RealPlayer Labeled "Badware"

WRXWagon2112 · Post by **WRXWagon2112** » Fri Feb 01, 2008 10:01 am

This just reinforces my hatred for RealPlayer: Link

When do the "helpful" add-ons supplied with a handy utility go too far? When does it enter the realm of badware? StopBadware.org, a watchdog group whose advisory board includes such luminaries as Vint Cerf and Esther Dyson, will tell you when, in precise detail. A set of guidelines on the site lists specific failures of disclosure and unwarranted actions that qualify a program as badware. And their latest target is RealPlayer.

It's hard to argue with their detailed report. They point out that RealPlayer 11 installs the Rhapsody Player Engine without notifying the user and fails to remove it upon being uninstalled--that's a no-no.

The charge against RealPlayer 10.5, the version distributed by third-party channels, is more serious. They say it installs an adware feature and falsely identifies it as a "message center... designed to provide useful software updates." The StopBadware reports offer recommendations to RealPlayer that would get them off the "badware list". We'll see what shakes out.

--Alan

Phibs · Post by **Phibs** » Fri Feb 01, 2008 10:28 am

^^^ +1 +1 +1 +1

Libra Monkee · Post by **Libra Monkee** » Fri Feb 01, 2008 10:36 am

Meh, I haven't installed Realplayer since I found out about Media Player Classic.

WRXWagon2112 · Post by **WRXWagon2112** » Fri Feb 01, 2008 11:04 am

There's also RealPlayer Alternative. Although now that I think about it, that may just be Media Player Classic with certain codecs installed?

--Alan

Post by **complacent** » Fri Feb 01, 2008 11:30 am

i hate ad supported programs.

Post by **Sabre** » Fri Feb 01, 2008 12:04 pm

WRXWagon2112 wrote:There's also RealPlayer Alternative. Although now that I think about it, that may just be Media Player Classic with certain codecs installed?

--Alan

Yes, it is

Check out the Mega Codec Pac. I've yet to find something that it doesn't support.

Libra Monkee · Post by **Libra Monkee** » Fri Feb 01, 2008 12:30 pm

^^^ That's what I use on my Windows machines. It even does FLAC!

sirwilliam · Post by **sirwilliam** » Fri Feb 01, 2008 1:45 pm

I always knew RealPlayer was evil...its like it was from MD or...Canada!

JK about Canada!

but I stick to what I said about MD.

Post by **ElZorro** » Fri Feb 01, 2008 5:16 pm

My last two companies had Realplayer on the 'unapproved software list', was actually an IT security violation to install it...

Post by **complacent** » Fri Feb 01, 2008 5:18 pm

ElZorro wrote:My last two companies had Realplayer on the 'unapproved software list', was actually an IT security violation to install it...

that I like. score one for the IT team.

avriette · Post by **avriette** » Fri Feb 01, 2008 7:09 pm

Libra Monkee wrote:Meh, I haven't installed Realplayer since I found out about Media Player Classic.

I haven't installed Realplayer since the time it tried to tell my Mac that IT should be the default application for .mov and .mp3 (this was OS 10.0.4). Uhhh, yeah. Those fuckers have even more issues than the streaming people at AOL.