Orban/Coding Technologies AAC/aacPlus Player Plugin™

INFORMATION

 

Version 1.0

2008/04

 

This document describes the Orban/Coding Technologies AAC/aacPlus™ Player Plugin and its use.

The software and documentation are provided to you in accordance with the accompanying license agreement.

 

It is very important that you read and understand the information presented here, as it is vital to achieving success with this powerful software.

 

For the most current technical information please see http://www.orban.com/plugin.

 

 

DESCRIPTION

 

The Orban/Coding Technologies AAC/aacPlus™ Plugin is a free, full-featured Microsoft® DirectShow™ software plug-in for Windows Media Player or any other DirectShow compliant media player compatible with Microsoft® Windows® Vista/XP/2000. It is capable of playing AAC/aacPlus™/HE-AAC/eAAC+ audio files and streams in several standards-based, non-proprietary formats, including Apple® iTunes™ non-DRM audio files, using the genuine Coding Technologies decoder. This is the good stuff from the company who invented the SBR technology to make AAC into aacPlus™. High quality, bandwidth-efficient audio is now a reality for Windows Media® Player.

 

Real-time file and stream information such as stream name, description, artist, title, file media graphics, and iTMS information are displayed in the video window of the media player. This information is rendered locally on the client computer, eliminating the need to include video in the file or stream. This real-time information can also be used in custom embedded and HTML view Windows Media Players.

 

The installation of this component is extremely light and simple, with no authentication, registration, monitoring, tracking, commercials, other push content, spyware, or hijacking of existing players.

 

 

SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS

 

MINIMUM

333MHz Intel Pentium II Processor or equivalent

64MB RAM Microsoft Windows 2000

128MB Microsoft Windows XP / Media Center 2004

1MB Available Disk Space

56kbps Modem (for playing streaming media)

16-bit Sound Card and Audio System

65,000-color Video Display Card and Video Display at 800x600

Microsoft Windows 2000

Microsoft DirectX 9.0

Microsoft Windows Media Player 6.4

 

RECOMMENDED

            800MHz Intel Pentium III Processor or greater

                128MB RAM Microsoft Windows 2000

256MB Microsoft Windows XP / Media Center 2004/2005

512MB Microsoft Windows Vista

                1MB Available Disk Space

                High Speed/Broadband Internet Connection (for playing streaming media)

                16-bit Sound Card and High Fidelity Stereo Audio System

                16,000,000-color Video Display Card and Video Display at 1024x768

                Microsoft Windows XP / Microsoft Windows Media Center Edition 2005 / Microsoft Windows Vista

Microsoft DirectX 9.0

                Microsoft Windows Media Player 10.0/11.0

 

 

SUPPORTED FILE TYPES

 

AAC / HE-AAC / eAAC / eAAC+ / aacPlus®

 

.aac

ISO/IEC 13818-7

.mp4

ISO/IEC 14496-3/12/14

.m4a (Apple iTunes® Unprotected)

ISO/IEC 14496-3/12/14

.m4b (Apple iTunes® Unprotected Bookmark)

ISO/IEC 14496-3/12/14

.3gp

3GPP TS 26.244

 

 

METADATA FILE TAG INFORMATION

 

.aac

ID3v2

.bmp, .jpg, .gif, .png    80 x 80 min.

Unicode

Artist / Title – Line 1 / Line 2

.mp4

 

 

UTF-8

Under Development

.m4a

Apple iTunes®

.bmp, .jpg, .gif, .png    80 x 80 min.

UTF-8

Artist / Title – Line 1 / Line 2

.m4b

Apple iTunes®

.bmp, .jpg, .gif, .png    80 x 80 min.

UTF-8

Artist / Title – Line 1 / Line 2

.3gp

3GPP TS 26.244

 

UTF-8/16

Artist / Title – Line 1 / Line 2

 

Artist, Title, Filename, Bitrate, Audio Parameters, Media Graphics, and iTMS Information are shown in the media player video window at 320 x 240 while playing.

 

 

 

SUPPORTED LIVE STREAM TYPES

 

UNICAST

HTTP/ICY/TCP

ADTS SHOUTcast®

RFC 2616

HTTP/ICY/TCP

ADTS Icecast2

RFC 2616

 

 

 

RTSP/RTP/TCP

MPEG-4

RFC 2326 2327 3550

RTSP/RTP/TCP

MPEG-4 Packet Optimized

RFC 2326 2327 3550

 

 

 

RTSP/RTP/TCP

3GPP/LATM

RFC 2326 2327 3016

RTSP/RTP/TCP

3GPP/LATM Packet Optimized

RFC 2326 2327 3016

 

 

 

HTTP/RTSP/RTP/TCP

MPEG-4

RFC 1945 2326 2327 3550

HTTP/RTSP/RTP/TCP

MPEG-4 Packet Optimized

RFC 1945 2326 2327 3550

 

 

 

HTTP/RTSP/RTP/TCP

3GPP/LATM

RFC 1945 2326 2327 3016

HTTP/RTSP/RTP/TCP

3GPP/LATM Packet Optimized

RFC 1945 2326 2327 3016

 

 

 

RTSP/RTP/UDP

MPEG-4

Under Development

RTSP/RTP/UDP

MPEG-4 Packet Optimized

Under Development

 

 

 

RTSP/RTP/UDP

3GPP/LATM

Under Development

RTSP/RTP/UDP

3GPP/LATM Packet Optimized

Under Development

 

MULTICAST

RTP/UDP

MPEG-4

Under Development

RTP/UDP

MPEG-4 Packet Optimized

Under Development

 

 

METADATA LIVE STREAM INFORMATION

 

HTTP/ICY

 

HTTP In-line

Unicode

Artist / Title – Line 1

RTSP/RTP

 

SDP and RTCP SDES

UTF-8

Artist / Title – Line 1 / Line 2

 

Artist, Title, Stream Name, Description, URL, Bitrate, and Audio Parameters are shown in the media player video window while playing.

 

 

 

SUPPORTED FILE STREAM TYPES

 

UNICAST

HTTP/ICY/TCP

ADTS SHOUTcast®

RFC 2616

HTTP/ICY/TCP

ADTS Icecast2

RFC 2616

 

 

 

RTSP/RTP/TCP

MPEG-4

RFC 2326 2327 3550

RTSP/RTP/TCP

MPEG-4 Packet Optimized

RFC 2326 2327 3550

 

 

 

RTSP/RTP/TCP

3GPP/LATM

RFC 2326 2327 3016

RTSP/RTP/TCP

3GPP/LATM Packet Optimized

RFC 2326 2327 3016

 

 

 

HTTP/RTSP/RTP/TCP

MPEG-4

RFC 1945 2326 2327 3550

HTTP/RTSP/RTP/TCP

MPEG-4 Packet Optimized

RFC 1945 2326 2327 3550

 

 

 

HTTP/RTSP/RTP/TCP

3GPP/LATM

RFC 1945 2326 2327 3016

HTTP/RTSP/RTP/TCP

3GPP/LATM Packet Optimized

RFC 1945 2326 2327 3016

 

 

 

RTSP/RTP/UDP

MPEG-4

Under Development

RTSP/RTP/UDP

MPEG-4 Packet Optimized

Under Development

 

 

 

RTSP/RTP/UDP

3GPP/LATM

Under Development

RTSP/RTP/UDP

3GPP/LATM Packet Optimized

Under Development

 

MULTICAST

RTP/UDP

MPEG-4

Under Development

RTP/UDP

MPEG-4 Packet Optimized

Under Development

 

 

 

 

METADATA FILE STREAM INFORMATION

 

HTTP

 

ID3v2

Unicode

Artist / Title – Line 1 / Line 2

RTSP/RTP

 

 

 

None – Server Limitation

 

Artist, Title, URL, Bitrate, Audio Parameters, and Media Graphics are shown in the media player video window while playing.

 

 

 

 

VIDEO WINDOW SIZE

 

To pixel map the fonts used for the video display, a size of 320 x 240 should be used for custom and embedded players. Media graphics are displayed in the 80 x 80 lower left corner of the video window, and larger sizes will scale from any size to fit inside 80 x 80 proportionally. Embedded graphics for compatible audio files should be created at a minimum size of 80 x 80.

