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LarsHD
wrote on 11/20/2009, 3:36 PM
Comments
amendegw
wrote on 11/20/2009, 3:53 PM
Assuming the first install of REAL was in the not-to-distant past, you could do a Windows system restore back to a point just prior to the install.
I'll bet that would fix your problem.
...Jerry
I'll bet that would fix your problem.
...Jerry
John_Cline
wrote on 11/20/2009, 3:56 PM
Here is the real, REAL warning:
DO NOT EVER INSTALL ANYTHING FROM REAL NETWORKS!
I haven't had anything from them installed in years and if I run across a video link that requires it, then I just don't watch the video. If they're dumb enough to use REAL, then their video is probably going to suck anyway.
DO NOT EVER INSTALL ANYTHING FROM REAL NETWORKS!
I haven't had anything from them installed in years and if I run across a video link that requires it, then I just don't watch the video. If they're dumb enough to use REAL, then their video is probably going to suck anyway.
amendegw
wrote on 11/20/2009, 4:40 PM
"DO NOT EVER INSTALL ANYTHING FROM REAL NETWORKS!"
Amen to that! I've stayed way from Real since the Comet Cursor debacle of several years back.
...Jerry
Amen to that! I've stayed way from Real since the Comet Cursor debacle of several years back.
...Jerry
Jay Gladwell
wrote on 11/20/2009, 4:45 PM
I'm with John. I honestly can't remember the last time I had REAL anything. When I see a video clip online that requires REAL, I surf right on passed it.
Like John said, "If they're dumb enough to use REAL, then their video is probably going to suck anyway."
farss
wrote on 11/20/2009, 5:18 PM
Although I agree with this 101% there's still a lot of stuff out there that requires that blasted player to access it, including archives from a few government site.
Probably for anyone that MUST access that material doing so on a separate PC would be a wise move. For some reason even VLC seems unable to cope with REAL media.
If there's anyway to acess REAL without the risk of trashing anything else I'm slightly interested.
Bob.
Probably for anyone that MUST access that material doing so on a separate PC would be a wise move. For some reason even VLC seems unable to cope with REAL media.
If there's anyway to acess REAL without the risk of trashing anything else I'm slightly interested.
Bob.
kairosmatt
wrote on 11/20/2009, 5:54 PM
Also funny that this SCS site has the option of either Windows Media or REAL.
I too have had bad luck with REAL, and try to avoid it.
kairosmatt
I too have had bad luck with REAL, and try to avoid it.
kairosmatt
rs170a
wrote on 11/20/2009, 5:55 PM
ushere
wrote on 11/20/2009, 6:14 PM
echo mike - real alternative works fine for me........
NickHope
wrote on 11/20/2009, 9:41 PM
musicvid10
wrote on 11/20/2009, 10:10 PM
Real is one of the dirtiest outfits on the internet. They've been caught installing unique global identifiers, hijacking other applications and players, not uninstalling when they're supposed to, phoning home, silently installing other software, collecting private information, and numerous other bad stuff, yet people continue to install and update their "bait" players.
If this was over-the-counter, rather than parasitic commerce, they would have been out of business long ago.
Hope Sony takes this response down, but I've said my peace. When I have to do a clean format to get rid of a program, I'd be a fool to ever consider it again.
If this was over-the-counter, rather than parasitic commerce, they would have been out of business long ago.
Hope Sony takes this response down, but I've said my peace. When I have to do a clean format to get rid of a program, I'd be a fool to ever consider it again.
LarsHD
wrote on 11/21/2009, 12:30 AM
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PeterWright
wrote on 11/21/2009, 1:10 AM
Lars, I don't know whether your solution is Windows Restore or uninstalling/reinstalling Vegas, but I hope you are able to become "unentangled".
The amazing thing is, I can remember being told to avoid anything Real by video professionals for at least 10 years, yet somehow it's still around ...
