Windows Media, On Your Mac

It’s funny to think about, because of the enormous impact it has had, but YouTube hasn’t been around that long. It was founded on Feb 15, 2005, less than three years ago and, despite the fact that almost anything you ever want to see can be found on YouTube, there was online video before it. There was Quicktime, for example, Apple’s own video format, as well as Windows Media and Real Video. There were others, of course, but Apple, Microsoft and Real were the kings of the online video game.

Real video has become far less popular over the years, but there are still lots and lots of Windows Media videos on the internet. You used to be able to download a version of Windows Media Player for the Mac but, around the time that OS X appeared, that app disappeared, no longer supported by Microsoft. Now, that was OK, since it was a pretty lousy application, but if you want to watch online video in Windows Media format, you need a solution… and, of course there is one.

When Microsoft killed WMP for the Mac, it made the codec available in another form, a plug-in called Flip4Mac. You install it into Quicktime Player, the video-watching application which comes free with all Macs. And, unlike the way it used to work, you no longer need a separate application to view WMV files; they simply play in Quicktime Player or, on the internet, in your web browser. All you need to do is download the free file from Microsoft’s website and install it on your Mac. Do this once, and you will be able to watch WMV files in your browser with no problem. Click here for the download page; the plug-in is free.