 

 

 

USER AGENT

 

User-Agent: Orban Opticodec-PC Plugin/x.x.x (os= )

 

 

 

INSTALLATION

 

To install the Orban/Coding Technologies AAC/aacPlus™ Player Plugin, unzip the distribution file to a directory of choice, and double-click the Setup.exe file. Follow the installation instructions, agreeing to the End User License Agreement. The software requires approximately 1MB of disk space, and will be installed to the Windows Operating System disk and Program Files directory.

 

Windows 2000 installations require gdiplus.dll to be in C:\WINNT\System32 before the Plugin is installed, which can be downloaded from here:

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=6a63ab9c-df12-4d41-933c-be590feaa05a&displaylang=en

 

All documentation, license, and  uninstaller files are included and accessible from:

Start > Program Files > Orban > AAC-aacPlus Player Plugin.

 

When installing a new version of the software, the previous version will uninstall automatically before installing the new version.

 

 

 

 

UNINSTALLATION

 

Uninstall the Orban/Coding Technologies AAC/aacPlus™ Player Plugin, either from:

Start > Program Files > Orban >  AAC/aacPlus Player Plugin > Uninstall AAC/aacPlus Player Plugin

or from:

Control Panel > Add or Remove Programs > Orban/Coding Technologies AAC/aacPlus Player Plugin.

 

This will completely remove the Orban/Coding Technologies AAC/aacPlus™ Player Plugin and all associated Registry entries.

 

 

 

PLAYING LIVE AND FILE STREAMS

 

Streams can be played directly in several of the usual ways. Open Windows Media® Player from the Start Menu or Shortcut Icon. From the File Menu > Open URL…, and enter the stream URL using the following syntax:

 

HTTP Streams

icyx://[stream path]

Assume port 80, otherwise specify.

RTSP Streams

rtpx://[stream path]

Assume port 554, otherwise specify.

HTTP/RTSP Streams

htpx://[stream path]

Assume port 80, otherwise specify.

 

 

EXAMPLE STREAMS:

 

HTTP Live Stream from SHOUTcast Server

icyx://123.45.67.8:8000

HTTP Live Stream from Icecast2 Server

icyx://123.45.67.8:8010/name

HTTP File Stream from Web Server

icyx://123.45.67.8/file.aac

RTSP Live Stream from QTSS/DSS Server

rtpx://123.45.67.8/stream.sdp

HTTP/RTSP Live Stream from QTSS/DSS Server

htpx://123.45.67.8/stream.sdp

RTSP File Stream from QTSS/DSS Server

rtpx://123.45.67.8/file.mp4

RTSP File Stream from QTSS/DSS Server

rtpx://123.45.67.8/file.3gp

 

Streams can also be played by entering the stream URL using the same syntax, into your Web browser. Windows Media® Player will automatically launch in full mode and play the stream.

 

By design, .m3u and .pls playlist stream URLs are not supported. This would otherwise break other players that are registered to play these streams, and there would be no assurance that Windows Media Player would launch.

 

New UILs (icyx://, rtpx://, htpx://, uvxx://) were created for use with Orban/Coding Technologies AAC/aacPlus Player Plugin to prevent any conflict with existing UILs (http://, rtsp://) that are already used with Windows Media Player for Microsoft proprietary streaming transports.

 

 

METAFILES

 

Streams may also be played indirectly by several methods. By default, .asx metafiles are registered to Windows Media Player. Referencing an AAC/aacPlus™ stream URL in an .asx file will insure that Windows Media Player always launches automatically and that the stream will start to play when an .asx file is double-clicked. Windows Media Player may be launched using this way in two different modes, Full mode and HTML View mode. A third mode, HTML Embedded, does not use an .asx file to launch. Each mode has different features, purposes, and complexities.

