[LINK] Where's Tim Minchin?

[Irene]

On Thu, 15 Feb 2018 17:52:21 +1000, Andy Farkas wrote:
> https://www.facebook.com/abcnews.au/videos/10156322486999015/

On Fri, 16 Feb 2018 10:33:35 +1100, DavidL wrote:
> However the ABC do seem to use social media a lot, which I don't mind
> as long as their content is not exclusively delivered that way.  I
> would *strongly* object to having to join Facebook to access it.

So would I, but that's not currently necessary in order to view the video 
at the URL that AF posted.

> I can't play this video either despite having the latest & greatest
> Firefox & VLC with MPEG4 support, and I think it's time to install
> Karl's 'webdl' package.  

IMHO, an alternative viewpoint is that it might be time to start 
considering that the claims by any software supplier (e.g. browser and/or 
video player supplier etc) about "latest and greatest" or similar might 
apply only to their own product/s, and not their competitors.

I can view the video fine using Vivaldi for Windows, and I strongly suspect 
the same would be the case for anyone using Vivaldi for Linux (given the V 
developers seem to have a high interest in Linux user support, e.g. posts 
on their forum). That's also imo likely the case for people using other 
Chomium engine based browsers such as Opera, Slimjet, etc. 

NB: I suggest potential readers don't bother reading the below unless 
they're having problems viewing some videos and are *very* interested in 
trying to solve same. If you are, some info below *might* be of some 
interest/help.

More particularly, an imo really serious issue in relation to playing video 
(re privacy and security), is the increasingly necessary use of javascript. 
While "HTML5' supposedly plays video "natively", in reality many sites do 
not use the HTML5 native player controls etc, and instead set up some 
complex "video player" via use of javascript.

The relevant javascript *might* come from the first party site, but in my 
experience it more often comes from a third party site, and if the latter 
is blocked by a script and/or privacy blocker/extension, then the video 
won't play.

In the case of the URL that AF posted, it seems to me that one's "Browser" 
inc. extensions/plugins must:
  Allow scripts from: 	static.xx.fbcdn.net
     then an attempt to play says: 	  Get Flash Player
  so (without installing/allowing Flash Player):
  Allow XHR from: 	video.fbne-1.fna.fbcdn.net
	 (^ above domain might vary depending one's geographical location)

Then the video plays fine for me (at least on Vivaldi for Win with UMatrix 
extension installed (i.e. script et al blocker installed))

> Both Facebook & ABC iView seem to use
> H.264/MPEG-4 AVC ("advanced video coding"), probably so they can
> provide more complex content

It seems to me that ABC iView's own site still requires Flash to be 
installed, but videos posted on Facebook will play without Flash (_if_ one 
has not blocked various 'necessary' scripts and/or XHR).

>but SBS use HLS adaptive streaming as
> discussed in previous thread. 

FWIW (re prev thread), I can now play SBS videos fine in Vivaldi for Win.  
The problem was (and still is), briefly, that SBS uses a 'hls.js' script 
that mistakenly assumes Vivaldi needs special video-audio 'fixes' designed 
for chrome/chromium based browsers in general, but Vivaldi does not need 
such fixes. Hence if one spoofs/cloaks Vivaldi's user-agent to be Firefox 
(i.e. avoids 'chromium fixes'), when accessing sbs.com.au, SBS videos play 
fine.
Accordingly it's also possible that some other browsers will play SBS 
videos fine, if they're spoofed as some other browser.

Again, the above appears to me to be indicative of issues/problems caused 
by increasing use of javascript in HTML5 and assumptions made by javascript 
writers, and I suspect such problems are highly likely to be a "feature" of 
HTML5 for many years to come.

Irene