The amazing thing is, I can remember being told to avoid anything Real by video professionals for at least 10 years, yet somehow it's still around ...
lynn1102
wrote on 11/21/2009, 5:24 PM
Just a thought. I haven't had Real on my system in a long time. Just for curiosity, I just went thru my registry and found about 40 references to Real. Run a registry cleaner to see if that helps.
Lynn
Lynn
JohnnyRoy
wrote on 11/21/2009, 5:30 PM
> DO NOT EVER INSTALL ANYTHING FROM REAL NETWORKS!
Amen! Are these guys still around? How can they survive? They are the lowest of low. I would never install anything that had to do with Real on my computer.
~jr
Amen! Are these guys still around? How can they survive? They are the lowest of low. I would never install anything that had to do with Real on my computer.
~jr
Steven Myers
wrote on 11/21/2009, 6:18 PM
And it sounds bad, too!
gpsmikey
wrote on 11/21/2009, 7:32 PM
I don't use their stuff either, but one way you could safely watch it would be to use one of the "live" linux distros (Ubuntu etc) and modify it to include the real player (available for Linux) as part of the Live CD. The "Live" CD's can boot your system without having a hard disk and they do not do anything to the hard drives. Safe surfing - if the OS doesn't know about the disks, there is not a lot "(un)REAL" could do. Just one way to attack the problem relatively safely.
mikey
mikey
fldave
wrote on 11/21/2009, 8:23 PM
I haven't used Real in about 3 years. My older computer was a dog, and I looked at the system logs. Real was trying to contact "home base" for something. Every 10 seconds.
That's when I formatted my hard drive and reinstalled everything. Except Real.
That's when I formatted my hard drive and reinstalled everything. Except Real.
richard-amirault
wrote on 11/21/2009, 9:45 PM
Well, I use REAL for posting my videos on-line. My host claimed to support three file types for streaming. One (a Windows type of video .. I don't remember exactly which) I could not get to work. The other two were Quicktime and Real.
Of those two, for the same bandwidth, Real gave a better picture quality .. so I went with Real.
I have had bad experience with Quicktime .. not being able to uninstall it from a Windows system .. so that may have contributed to my decison.
I want/need to be able to hose my videos on my own site where I have control .. plus they are generally close to an hour in length so YouTube is out.
Yes, I knew Real wasn't "perfect" but it's what I went with and what I've been using for over two years now.
Of those two, for the same bandwidth, Real gave a better picture quality .. so I went with Real.
I have had bad experience with Quicktime .. not being able to uninstall it from a Windows system .. so that may have contributed to my decison.
I want/need to be able to hose my videos on my own site where I have control .. plus they are generally close to an hour in length so YouTube is out.
Yes, I knew Real wasn't "perfect" but it's what I went with and what I've been using for over two years now.
fausseplanete
wrote on 11/22/2009, 8:29 AM
My main client requires products to be in both Real and WindowsMedia. Historical reason: not everyone uses a Windows machine etc.
Chienworks
wrote on 11/22/2009, 9:26 AM
I would be willing to bet that there's more non-Windows PCs that can play Windows Media files now than there are PCs of any OS that can play Real files. It's been ages since i've had someone tell me they can't play a .wmv file and i send or post files for lots of people who use Linux and Macs. I haven't had anyone ask me for a Real file since ... oh ... ever.
amendegw
wrote on 11/22/2009, 9:26 AM
" not everyone uses a Windows machine etc."
Web based? Both Flash & Sliverlight play on multiple platforms. Local playing? wmv & mp4(mov) cover most bases.
...Jerry
Web based? Both Flash & Sliverlight play on multiple platforms. Local playing? wmv & mp4(mov) cover most bases.
...Jerry
fausseplanete
wrote on 11/22/2009, 10:25 AM
Like I said, historical. Eventually their requirement could be H264 etc., but it's up to them, and their change-over won't be immediate. Maybe in a year or two. I'll pass on this discussion to them though.
MPM
wrote on 11/22/2009, 11:35 AM
FWIW & all that...
