Peter's Player 1.3 Frequently Asked Questions List (FAQ)
(Last revised: 5/4/98)
The Questions
1. What does “It is not possible to open this movie because the movie data is missing or damaged” mean?
2. What does “It is not possible to open this movie because a necessary decompressor is not installed” mean?
3. This movie is supposed to have sound. Why can't I hear it?
4. The screen is totally black. Where's my menu bar?
5. Why do some movies “stutter” when they play back?
6. I’ve got more than one monitor: how to I tell Peter’s Player which one to use?
7. How do I hide the mouse cursor?
8. When I try to open a movie or look at the preferences or the About… box, nothing happens! What gives?
9. Where can I find the latest version of QuickTime?
10. Where can I find out more about QuickTime?
11. How do I play '.avi' files?
12. How can I register my copy of Peter’s Player?
The Answers
1. What does “It is not possible to open this movie because the movie data is missing or damaged” mean?
The most common reason for this error message is a movie that was incorrectly uploaded to or downloaded from a Bulletin Board or the Internet. By default, QuickTime movies created on a Macintosh have data stored in two separate portions of the movie file, called the “resource fork” and the “data fork.” Other Operating Systems (like Windows or Unix) do not break their files up this way. This error message usually results from a Macintosh movie file that has had its resource fork accidentally removed, often when the file was uploaded to the Internet.
The error may also indicate that a movie file was damaged in some other way, or is not really a movie file at all.
2. What does “It is not possible to open this movie because a necessary decompressor is not installed” mean?
QuickTime supports the use of 3rd-party data compression and decompression modules for movies (codecs). This message means that the movie you are trying to play contains data that was compressed with one of these special compressors, and you must install the corresponding decompressor in order to view it.
The most common 3rd party decompressor seems to be Intel's Video For Windows codec. It should be available from their web site (http://www.intel.com) or from the QuickTime FAQ site (http://www.quicktimefaq.org).
3. This movie is supposed to have sound. Why can't I hear it?
First, look at the “Play Every Frame” option in the Playback menu. If it’s checked, movies will play silently whether they have a soundtrack or not. If that option isn’t checked, make the movie controller visible (via the “Show Controller” option in the Playback menu) and look at the speaker icon in the left corner of the controller. If it is dimmed, the movie doesn’t have a soundtrack. If it is not dimmed, click on it and you can adjust the movie’s volume.
4. The screen is totally black. Where's my menu bar?
You’ve probably got the “Hide Menus” option checked, either in the Playback menu, or in your preferences. All you have to do is click where the menu bar usually lives and keep the mouse button down until it re-appears. You can also make the menu bar visible by holding the command and “m” keys simultaneously.
5. Why do some movies “stutter” when they play back?
Unfortunately, some QuickTime movies are just too large or complex to play back smoothly without a very fast Mac, and/or a hardware accelerator. If you’ve got the entire movie loading into RAM, you’re playing the movie back at its default size, your monitor supports the color depth the movie was made for, and there are no other programs running at the same time, there’s not much more you can do, short of buying a faster computer.
If you're more interested in seeing every frame of the movie than hearing the soundtrack, the "Play Every Frame" option (command-F) will force every frame of the movie to be displayed, no matter how complex the movie or how slow your machine.
6. I’ve got more than one monitor: how to I tell Peter’s Player which one to use?
When it starts up, Peter’s Player looks for the monitor set to display the highest number of colors, and uses that to display movies on. To indicate which monitor you want it to use, set your preferred monitor to a higher number of colors than the other(s).
7. How do I hide the mouse cursor?
When you use the “Hide Menus” command, the cursor is hidden until you next move the mouse. To re-hide it, just show and hide the menus (hitting command-m twice is the easiest way to do it).
8. When I try to open a movie or look at the preferences or the About… box, nothing happens! What gives?
Take a look in the “Monitors” control panel. If it lists more monitors than you actually have, you’ve got one or more video cards that aren't attached to a monitor. If this is the case, set the bit depth of each phantom monitor to black & white, and the depth of the main monitor to something higher. The next time you launch Peter’s Player, everything should be O.K.
9. Where can I find the latest version of QuickTime?
Apple generally makes the latest versions available free of charge on the Internet at http://www.apple.com/quicktime and on AOL in the Macintosh MultiMedia area (keyword: MMM).
10. Where can I find out more about QuickTime?
There's a great FAQ (list of Frequently Asked Questions) and all sorts of other cool stuff available at http://www.quicktimefaq.org.
11. How do I play '.avi' files?
If a movie’s name ends in '.avi' (or '.AVI'), it is a Video For Windows movie, not a QuickTime movie. To play it in Peter's Player, you must first convert it to QuickTime format. One place to find utilities for converting AVI files to QuickTime format is the "PC Support" section of Intel's web site (http://developer.intel.com/pc-supp/).
12. How can I register my copy of Peter’s Player?
Peter’s Player is shareware. To register your copy, please send a check or money order for $10 in U.S. funds to:
Peter E. Lee
9 Hazen St.
Chelmsford, MA 01824-4601
USA
For the fastest possible notice of upgrades and other Peter’s Player news, please include your e-mail address with your correspondence.
For information on commercial or site licenses, or if you have any questions, comments, or requests, Peter can be reached at the address above, or on-line at:
