RealPlayer support

In this page:

Player software
Testing and troubleshooting your player software
RealPlayer not playing on Mac OSX
Customizing your view
If video playback seems choppy (off campus and VPN users and changing connection speed)
GraphicConverter problems on Mac OSX
More help

 

Player software

The Real player is available for both Windows and Macintosh platforms. Northwestern users do not have to pay any fees to get the Real player.

Versions of the Real player software:

Testing and troubleshooting your player software

Older versions of the Real player may not support some of the newer compression types used to deliver content at Northwestern University. There is a page on the Real site to test how well your version of the Real player plays commonly-used compression types.

These quick links will also test how well your Real Player will play Northwestern content:

You may also wish to visit the Real Customer Support page for more advanced help directly from Real.

RealPlayer not playing on MacOSX

Some early versions of RealPlayer (RealPlayer 10) for MacOSX had some known problems and did not always properly launch when a web link to streamed content was clicked. The best solution is to install the latest version of the software. If you do have the latest version installed, however, and are still not able to get Real content to open in the RealPlayer, here are some steps that may resolve the problem.

Symptom: when a web link is clicked, nothing may happen OR the wrong application may launch. To fix the problem:

  1. Locate your download location and look there for files with a file name ending in .rm or a .ram ; by default the download location is the desktop, but it may have been changed to your home directory or to a Downloads folder.

  2. With your mouse, click ONCE to select the file. From the File menu, choose GetInfo. A window will open that looks something like this:

  3. From the "Open with:" menu, choose Other. You must choose Other even if the RealPlayer is already selected in your "Open with" menu.
  4. When the "Choose Other Application" window opens, find the RealPlayer and select it. If RealPlayer is greyed out or cannot be selected, check to be sure that the "Enable" menu near the top of the window reads "All Applications." Finally, be sure to select the "Always Open With" option in the bottom left-hand corner of the window before clicking the "Add" button.

  5. After you are returned to the GetInfo window, the last and most important step is to click the "Change All... " button as shown in the image below.

  6. Close your GetInfo window and try clicking on the web link again. The RealPlayer should launch and play back files. If you are using Internet Explorer and the RealPlayer still does not launch, proceed to the next step.
  7. Optional steps for Internet Explorer users: from the Explorer menu, choose Preferences:

  8. When the Preferences window opens, scroll to and select File Helpers in the left-hand column, then scroll down to the RealAudio, RealMedia, etc. section in the right-hand column.

  9. Select the entry for RealPlayer Metafile (.ram) and click the Change... button. Review your options to be sure they are set to open the RealPlayer (or RealOne Player) as shown in the image below:

  10. Click the OK button and try your link again. You may have to repeat this for every file type (.ram, .rm, .ra, .smil) that you would like to open in the RealPlayer.

Customizing your view

You can control the layout and size of your RealPlayer window. Depending on your operating system and the version of Real player you have installed, you may have access to: a graphic equalizer, an integrated web browser, and an audio CD player.

Stretching or shrinking your window to fit your content:

With a Windows Enterprise player:

You can stretch the window left, right, up and down. Stretch the window by clicking and dragging on the lower right-hand corner. NOTE that with the Enterprise version of the player, you may not be able to eliminate the black bars on either side of the content.

With a non-Enterprise Windows player

You can stretch the window left, right, up and down. Stretch the window by clicking and dragging on the lower right-hand corner. You should be able to make your Real player window fit your content exactly, with no extra space on either side.

With a Mac player

You can stretch the window left, right, up and down. Stretch the window by clicking and dragging on the lower right-hand corner. You should be able to make your Real player window fit your content exactly, with no extra space on either side.

Playing your content a double size or bigger:

With a Windows player (Enterprise or non-Enterprise version)

From the View menu, you can select the option to play your content at its original size, double size, or full screen.

With a Mac player

From the View menu, you can select the option to play your content at its original size, double size, or full screen.

Turning on and off optional components:

With a Windows Enterprise player

The globe icon in the upper right corner will toggle on and off the media browser. The View menu has an option to turn on and off the integrated web browser.

With a Windows non-Enterprise player

The globe icon in the upper right corner opens a drop-down menu containing a list of all of the optional components.

If playback seems choppy (off campus and VPN users)

Do not connect to Northwestern's VPN service while attempting to access streamed Real content. Users have reported performance issues. If you are not certain whether or not you are using VPN, consult NU Information Technology's VPN pages.

In order to access streamed media from an off campus location, your network must be fast enough: typically, for audio only, the network must be capable of a download speed of at least 100 kilobits per second (kbps), and for video, at least 400 kilobits per second. If you are not certain how fast your connection is, contact your internet service provider, or use the Internet Frog Speed Test (click the "Test the speed of your connection" link.)

