avoid such crashes. Note: Direct links to Real Media files (such as this .ram file can still be opened in the RealPlayer application itself, even though the plugin is disabled.

External Links