 


EXAMPLE .asx FILES (with Comments in orange – may be deleted)

 

Full Mode – Minimum

 

<ASX VERSION="3.0">

<!--Windows Media Player Metafile-->

<!--Live Stream-->

<TITLE>Orban Opticodec-PC aacPlus™ Stream</TITLE>

<ENTRY>

       <REF HREF="icyx://123.45.67.8:8010/stream" />

</ENTRY>

</ASX>

 

 

Full Mode – Complete

 

<ASX VERSION="3.0">

<!--Windows Media Player Metafile-->

<!--Live Stream with Banner-->

 

<PARAM name="encoding" value="utf-8" />

<!--Allows extended characters in annotations - Save as UTF-8 NOT ASCII-->

 

<TITLE>Orban Opticodec-PC aacPlus™ Live Stream</TITLE>

<!--Title - Playlist Column/Bottom Status Playlist:-->

 

<AUTHOR>Orban</AUTHOR>

<!--Author - Prop=Playlist=Author-->

 

<MOREINFO HREF="http://www.opticodec.com"/>

<!--Title URL Link on mouse hover over Playlist-->

 

<COPYRIGHT>©2007 Orban/CRL, Inc.</COPYRIGHT>

<!--Copyright - Prop=Playlist=Copyright-->

 

<ABSTRACT>MORE AUDIO - LESS ANNOYANCE</ABSTRACT>

<!--Abstract - Prop=Playlist=Description-->

 

<ENTRY>

              <TITLE>Live Stream</TITLE>

              <!--Entry Title - Playlist Pane/Bottom Status Clip:/Prop=Content=Title-->

 

              <AUTHOR>Evaluation</AUTHOR>

              <!--Entry Author - Bottom Status Author:/Prop=Content=Artist-->

 

              <COPYRIGHT>©2007 Orban/CRL, Inc.</COPYRIGHT>

              <!--Entry Copyright - Bottom Status Copyright:

              /Mouse hover over Bottom Status Copyright:

              /Prop=Content=Copyright-->

 

              <ABSTRACT>ORBAN OPTIMIZED</ABSTRACT>

              <!--Entry Abstract - Bottom Status only on mouse hover over Bottom Status Clip:

              /Prop=Content=Description-->

 

              <REF HREF="rtpx://123.45.67.8/stream.sdp"/>

              <!--Entry Content-->

 

                     <BANNER HREF="http://www.domain.com/images/banner.gif">

                     <!--Entry Banner Element 194w x 32h-->

 

                     <ABSTRACT>Click here to go to Web site.</ABSTRACT>

                     <!--Entry Banner Message on mouse hover over Banner-->

 

                     <MOREINFO HREF="http://www.opticodec.com" TARGET = _blank/>

                     <!--Entry Banner URL Link-->

                     </BANNER>

</ENTRY>

</ASX>

 

 

 

 

 

STREAM INFORMATION

 

Depending upon the streaming server used, Orban/Coding Technologies AAC/aacPlus™ Player Plugin is fully Unicode/UTF-8-16 compliant, supporting other languages and character sets. Orban Opticodec-PC Streaming and File Encoders fully support this encoding as well.

 

 

 

REQUIRED WEB SERVER MIME TYPES

 

MIME Type: .asx    video/x-ms-asf

 

 

 

AUTHENTICATED STREAMS

Authenticated streams are not supported at this time.                 Currently Under Development

 

 

 

FIREWALLS AND PROXY SERVERS

 

If your computer is located behind a NAT firewall, all HTTP, RTSP, and UVOX streams using the TCP network transport should work correctly. Some firewalls will port filter, disallowing any potential streaming ports. In this case, you may be limited to streams that use Port 80, which is almost always open on all firewalls to enable web browsers. Some even more aggressive firewalls will content filter, preventing even HTTP/ICY Port 80 streams. In this case, you may be limited to streams using HTTP/RTSP/RTP/TCP Tunneling.

 

If your computer is connected to a proxy server, all streaming traffic is directed through the Windows LAN Settings. This can be configured through Control Panel > Internet Options > Connections Tab > LAN Settings.

 

The settings in Windows Media Player under Tools > Options… > Network Tab have no effect with the Orban/Coding Technologies AAC/aacPlus™ Player Plugin. These settings are for Windows Media Player Windows Media specific streams.

 

The Orban/Coding Technologies AAC/aacPlus™ Player Plugin uses different UILs (icyx://, rtpx://, htpx://, uvxx://) for the various streaming servers to eliminate the possibility of protocol conflict within the player. These UILs are simply used to redirect the network stream request to the Orban/Coding Technologies AAC/aacPlus™ Player Plugin component within the Windows operating system. These UILs are not passed as network stream requests. Therefore, they should not be a proxy server impediment.

