As long as I'm shilling... RealPlayer SP

So, as long as I'm shilling, and the subject occurred to me as I was writing my last post, a brief explanation of how I grab online video from YouTube and similar websites -- the free (natch!) RealPlayer SP software package.  It includes an easy-to-use player that is similar to Windows Media Player in many respects (but feels rather different than iTunes... fine for me, as I don't use iTunes) that allows you to organize your audio and video media, create and shatre playlists, sync with external devices, etc. 

But the real fun for me is in the Downloader and Converter programs.  The Downloader plug-in for Internet Explorer is fun -- as the following video (grabbed by Jing!) illustrates, it provides a pop-up box with a link that allows you to download the Flash (FLV) video file to your hard drive.  Then, after the download, you can use the Converter software to convert the FLV file to a format easier for you to use -- say, a Windows Media file, if you want to embed it in PowerPoint, or a MOV or MPEG-4 file, if you want to use it on a Mac device. You can even convert to an audio-only MP3 file (if you're only interested in the song but not the video, for instance... this has come in handy a lot for me).

Check out the coolness after the jump.


OK, click here to check out how RealPlayer SP features function when they are installed.  This is on a PC platform, mind... these programs are available for Mac, but I've used it less frequently on the Macbook Pro so far.  As well, bear in mind that this is Internet Explorer -- this program doesn't play very nicely with Google Chrome, sadly.  Firefox has its own variety of plug-ins for grabbing Flash video, so if you're a Firefox user you might consider exploring your options there.  I'm focusing on IE for now because that's what most folks are using most of the time.

I've used this strategy a lot, especially since I've been burned countless times by sluggish streaming YouTube due to peak-use times bandwidth demand on campus during class.  If I've grabbed the video, I can use it regardless of whether I have internet access!  Of course, the video quality occasionally degrades a bit after conversion, but for most of my in-class video clip needs that's a negligible price I'm willing to pay to not be held hostage by YouTube loading lags.

One other limitation: if the online content is copy-protected (e.g., Hulu.com, Comedy Central's videos, including The Daily Show, sadly, and some YouTube content posted by commercial providers), the RealPlayer Downloader won't work.  Ugh.  Thank you, Camtasia!  As a work-around, I make sure the streaming video content is downloaded during a non-peak time, or at home, and then I record the video via screen capture, and then edit it as I like.

Anyway, have fun with RealPlayer SP -- your relationship with YouTube will never be the same!