>"...It seems REAL's uninstall process takes away stuff that was there
>BEFORE REAL got installed..."
>"It would be nice if te core problem of this got defined / identified."
Way it works, or most likely in your case anyway, is that on install Real registered DS filters that took over some video functions in Windows. Uninstalling Real should have removed any/all files it added, but that would not include re-registering whatever those files took the place of. No software will to that AFAIK. Would be nice, but don't think it's possible for software to know what you want to take the place of un-installed files. It would be nice if Real was the only offender for that matter.
When you set up your Windows install, adding Real if you need it & then anything else can help over-ride Real's settings in the registry, as it does try to take over. Real alternative can be a decent alternative, & while it's been a while since i checked it out, the open-source Helix stuff didn't seem too bad. Another option that works with most apps is to do a registry backup, then monitor what Real does on install, saving any registry mods/additions, then restore the backup & add back anything you absolutely have to.
Is Real Evil? IMHO more than some -- less than others, but there are few if any angelic commercial software or hardware companies. ;-) That said, not always anything wrong with a good grudge -- I'll never, ever, EVER buy/use an HP or Matrox product, thank you very much. And I now feel the same way about Disney, & their rather bigoted release of Up on DVD (at least the rental version) without subs or CC, the &%$#@*!!! jerks!
Is Real common? Perhaps more than many realize. It may not be an ideal video solution, but tell me one thing that Flash does better than the alternatives -- it's just easier to put up & customize the player, & otherwise technically in comparison with the best of the rest it stinks. Real is popular with lots of folks because of their gaming site, Real Arcade, & many if not most players get RealPlayer at the same time -- not sure if you have to or not. Real is popular with loads of folks for it's ability to save on-line video -- most discussions of saving on-line video I've seen have folks chiming in they use Real to do that. Same with converters -- & if Flash was any good so many would not insist on converting it. If they had been able to keep their DVD ripper on the market, who knows how many fans Real would have gained. Not saying that Real is a pro or video enthusiast solution, & not saying it's that common anymore for on-line streaming, but it's out there from what I've seen & read.
>"If they're dumb enough to use REAL, then their video is probably going to
>suck anyway."
Not dumb enough to make that blanket accusation re: Flash, or many flavors of mp4, but if I did I'd be standing on much firmer technical ground. For low bit-rate stuff, if/when you've got common background problems (artifacts, blocking etc) Real has always topped wmv, though not as much in Vegas as it softens the background mimicking Real since Vegas 1st included their wmv encoder plugin.
>"When I have to do a clean format to get rid of a program..."
If it helps anyone...
Regedit -> Find: Real -> Delete. Or Revo. Or monitor install & undo changes. Or backup -> monitor re-install -> uninstall or restore -> undo everything you recorded monitoring install. Or Windows Repair Install. The msi installer can be a terrible thing in & of itself, & there are untold apps out there that mis-behave yet haven't necessarily been caught. With software junkie tendencies, I monitor everything, including Sony apps, & have found it good practice. I've also [knock wood] never found anything that couldn't somehow be removed.
>"Local playing? wmv & mp4(mov) cover most bases."
DivX, Xvid, & mkv in MPC-HT or VLC are hugely popular, as are converters using Xvid/ffmpeg for AVC/AAC. Nothing at all wrong with wmv or mov, but if the goal is reaching an installed base or population... In 7 64 I haven't gotten around to adding Real or Q/time for the last 8 months or so, & haven't missed them -- take away VLC & I'd be distraught.
>"...It seems REAL's uninstall process takes away stuff that was there
>BEFORE REAL got installed..."
>"It would be nice if te core problem of this got defined / identified."
Way it works, or most likely in your case anyway, is that on install Real registered DS filters that took over some video functions in Windows. Uninstalling Real should have removed any/all files it added, but that would not include re-registering whatever those files took the place of. No software will to that AFAIK. Would be nice, but don't think it's possible for software to know what you want to take the place of un-installed files. It would be nice if Real was the only offender for that matter.