 

The Orban/Coding Technologies AAC/aacPlus™ Player Plugin does not support third-party proxy server clients at this time.

 

 

 

PLAYING FILES

 

Files can be played directly in several of the usual ways. Open Windows Media Player from the Start Menu or Shortcut Icon. From the File Menu > Open… and choose any AAC/aacPlus™ compliant file. Drag and Drop is also supported — drag any AAC/aacPlus™ compliant file onto the Windows Media Player application.

 

 

FILE AND ICON ASSOCIATIONS

 

By default, to keep the installation process as simple as possible, Orban Opticodec-PC AAC/aacPlus™ Plugin does not claim or register any file extensions. This would otherwise break other players and their file associations that may be installed on the same computer, and be very undesirable. If you want Windows Media Player to automatically play AAC/aacPlus™ compliant files by double-clicking them, you must manually register the desired files to Windows Media Player.

 

File Type Registration

File Type registration may be added or changed by opening Windows Explorer from My Computer, and from the Tools Menu > Folder Options…, select the File Types tab. Add or Edit the desired File Types by selecting either New or Change... for each File Type

 

File Icon Registration

Icons may be changed by selecting Advanced and Change Icon… and browsing to:

C:\Program Files\Windows Media Player\wmplayer.exe

or whatever directory Windows Media Player was installed, for each File Type.

 

Alternatively, there is a .reg file provided to register and change icons for all supported file types. Double-click the .reg file to make the Registry entries automatically. This file is located in the directory where the program was installed.

 

 

METAFILES

 

Files may be played indirectly by several methods. By default, .asx metafiles are registered to Windows Media Player. Referencing an AAC/aacPlus™ file or file URL in an .asx file will insure that Windows Media Player launches automatically and that the file will start to play when an .asx file is double-clicked. Windows Media Player may be launched using this way in two different modes, Full mode and HTML View mode. A third mode, HTML Embedded, does not use an .asx file to launch. Each mode has different features, purposes, and complexities.

 

The .asx file can be used locally or included in HTML for a web page to reference files on a web server or hinted files on a streaming server for on-demand applications. Streaming files from an RTSP streaming server is more secure, as simple HTTP requests cannot download the files.

 


EXAMPLE .asx FILES (with Comments in orange – may be deleted)

 

Full Mode – Minimum Required

 

<ASX VERSION="3.0">

<!--Windows Media Player Metafile-->

<!--File Stream-->

<TITLE>Orban Opticodec-PC aacPlus™</TITLE>

<ENTRY>

              <REF HREF="rtpx://123.45.67.8/file.mp4" />

</ENTRY>

</ASX>

 

 

Full Mode – Complete

 

<ASX VERSION="3.0">

<!--Windows Media Player Metafile-->

<!--File Stream with Banner-->

 

<PARAM name="encoding" value="utf-8" />

<!--Allows extended characters in annotations - Save as UTF-8 NOT ASCII-->

 

<TITLE>Orban Opticodec-PC aacPlus™ File Stream</TITLE>

<!--Title - Playlist Column/Bottom Status Playlist:-->

 

<AUTHOR>Orban</AUTHOR>

<!--Author - Prop=Playlist=Author-->

 

<MOREINFO HREF="http://www.opticodec.com"/>

<!--Title URL Link on mouse hover over Playlist-->

 

<COPYRIGHT>©2007 Orban/CRL, Inc.</COPYRIGHT>

<!--Copyright - Prop=Playlist=Copyright-->

 

<ABSTRACT>MORE AUDIO - LESS ANNOYANCE</ABSTRACT>

<!--Abstract - Prop=Playlist=Description-->

 

<ENTRY>

              <TITLE>Live Stream</TITLE>

              <!--Entry Title - Playlist Pane/Bottom Status Clip:/Prop=Content=Title-->

 

              <AUTHOR>Evaluation</AUTHOR>

              <!--Entry Author - Bottom Status Author:/Prop=Content=Artist-->

 

              <COPYRIGHT>©2007 Orban/CRL, Inc.</COPYRIGHT>

              <!--Entry Copyright - Bottom Status Copyright:

              /Mouse hover over Bottom Status Copyright:

              /Prop=Content=Copyright-->

 

              <ABSTRACT>ORBAN OPTIMIZED</ABSTRACT>

              <!--Entry Abstract - Bottom Status only on mouse hover over Bottom Status Clip:

              /Prop=Content=Description-->

 

              <REF HREF="rtpx://123.45.67.8/file.mp4"/>

              <!--Entry Content-->

 

                     <BANNER HREF="http://www.domain.com/images/banner.gif">

                     <!--Entry Banner Element 194w x 32h-->

 

                     <ABSTRACT>Click here to go to Web site.</ABSTRACT>

                     <!--Entry Banner Message on mouse hover over Banner-->

 

                     <MOREINFO HREF="http://www.opticodec.com" TARGET = _blank/>

                     <!--Entry Banner URL Link-->

                     </BANNER>

</ENTRY>

</ASX>

 

 

 

 

 

PLAYLIST FILES

 

Windows Media Player .wpl playlist files are fully supported. To create a playlist file, Open Windows Media Player from the Start Menu or Shortcut Icon. From the File Menu > New Now Playing List. Playlist files are created in the usual way by dragging AAC/aacPlus™ compliant files into the Windows Media Player Now Playing List window, and from the File Menu > Save Now Playing List as… Alternatively, the .wpl file can be manually created/edited with the proper SMIL syntax and saved as a text only file with a .wpl extension.

 

Windows Media Player .asx files can also be used to build Windows Media Player .wpl files. By referencing the AAC/aacPlus™ files in individual .asx files, the AAC/aacPlus™ file information will display in the Windows Media Player Now Playing List window.

 

By design, .m3u and .pls playlist stream URLs are not supported. This would otherwise break other players that are registered to play these streams, and there would be no assurance that Windows Media Player would launch.

 

 

 

FILE INFORMATION

 

Depending upon the file format used the Orban/Coding Technologies AAC/aacPlus™ Player Plugin is fully Unicode/UTF-8/16 compliant, supporting other languages and character sets. Orban Opticodec-PC Streaming and File Encoders fully support this encoding as well.

 

Artist, Title, Stream Name and Description are displayed in the upper section of the video window.

Technical information about the file or stream is displayed just below.

 

Media graphics that are encoded into the AAC/aacPlus™ files, such as album art or logos, are displayed in the lower left corner of the video window.

 

iTMS Information (iTunes™ Music Store) is displayed to the right of the media graphics. This includes the username and e-mail address of the file owner.

 

 

 

TROUBLESHOOTING

 

 

PLUGIN FAILS TO INSTALL

A corrupt Windows Media Player installation can be responsible for a Plugin installation failure. Reinstall Windows Media Player, and then reinstall the Plugin.

 

Windows 2000 installations require gdiplus.dll to be in C:\WINNT\System32 before the Plugin is installed, which can be downloaded from here:

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=6a63ab9c-df12-4d41-933c-be590feaa05a&displaylang=en

This is the correct version for Windows 2000. Do not use the incorrect version of gdiplus.dll.

 

 

WINDOWS MEDIA PLAYER LAUNCHES, BUT AUDIO FAILS TO PLAY

In the unlikely event that the Orban/Coding Technologies AAC/aacPlus™ Player Plugin fails to play audio, and Windows Media Player flashes Error Downloading Codec in the status area of the player, first make absolutely sure that you are attempting to play a valid file or stream. If the file or stream is valid, and the plugin still fails to play audio, there may be a DirectShow™ component conflict. These can sometimes be very tricky to troubleshoot, as there are many third-party components that either take load priority, do not conform to the Microsoft DirectShow™ specification, or lack the necessary requirements to pass data from the Orban/Coding Technologies AAC/aacPlus™ Player Plugin to your computer sound device.

 

There are two software utilities available from the Microsoft DirectX™ SDK, GraphEdit, and SysEnum which can be invaluable for troubleshooting Microsoft DirectShow™ component conflicts. They are available from the Microsoft website.

 

WildTangent™ Web Driver is incompatible with the Plugin. Uninstall it. It is a now obsolete gaming component that is installed on many OEM home computer systems, and considered spyware.

