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Release 7 Update

This section lists additions, deletions, and corrections to the RealSystem G2 Production Guide for the Release 7 update to RealSystem G2. This release comprises RealServer 7, RealProducer 7, and RealPlayer 7. The printed, PDF, and HTML versions of the RealSystem G2 Production Guide for Release 7 reflect these changes.

Additions

PNG Image Support

RealPlayer 7 includes support for the Portable Network Graphics (PNG) image format (.png file extension) in addition to JPEG and GIF formats. You can now use PNG images in both SMIL and RealPix presentations.

New Chapter on SMIL Extensions

The new Chapter 7 covers RealNetworks' extensions to SMIL. The section on extensions to the SMIL <img.../> tag src attribute has been moved to this chapter. The chapter also covers the multiple window and caching features of RealPlayer 7.

Multiple RealPlayer 7 Windows

You can write hyperlinks that open content in new RealPlayer 7 windows. This lets you pop up a new RealPlayer window when a viewer clicks a link in a SMIL or RealText presentation.

Additional Information
See "Popping Up New RealPlayer Windows".

Graphics Caching

You can instruct RealPlayer 7 to cache image files downloaded through HTTP. This is useful for SMIL presentations that RealPlayer 7 users repeatedly view. On reloads or revisits, RealPlayer uses cached images instead of downloading the images again from the server.

Additional Information
See "Caching Files on RealPlayer".

Switching Clips for Different RealPlayer Versions

You can use the SMIL <switch> tag to stream different presentations to different versions of RealPlayer. This is useful if you want to use new features of a new RealPlayer, yet still want to support older RealPlayer versions.

Additional Information
See "Switching Presentations for Different RealPlayer Versions".

SMIL Source View through RealPlayer 7

RealPlayer 7 has a View>Source command that displays the mark-up for the presentation's SMIL source file in your Web browser. This helps you learn how other content authors have assembled their presentations.

Additional Information
See "Viewing SMIL Source Markup".

Appendix Answering Common Questions

Appendix A answers basic questions for new users, such as when to use SMIL and what goes in a Ram file.

Double-Size and Full-Size Clip Playback

RealPlayer can open a presentation at double its normal size, or in full-screen mode, if you launch the presentation through a Ram file. This feature is not available with Ramgen.

Additional Information
See "Setting a Presentation's Starting Mode".

Deletions

None.

Corrections

SMIL Image Source Tag is <img.../>

Previous versions of the production guide incorrectly listed the SMIL source tag for GIF and JPEG images as <image.../>. The correct tag is <img.../>.

RealProducer Description becomes Clip Abstract

Previous versions of the production guide stated that clip abstracts had to be added through SMIL. RealProducer 6.1 and RealProducer 7 have a Description field you can fill in when encoding a clip. This text then becomes the clip abstract.

Additional Information
See "Adding Presentation Information".

Optimum Sampling Rate for 32 Kbps and 44 Kbps RealAudio G2 Stereo Codecs

In the "Older RealAudio Stereo Music Codecs" table, the 33 Kbps and 44 Kbps RealAudio G2 Stereo codecs were incorrectly listed as having a 44.01 kHz optimal sampling rate. The optimal rate for these stereo codecs is 20.05 kHz.

"RealFlash" now "Flash with RealSystem G2"

The term "RealFlash" has been replaced with "Flash for RealSystem G2." This manual uses "Flash" to refer to Macromedia's Flash software, a Flash file (.fla), and Flash animation in general. It uses "Flash Player file" to refer to the compressed Flash file (.swf) used in streaming.


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This file last updated on 12/12/00 at 15:34:25.
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