When you set up your Windows install, adding Real if you need it & then anything else can help over-ride Real's settings in the registry, as it does try to take over. Real alternative can be a decent alternative, & while it's been a while since i checked it out, the open-source Helix stuff didn't seem too bad. Another option that works with most apps is to do a registry backup, then monitor what Real does on install, saving any registry mods/additions, then restore the backup & add back anything you absolutely have to.
Is Real Evil? IMHO more than some -- less than others, but there are few if any angelic commercial software or hardware companies. ;-) That said, not always anything wrong with a good grudge -- I'll never, ever, EVER buy/use an HP or Matrox product, thank you very much. And I now feel the same way about Disney, & their rather bigoted release of Up on DVD (at least the rental version) without subs or CC, the &%$#@*!!! jerks!
Is Real common? Perhaps more than many realize. It may not be an ideal video solution, but tell me one thing that Flash does better than the alternatives -- it's just easier to put up & customize the player, & otherwise technically in comparison with the best of the rest it stinks. Real is popular with lots of folks because of their gaming site, Real Arcade, & many if not most players get RealPlayer at the same time -- not sure if you have to or not. Real is popular with loads of folks for it's ability to save on-line video -- most discussions of saving on-line video I've seen have folks chiming in they use Real to do that. Same with converters -- & if Flash was any good so many would not insist on converting it. If they had been able to keep their DVD ripper on the market, who knows how many fans Real would have gained. Not saying that Real is a pro or video enthusiast solution, & not saying it's that common anymore for on-line streaming, but it's out there from what I've seen & read.
>"If they're dumb enough to use REAL, then their video is probably going to
>suck anyway."
Not dumb enough to make that blanket accusation re: Flash, or many flavors of mp4, but if I did I'd be standing on much firmer technical ground. For low bit-rate stuff, if/when you've got common background problems (artifacts, blocking etc) Real has always topped wmv, though not as much in Vegas as it softens the background mimicking Real since Vegas 1st included their wmv encoder plugin.
>"When I have to do a clean format to get rid of a program..."
If it helps anyone...
Regedit -> Find: Real -> Delete. Or Revo. Or monitor install & undo changes. Or backup -> monitor re-install -> uninstall or restore -> undo everything you recorded monitoring install. Or Windows Repair Install. The msi installer can be a terrible thing in & of itself, & there are untold apps out there that mis-behave yet haven't necessarily been caught. With software junkie tendencies, I monitor everything, including Sony apps, & have found it good practice. I've also [knock wood] never found anything that couldn't somehow be removed.
>"Local playing? wmv & mp4(mov) cover most bases."
DivX, Xvid, & mkv in MPC-HT or VLC are hugely popular, as are converters using Xvid/ffmpeg for AVC/AAC. Nothing at all wrong with wmv or mov, but if the goal is reaching an installed base or population... In 7 64 I haven't gotten around to adding Real or Q/time for the last 8 months or so, & haven't missed them -- take away VLC & I'd be distraught.
earthrisers
wrote on 11/22/2009, 2:16 PM
Just to add to the venting about Real...
I've scrupulously avoided having anything to do with them, ever since a few years ago when I online-purchased their cheapest non-free Player.
AFTER they had taken my credit card number and AFTER I had submitted the order for the Player, their "confirmation message" informed me that my credit card would be charged $10 per month forever, for a "subscription" to I-don't-even-know-what.
Took several phone calls and gyrations to cancel that order and that "subscription". Needless to say, I also did a system restore back to the point before I had ever messed with those guys.
I've scrupulously avoided having anything to do with them, ever since a few years ago when I online-purchased their cheapest non-free Player.
AFTER they had taken my credit card number and AFTER I had submitted the order for the Player, their "confirmation message" informed me that my credit card would be charged $10 per month forever, for a "subscription" to I-don't-even-know-what.
Took several phone calls and gyrations to cancel that order and that "subscription". Needless to say, I also did a system restore back to the point before I had ever messed with those guys.