--- Forwarded Message from Judy Shoaf <[log in to unmask]> ---

>Date: Wed, 16 Jul 2003 08:17:40 -0400
>From: Judy Shoaf <[log in to unmask]>
>User-Agent: Mozilla/5.0 (Windows; U; WinNT4.0; en-US; rv:1.3) Gecko/20030312
>To: Language Learning and Technology International Information Forum    <[log in to unmask]>
>Subject: Re: #7193.7 digitizing media files for the web (!)
>References: <[log in to unmask]>
>In-Reply-To: <[log in to unmask]>

------------------

Hi, Karl.
 > The
> complicated part of using RealPlayer is that you must create
> a metafile (.ram) file for each media file in order for it
> to be accessible on the web.

This is the way it worked when I started using Real audio files (i.e. 
for each audio link I had to create a tiny .ram text file which 
contained the link to the actual audio), but now there is some kind of 
new programming that "creates the .ram files on the fly." I think this 
must be done by the server, since it was our realmedia server tech who 
instructed me on the new process. The web link points directly to the 
.rm file, but in the process of linking the .ram file is generated.
This can cause a problem I think on some computers (where the computer 
does not want to accept more than one temporary .ram file)--the first 
file plays fine, but after that the links don't work. Haven't seen this 
much, though.

> In
> other words, you can listen to an .rm file over the web with
> QuickTime or Divace player, but if you set it up for web
> use, the browser will automatically open RealPlayer and
> begin streaming. To play a .rm file with QuickTime or
> Divace, you have to open the .rm file as a URL from within
> media player, which is awkward for the user: You have to
> type the URL by hand.

This has not been my experience with Divace. We use it as a default 
player for the lab media in the LLC, and we just have to click on the 
link to access it. This was true under both the old and the new server 
systems. You have to set Divace as the default player for .rm files.
NB Divace paid big bucks to Real for this privilege, I believe, so it is 
probably not true of other players.

Judy Shoaf
University of Florida