Other software may affect the speed of your connection and the ability to access streamed media. If you have a personal firewall installed, or are simultaneously using other network-intensive software, try disabling them temporarily.

If video playback seems choppy (changing connection speed)

Sometimes the Real player comes installed with a setting for connection speed that is too slow for Northwestern content. A symptom of this problem is choppy video; your video may look more like a slideshow than smoothly playing video. To check your connection speed settings:

With a Windows player:
  1. From the Tools menu, choose Preferences as shown below:

  2. In the Preferences window, select Connection as shown below:

  3. Be sure the settings you choose for Normal and Maximum Bandwidth match the network speed in your location.

IMPORTANT: your network speed will differ from the settings shown in the image above depending on who your Internet Service Provider is. If you are connected to the Northwestern network from an on-campus location such as a dorm, lab or office building, you can choose the Office Lan (10Mbps) or T1 (1Mbps) setting. If you are using a DSL line, a cable modem, or other type of connection, ask your Internet Service Provider to tell you how fast your connection is, and choose the corresponding setting.

With a Mac player:
  1. From the RealPlayer menu, choose Preferences as shown below:

  2. In the Preferences window, choose Connection as shown below:
  3. Be sure the settings you choose for Connection Speed and Maximum in the Bandwidth section match the network speed in your location.

IMPORTANT: your network speed will differ from the settings shown in the image above depending on who your Internet Service Provider is. If you are connected to the Northwestern network from an on-campus location such as a dorm, lab or office building, you can choose the Office Lan (10Mbps) or T1 (1Mbps) setting. If you are using a DSL line, a cable modem, or other type of internet connection, ask your Internet Service Provider to tell you how fast your connection is, and choose the corresponding setting.

Graphic Converter problems on Mac OSX

Several Mac OSX users have reported that the Real Player does not start when they click a movie or sound file link, but that Graphic Converter launches instead and is unable to open the file.

Force the computer to play Real files in the Real player:

  1. Quit the Graphic Converter application if it has started up. Look on your desktop for a Real media file: it will probably end with .ram or .rm and may have a Real icon like this:
  2. With your mouse, click (single-click only, do not double-click) on the file. Go to the File menu at the top of the screen and select "Open with" and then "Other..." as shown in the image below.
    *IMPORTANT* if you do NOT select "Other..." you can make your Real file open correctly only once. You must select "Other..." in order to open such files correctly every time.

  3. Find the RealPlayer (it is probably in your Applications folder) and select it, then click the box marked "Always Open With" as shown in the image below:

  4. Click the Open button to see if RealOne player will launch properly. Next, go back to your web browser and try clicking a link to your movie or sound again. If it still opens in Graphic Converter, you will probably have to delete the Graphic Converter application from your computer.

Deleting GraphicConverter

  1. To delete GarphicConverter from your computer, first drag the GraphicConverter application folder to the Trash. The GraphicConverter application folder is probably located in Applications.
  2. Next, delete any folders or files with the name "GraphicConverter" in them, starting with these:
    yourcomputer/Library/Application Support/GraphicConverter
    yourusername/Library/Application Support/GraphicConverter
  3. Make sure to empty the trash, then try clicking the link to your movie or sound again. If GraphicConverter is still interfering with opening your Real files, search your computer: from the File menu choose "Find" then type "graphicconverter" in the search box as shown in the image below:

    Click the Search button. Delete (drag to the Trash) anything that the Find locates.

 

 

More help

  1. If you've already checked your connection settings, and video appears to come through consistently, but still runs slowly/choppy, try closing all other programs. The Real Player will happily use all system resources you can give it.
  2. Real Player movies might not play if you are behind a firewall. Ask your network administrator if there is a way around the firewall (though, in many cases, there is no solution.)
  3. Make sure you're connected to the Internet. Check your ethernet, modem, or cable/DSL connection. Also, check to be sure your Internet Service Provider (ISP) is not down or 'offline'.
  4. Sound issues: Real Player's sound works in conjunction with the Wave Out controls of your sound card on Windows. Check your master volume control and make sure the volume is turned up and that nothing is muted. Mac users should also check their volume settings.
  5. Browser cache: some users have reported problems when their internet browser (Internet Explorer, Safari, Firefox, Mozilla, etc.) is set to cache files instead of downloading a fresh copy with each request. The message "link not found or outdated" might indicate a problem with browser cache. Try emptying your cache and then re-requesting the streamed file by clicking the link again.

The NU IT Support Center can assist with RealPlayer, laptop configuration, or other problems. Digital Collections staff are also happy to provide assistance to NU faculty and grad students. If the above information does not answer your questions, please submit a streaming problem form or send email to digitalcollections@northwestern.edu.

 

 

 

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