Options
BBC videos not working
MrBarty
Posts: 8 Forum Member
I'm using XP, IE8 and Flash Player 12.0.0.77 (latest), and for several weeks now none of the 2014, ie current, video clips on BBC.co.uk will play. Instead of the video clip I just get a jpeg pic.
However... there is no such problem with older clips dated 2013 or earlier, these open fine. I must qualify further by saying this seems to apply only to BBC News, Radio, and TV pages, whereas all clips are working normally on the BBC Sports section! As indeed they are on all other sites. This is only a BBC problem as far as I am aware.
I've emailed a couple of BBC addresses I've found about this, needless to say to no avail. It seems, to my simple OAP's mind, that it's more likely to have something to do with the BBC end rather than my Flash Player or computer's settings. But then again, on Googling forever and having found nobody else reporting this problem I'm wondering if all it needs is a perhaps a simple click on something in my Internet Options security settings. Or something.
So I'm writing here in the hope that someone will have some pointers for me. Either how to solve the actual problem or direct me to a BBC contact point.
Thanks.
However... there is no such problem with older clips dated 2013 or earlier, these open fine. I must qualify further by saying this seems to apply only to BBC News, Radio, and TV pages, whereas all clips are working normally on the BBC Sports section! As indeed they are on all other sites. This is only a BBC problem as far as I am aware.
I've emailed a couple of BBC addresses I've found about this, needless to say to no avail. It seems, to my simple OAP's mind, that it's more likely to have something to do with the BBC end rather than my Flash Player or computer's settings. But then again, on Googling forever and having found nobody else reporting this problem I'm wondering if all it needs is a perhaps a simple click on something in my Internet Options security settings. Or something.
So I'm writing here in the hope that someone will have some pointers for me. Either how to solve the actual problem or direct me to a BBC contact point.
Thanks.
0
Comments
http://www.macromedia.com/support/documentation/en/flashplayer/help/settings_manager03.html
Today I've noticed that where there's no clip showing (for me) it's always on the pages where there is (supposed to be) just the clip with a short description together with a 'reported by'. Whereas if there is also a longer news item and the same clip is inserted in the text there, it has the 'click to play' and plays fine. In short, there are some BBC pages where the same clip will work and some where it won't.
I've read something to the effect that there are 2 types of Flash clips/codes whatever, something like an older A1 and more recent A2, and that a site which use both versions might have some working and some not. Tho I do have the latest Flash which I imagine can cope with both.
So still hoping someone can come up with something.....
I still use IE8 and although I haven't noticed any problems with BBC I have problems with 4OD and have to use a different browser to view.
Working clip: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-kent-26870738
Same clip not working: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-kent-26878349
Working clip: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-26844425
Same clip not working: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-26848489
Can't understand it. Both second links work perfectly for me.
Just tried clearing Flash Player's cache. Fat lot of good that did.
Have you tried a different browser, Firefox, Chrome or whatever to see if it is a problem generically with your PC or just confined to IE?
Chris. When you say it seems they are using two different versions of Flash, can you explain and perhaps let me know what the difference appears to be?
There's no way I can find this out myself because only one version plays for me, and the only thing I can see there is the EMP version which I assume is the BBC Embedded Media Player.
Thanks.
And DJW, thanks but with XP/IE8 there is no Active X Filtering switch as far as I know.
If you right click the "non-working" clips you get
1.9.13.1429087-SMPFlash
800kbs RTMP
in the top two lines. Both are using h264 encoding but different resolutions and bitrates.
And at the risk of sounding like a broken record,
I see nothing like that when I right click the ones that work for me. Just the EMP number at the top. Sorry to appear thick but if you see that in my 'non working' clips, what do you see in my working clips?
And no, I'm clinging on to XP and IE8 with gritted teeth. heheh. Being an old pensioner I'm scared to install another browser (although I know I'm talking nonsense) as well as this one cos "something's bound to go wrong knowing my luck".
Although I'll have to take the plunge soon because yesterday I found the updated Marks and Spencer site is next to impossible to use with my IE8. But then there's all that Outlook Express stuff to contend with...... lol. And Chrome? Firefox...?
Just found out that all this isn't just senility creeping in but that I can put it down to my genes too: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2599310/Always-putting-Blame-mum-dad-Scientists-say-procrastination-genes.html
Edit. oh I lie. I have a second line which in this one reads: 26878349 | 496kbps | h264 | AK 4.5 ( 1 ) | 384x216
The below:
First working clip.
Second working clip.
Can I be a pain and ask if you could let me know the complete "1.9.13.1429087-SMPFlash" lines too. So that I can use the comparison if I find somewhere at the BBC to send them to!
They didn't have that on. I would have included it if they did. I put all the information down that mattered.
http://s30.postimg.org/e7bl4zv75/reset_ie8.jpg
Clip 1
1.9.13.1429087-SMPFlash
1500kbs | RTMP (akamai) | h264 | 684x384
Clip 2
1.9.13.1429087-SMPFlash
1500kbs | RTMP (akamai) | h264 | 704x396
After installing the latest version of Firefox, I'm actually quite surprised at how quicker it renders pages. The last release seemed quite sluggish at rendering web pages. This release, 28, seems to be quite easy on the graphics chip on the Core i5. They've improved its rendering performance quite a bit. It's nearly as fast as Chrome is at rendering now. It's quite a bit better than it was in the last release. Very impressed with the rendering improvement. If they carry on improving the startup time and the rendering of web pages, Firefox's popularity should start climbing again.
Where did you get 704x396 from? None of the clips displayed this information when I right-clicked them. They also don't show the SMPFlash bit either when I right-click the working clips.
Those are the "non-working" clips
I clicked on the working and non-working ones. I didn't see that resolution in any of them.