 

 

WINDOWS MEDIA PLAYER FAILS TO LAUNCH FROM .ASX FILES

This is not an issue with the Orban/Coding Technologies AAC/aacPlus™ Player Plugin itself, however, the problem requires resolution to correct the operation of Windows Media Player. The most common problem preventing .asx files from launching Windows Media Player and playing files or streams is due to another player or application either changing the file association within Windows, or attempting to take control of the file extension or type from within the player or application itself.

 

By default, the .asx file extension is always registered to Windows Media Player. Should some other player or application change this, Windows Media Player will no longer automatically launch by double-clicking on a .asx file. If the .asf file association is correctly registered within Windows, be certain that .asx or .asf files are not under the control of another player or application by carefully checking the configuration of any other players or applications that are installed on the same computer.

 

This can be corrected by right-clicking on a .asx file, and choosing Open With > Windows Media Player. If Windows Media Player is not in the menu, choose Open With > Choose Program…, and select Windows Media Player from the list. Tick the box: Always use the selected program to open this kind of file.

 

Do not use other alternative Windows Media Player file extensions for .asx files, such as .wax to force correction of this problem. The other Windows Media Player file extensions are reserved for Microsoft specific file formats, and although may work on some systems, may not be compatible with Orban/Coding Technologies AAC/aacPlus™ Player Plugin on all systems. Furthermore, there is also the possibility that another player or application has claimed these other Windows Media Player file extensions as well.

 

 

WINDOWS MEDIA PLAYER FAILS TO SHOW PLUG-IN FROM TOOLS > PLUG-INS MENU

The Orban/Coding Technologies AAC/aacPlus™ Player Plugin is technically not a Windows Media Player Plugin, and therefore will not show in the Tools > Plug-ins Menu. It is called a Plug-In for simplicity. It is a Microsoft DirectShow component, which is fully supported by and optimized for Windows Media Player.

 

 

 

 

CONTENT CREATION/ENCODING/SERVER SOFTWARE

 

The following content creation/encoding software can be used to produce various AAC/aacPlus™ files and/or streams. The features vary among the applications listed here. Not all applications are capable of producing all of the various file and stream formats available. Interoperability with other existing software and/or systems are other important considerations. Your file and/or stream requirements will determine the most compatible application(s) to use.

 

Orban provides a full line of Opticodec-PC File/Stream Encoders that support this plugin and provides a powerful feature set for digital netcasting and broadcasting.

 

 

OTHER FILE ENCODING TOOLS

 

Orban® Opticodec-PC™ File Encoder 1.x/2.x

Orban® Opticodec-PC™ Archive Encoder 1.x

Nullsoft® Winamp® 5.x

Ahead Nero 6.x/7.x

Apple® iTunes™ (AAC only)

Apple® QuickTime Pro 6.x and up (AAC only)

Y!ME Yahoo! ® Music Engine

Sorenson Media® Squeeze®

Poikosoft Easy CD-DA Extractor

 

 

STREAMING ENCODING

 

            Orban® Opticodec-PC™ Streaming Encoder 1.x/2.x

Nullsoft® Winamp® DSP 1.9.x Plugin

            RealNetworks® Real/Helix™ Mobile Producer 11.0

            Apple® QuickTime® Broadcaster (AAC only)

            Vara Software Wirecast (AAC only)

 

 

STREAMING SERVERS

 

            Nullsoft® SHOUTcast® Streaming Server

            Icecast2 Streaming Server

            Apple® QuickTime® Streaming Server

            Apple® Darwin Streaming Server

            RealNetworks® Real/Helix™ Server

            RealNetworks® Real/Helix™ Mobile Server

           

 

 

 

RESOURCES

 

Microsoft Windows Media Player has several development resources. The best official information is available at the Microsoft website.

