Tuesday, February 20, 2007

WPF/E - Windows Presentation Foundation/Everywhere

Us Mac users have much the same problem playing some Windows Media files as we do Flash and Shockwave. It's probably worse as a lot of web content comes as streamed Windows Media and even installing the excellent Flip4Mac sometimes doesn't help play some Windows Media content. However, since I installed the Microsoft WPF/E browser plug-in, everything has played okay.

“WPF/E” (Windows Presentation Foundation/Everywhere) is the Microsoft solution for delivering rich, cross-platform, interactive experiences including animation, graphics, audio, and video for the web and beyond. Utilizing a subset of XAML (eXtensible Application Markup Language)-based Windows Presentation Foundation technology, “WPF/E” will enable the creation of content and applications that run within multiple browsers and operating systems (Windows and Macintosh) using Web standards for programmability.

This is technically a preview technology and the plug-in is timed to expire. I'm on my second revision and it's due to expire in June but it does work for me so if you're having problems playing some Windows Media content, then try this. It's compatible with both Safari and Firefox 1.5.0.8+ and Firefox 2.0.0.1+ on MacOSX 10.4.8. Even Windows users can benefit as there's a version for them too that supports Internet Explorer 6.0 and 7.0 and also Firefox 1.5.0.8+ and 2.0+.

Related Posts: Flip4Mac Gets Intel Upgrade

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