Intel JMedia Player

Release Notes

Version 1.3.1

Contents

Part I. Introduction

The JMedia Player, Intel's implementation of the Java Media Framework (JMF), enables Microsoft, Netscape and Sun Java virtual machines to run Java applets containing audio and video media.

The JMedia Player is available in two configurations: Software Development Kit (SDK) and Runtime. Install the SDK if you are a developer and you want to integrate video and audio into your Java applets or applications. Install one of the Runtimes if you want to run JMF-enabled Java applets under Microsoft Internet Explorer*, Netscape Navigator*, Netscape Communicator, or the Java Development Kit.

The JMedia Player is based upon JavaSoft's Java Media Player Specification Version 1.0. For more information, refer to the Java Media Framework Technical Reference.

Part II. Changes between Beta 3 and version 1.3.1

This section describes features and behaviors of the JMedia Player which have changed since the final Beta release.

The JMedia Player Beta 3 release was based on the 0.96 version of the Java Media Player specification; version 1.3.1 is based on the 1.0 version of the specification.

1. The JMedia Player package was renamed from java.media to javax.media to conform with the Java Media Player Specification Version 1.0.
2. JMedia Player version 1.3.1 includes installation and runtime support for Netscape Communicator 4.0x.
3. JMedia Player version 1.3.1 includes installation and runtime support for Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.0x.
4. The JMedia Player class file (media.zip) is signed with an Intel VeriSign digital certificate.
5. PackageManager.commitContentPrefixList() and PackageManager.commitProtocolPrefixList() are implemented.
6. JMedia Player version 1.3.1 includes a new DLL, IJMFAux.dll. This DLL exports a three-function C API that allows custom DataSource and MediaHandler developers to modify the prefix lists used by javax.media.Manager from non-Java code. Supplied with this DLL are an associated header file (JMFAux.h in the SDK include directory), and import library (IJMFAux.lib in the SDK lib directory). IJMFAux.dll is included with all runtime installs and may also be redistributed as part of a developer's install. The three-function API is documented in the JMFAux.h file.
7. JMedia Player version 1.3.1 SDK includes a CAB-based install for Internet Explorer 4.0x and a JAR-based install for Netscape Communicator 4.0x.

Part III. Support

Web Site

The JMedia Player home page is the best resource for finding answers to your technical and non-technical questions: http://developer.intel.com/ial/jmedia.
All the following support options are referenced on the Technical Support page.

FAQ

We encourage you to reference the Technical FAQ with the support questions you may have. The Technical FAQ is a compilation of questions asked by developers in the JMedia Player Newsgroup or Emails to us.

For general questions such as availability and high-level overviews, please check the online General FAQ.

JMedia Player Newsgroup

Collaborate and find answers with other developers using the JMedia Player:

• News Reader (news://newsgroups.intel.com/Intel.jmedia)

• Web Browser (http://newsgroups.intel.com/ngi.exe?group=jm01)

Bug Submission and Email Support

If you have a bug, recurring problem or a suggestion to report, please send a detailed description with corresponding code and/or error message/text to jmedia@mailbox.intel.com.

If you could not find an answer utilizing the preceding support methods send us an Email using the above address. Thank you for your feedback.

Part IV. Installation

Please refer to the JMedia Player page for information on system requirements, and downloading and installing the JMedia Player components.

If the JMedia Player has already been installed, you must uninstall the old version before installing a newer version. Refer to the Uninstall section for instructions.

The JMedia Player SDK and Runtimes do not contain a Java compiler. If you are going to create Java applets and do not have Java development tools, you can obtain the Sun Java Development Kit from: http://java.sun.com/products/JDK/index.html.

Automatically Downloading and Installing the JMF Runtime

This release of JMF includes two new installable components -- a CAB install for use with Internet Explorer 4.0 and a JAR install for use with Netscape Communicator 4.0x. With these installable components and the right HTML you can trigger automatic download and install of the JMF runtime under IE or Communicator. For additional details please refer to Tutorial - Automatic download of the JMF runtime.

Part V. Uninstall

Uninstall JMedia Player by using the Windows* 95 or Windows NT* Uninstall utility. From the Control Panel, choose "Add/Remove Programs." To uninstall any component, highlight it and push the Add/Remove button.