 

Windows Media Player 11 SDK

http://msdn.microsoft.com/windowsmedia/TechPages/wmplayer/default.aspx

 

Windows Media Player 10 SDK

http://msdn.microsoft.com/windowsmedia/TechPages/wmplayer/default.aspx

 

Windows Media Player 6.4 SDK

http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/default.asp?url=/library/en-us/wmp6sdk/htm/microsoftwindowsmediaplayercontrolversion64sdk.asp

 

Windows Media Developer Center Windows Media Downloads

http://msdn.microsoft.com/windowsmedia/downloads/default.aspx

 

Adding Windows Media to Web Pages

http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms983653.aspx

 

Microsoft Windows Media – Technical Articles

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/knowledgecenter/technicalarticles.aspx

 

Seth McEvoy

Microsoft Windows Media Player for Windows XP Handbook

Microsoft Press, 2001

 

 

Orban Opticodec-PC products extend from AAC/aacPlus™ File and Streaming Encoders, to Archive Encoders. These encoders are used by individuals to large content providers and broadcasters for netcasting, podcasting, and on-demand download and streaming services. More information on these products may be found here:

http://www.orban.com/products/streaming/

http://www.opticodec.com

 

Orban Opticodec-PC Technical Manual

ftp://orban.com/1010/Documentation

 

Orban Opticodec-PC Resources, Calibration/Reference Audio Files, and Utilities

ftp://orban.com/1010

 

Orban also offers high quality audio signal processing for professional broadcast, netcast, and podcast use. Orban Optimod-PC is a DSP-based Audio Signal Processing PCI Sound Card that polishes your sound for a professional feel providing level consistency from source to source and codec peak protection to prevent overload and distortion. More hit music, news, and information has been broadcast to the world through Orban Optimod signal processing than any other processor. More information on this product may be found here:

http://www.orban.com/products/streaming/

http://www.opticodec.com

 

Orban Optimod-PC Technical Manual

ftp://orban.com/1100/Documentation

 

Robert Orban and Greg Ogonowski

Maintaining Audio Quality in the Broadcast Facility

Orban/CRL Systems, Inc., 2005

ftp://orban.com/1100/Documentation/Maintaining_Audio_Quality_in_the_Broadcast_Facility.pdf

 

Coding Technologies provides high performance AAC/aacPlus™ codec technology. For more information on this superior audio codec technology see:

http://www.codingtechnologies.com

 

 

 

 

DISTRIBUTION AND USEAGE RIGHTS

 

Orban/Coding Technologies AAC/aacPlus™ DirectShow Player Plugin usage is subject to the Terms and Conditions of the accompanying License Agreement.

 

Distribution of the Software is free and unlimited, however certain restrictions apply. The Software may only be downloaded from Orban at http://www.orban.com/plugin. You may not host the Software on third-party web and/or ftp servers, distribute by storage media such as magnetic disk, CD, DVD, or flash RAM devices, or repackage in any way without prior permission. You may link to the Software download on third-party web pages without permission, however, you MUST use the Orban/Coding Technologies Software Download Button at http://www.orban.com/plugin to identify the download, and link to  http://www.orban.com/plugin only. You may not link directly to the Software installer executable file. Linking directly to the Software installer executable on the Orban web server will eventually produce an obsolete broken link when the Software is updated.

 

Personal use of the software is free and unrestricted.

 

Commercial use of the software is free, provided that in any custom player application, the bottom two lines in the video window, are displayed in the player application, and visible any time the media is playing. As an alternative, this same information may be moved to a different location in the player application, to be clearly visible at all times. This is the least you can do for us, for making this great technology available at no charge to you.

 

Orban Opticodec-PC

More Audio – Less Annoyance

 

For more detailed information about ORBAN OPTICODEC-PC Products see:

http://www.orban.com

http://www.opticodec.com

http://www.opticodec.net

 

For more detailed information about CODING TECHNOLOGIES products see:

http://www.codingtechnologies.com

 

A directory of AAC/aacPlus™ streams on the Internet is available at TUNER2:

http://www.tuner2.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SOFTWARE COPYRIGHT

 

Copyright ©2008 Orban/CRL Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

Copyright ©2008 Coding Technologies AB. All rights reserved.

All rights reserved.

All trademarks belong to their respective owners.

Third-party software and documents are copyrighted by their respective owners.

 

This software and/or program is protected by copyright law and international treaties. Any reproduction or distribution of this software and/or program, or any portion of it without permission, may result in severe civil and criminal penalties, and will be prosecuted to the maximum extent possible under law.