To uninstall the SDK, uninstall the component called 'Intel Java Media Framework SDK'.

If you have installed only the Internet Explorer Runtime, uninstall the component called 'Intel Java Media Framework for Internet Explorer'.

If you have installed only the Netscape Navigator or Communicator Runtime, uninstall the component called 'Intel Java Media Framework for Netscape'.

If you have installed only the JDK Runtime, uninstall the component called 'Intel Java Media Framework for JDK'.

Note to Windows 95 users: The uninstall program will not edit the CLASSPATH variable in your autoexec.bat file. To uninstall, edit autoexec.bat and remove the C:\Program Files\intel\java\classes, C:\Program Files\intel\java\classes\media.zip and/or C:\Windows\java\classes\media.zip arguments in the CLASSPATH variable.

Part VI. Differences Between the JMedia Player 1.3.1 and the Java Media Player Specification Version 1.0

This list describes behavior which is not explicitly defined by the Java Media Player Specification, or which may be unexpected:

1. Audio mixing behavior depends on which operating system you are using (Windows NT or Windows 95), which DirectX components are installed, and whether the Player is rendering to the wave or MIDI device.
   • Window NT: The only audio mixing that will occur is between a single MIDI player and a single wave-oriented Player.
   • Windows 95: If the DirectX 5.0 DirectShow and DirectSound components are installed, multiple Players rendering to the wave device will have their audio mixed (provided no other application on the system has exclusive ownership of the device). Only a single MIDI Player can be added to the mix. DirectX 5.0 components can be downloaded from the  Microsoft DirectX 5.0 site. If Internet Explorer 4.0  is installed with multimedia support, the necessary DirectX components for audio mixing will be present.
   • In a non-mixing environment (e.g., when ActiveMovie 1.0 is installed rather than DirectShow/DirectSound, or when running on Windows NT), one Player gets exclusive use of the audio device (i.e., the wave or MIDI device). If the audio device is unavailable, the Player simply plays with no audio.  Failure to access the desired audio device is not an error, and a ResourceUnavailableEvent event is not sent when the audio device is unavailable.  Calling Player.stop() and Player.deallocate() releases the audio device so another Player can acquire it. To facilitate doing this interactively, the user control panel returned by Player.getControlPanelComponent() includes a stop button (black square icon), which will stop and deallocate the Player.
2. The effect of the GainControl object depends on whether the platform supports audio mixing.
   • If audio mixing is supported and two Players are rendering to the same audio device, the GainControl controls the pre-mix audio level for each Player.
   • If audio mixing is not supported, the GainControl controls the level of the audio device as reflected in the standard Windows Volume Control. Changing the volume on one GainControl will change the volume in all other GainControls using the same device.
3. The ability to set a Player to another's reference time base is supported, provided that the new reference time base is obtained from another Player instanced by this implementation. Any attempt to call setTimeBase() with a reference time base obtained from a user-supplied TimeBase implementation will result in an IncompatibleTimeBaseException being thrown.

Part VII. Browser Security Issues

Netscape Communicator 4.0x:

1. Manager.createPlayer() is allowed for local applets with no special privileges required. However, an applet that explicitly creates a DataSource and Player based on that DataSource must pass the Java security checks imposed by Communicator. Information about Communicator’s security model, the Java Capabilities API, is available at http://developer.netscape.com/library/documentation/signedobj/capsapi.html.
2. The JMedia Player class file, media.zip, is signed with Intel's VeriSign certificate. When a JMF applet runs in Communicator, the browser presents a security dialog (with Intel's certificate) to the end user requesting permission for the JMedia Player to perform "high risk" operations. Permission must be granted by the end user so that the JMedia Player can load DLLs and manipulate threads. If the user declines to grant authorization, JMF will not execute; it will generate an AMInternalError with the message "Unable to load AMNS4NativeLib."

Internet Explorer 3.0x and 4.0x, Netscape Navigator 3.0x:

1. A local applet class must be in the CLASSPATH in order to access local media files. This is a Java SecurityManager policy choice made by the browsers.

Part VIII. Known Problems

A list of known problems for the JMedia Player package are available here.