Copyright: Fraunhofer - IIS


WinPlay3 Help Index
Welcome to WinPlay3 V2.3 beta 5

The world's first real-time MPEG Layer-3 Audio Player
for PCs running Microsoft® Windows™

Click any control to get more information.

General

- System Requirements

- What is MPEG Layer-3 Audio Coding?

- What is MMP?

- Supported MPEG Layer-3 Audio Files

- About the Authors

Menus in WinPlay3

- File

- Options

- Help

Trouble Shooting

- Known Problems

- Dos Boxes


System Requirements

Processor:

For using WinPlay3 you need at least a 80486 class CPU with a built-in floating-point-unit
(although a Pentium™ is recommended).

The following matrix shows the real-time performance of WinPlay3 on INTEL machines:

 	Pentium	486DX2-66	486DX-50	486DX-33
MPEG-1 stereo	yes	no	no	no
MPEG-1 downmix*	yes	yes	no	no
MPEG-1 mono	yes	yes	yes	no
MPEG-2 stereo	yes	yes	yes	no
MPEG-2 downmix*	yes	yes	yes	yes
MPEG-2 mono	yes	yes	yes	yes

*downmix: mono audio output generated from a stereo input

Audio Output:

A 16-bit stereo sound card is recommended. The card's WAVE driver should support sampling frequencies from 8 kHz to 48 kHz.

A 8-bit stereo sound card is also OK, but the sound quality lacks much.

Graphics Card:

A standard VGA graphic card is necessary.

Memory:

About 1 MB free physical memory must be available, because WinPlay3 buffers up to 4 seconds of sound data due to limitations of the Microsoft® Windows™ multitasking architecture.

Operating System:

16bit version of WinPlay3:

Microsoft¨ Windowsª 3.1/3.11 - running in 386 enhanced mode,

Windows 95 or Windows NT 4.0 or better.

32bit version of WinPlay3:

Microsoft¨ Windows 95ª or Windows NT 4.0 or better.


About ISO/MPEG Audio Coding

Basic scheme:

The ISO/MPEG Audio Coding Standard describes the compression of audio signals using high performance perceptual coding schemes. It specifies a family of three audio coding schemes, simply called Layer 1, Layer 2 and Layer 3.

Compression gain (Sound quality per bit) and encoder complexity increase from Layer 1 to Layer 3.

All Layers use the same basic structure. The coding scheme can be described as perceptual noise shaping or perceptual subband/transform coding.

The encoder analyses the spectral components of the audio signal by calculating a filterbank or transform and applies a psychoacoustic model to estimate the just noticeable noise-level. In its quantization and coding stage, the encoder tries to allocate the available number of data bits in a way to meet both the bitrate and masking requirements.

The decoder is much less complex. Its task is to synthesize an audio signal out of the encoded spectral components.

Compression rates:

You can achieve a compression rate of

1:4	with Layer 1 (or 192 kbps per audio channel),
1:6..8	with Layer 2 (or 128..96 kbps per audio channel), and
1:10..12	with Layer 3 (or 64..56 kbps per audio channel),

and the reconstructed audio signal will maintain a CD-like sound quality.

Getting more Information:

For more information about MPEG Layer-3 Audio, feel free to contact us:

Fraunhofer-IIS	Fax:	+49-9131-776-399 (Harald Popp)
Weichselgarten 3	Email:	layer3@iis.fhg.de
D-91058 Erlangen	WWW:	http://www.iis.fhg.de/audio/
Germany	ftp:	ftp://ftp.iis.fhg.de/pub/layer3

or read our online FAQ about MPEG Audio Layer3, Fraunhofer IIS, and all the rest...

http://www.iis.fhg.de/departs/amm/layer3/sw/


Supported ISO/MPEG Audio Files
Supported MPEG Audio Files

Currently, WinPlay3 supports ISO/MPEG-1 (IS 11172-3) and
ISO/MPEG-2 (IS 13818-3) Layer 3 audio files.
MPEG-2 multichannel extensions are not supported in this version of WinPlay3.

WinPlay3 decodes Layer 3 bitstreams in full quality and real-time.


About the Authors

WinPlay3 was developed by

Fraunhofer Gesellschaft - Institut für Integrierte Schaltungen
Department Audio/Multimedia

in Germany.

Getting more Information:

Visit our WebSide for information about our research activities.

http://www.iis.fhg.de/audio/

For more information about WinPlay3, feel free to contact us:

Fraunhofer-IIS	Fax:	+49-9131-776-699 (Martin Sieler)
Weichselgarten 3	Email:	winplay3@iis.fhg.de
D-91058 Erlangen	WWW:	http://www.iis.fhg.de/audio/
Germany	ftp:	ftp://ftp.iis.fhg.de/pub/layer3


Free Demo ISO/MPEG Layer 3 Files

Check out

http://www.iis.fhg.de/departs/amm/layer3/winplay3/

for free demo files

Select Save only and check the Play after box in the URL Options Dialog if you have a slow connection to the Internet.


About MMP
MMP (Multimedia Protection Protocol)

MMP was developed by

Fraunhofer Gesellschaft - Institut für Integrierte Schaltungen
Department Audio/Multimedia

in Germany.

MMP introduces a new and convenient way to ensure copyright protection for all kind of digital data. To prevent illicit usage, MMP personalises the multimedia files. To play a personalised MMP file you will need to have your personal MMP Registration String.

MMP was especially designed for copyright protection of multimedia data, e.g. digital audio tracks or digital video clips.

For more information about MMP, feel free to contact us:

Fraunhofer-IIS
Weichselgarten 3 	Fax:	+49-9131-776-699 (Niels Rump)
D-91058 Erlangen 	Email:	mmp@iis.fhg.de
Germany

or visit our WebSite about MMP:

http://www.iis.fhg.de/departs/amm/layer3/mmp/


MMP Registration Strings

MMP (Multimedia Protection Protocol) enables the distribution of personalised multimedia data. To enable your WinPlay3 to play a personalised MMP file, you have to insert your MMP Registration String into this form.

If you try to play a personalised MMP file without entering your personal MMP Registration String here, WinPlay3 will not play the file!

Please enter your personal MMP Registration String into the upper space of the MMP Registration and an alias for it into the lower space.

If you do not have an MMP Registration String please contact your distributor. If your distributor uses MMP to distribute personalised MMP files, he will be able to give you one.

Please be advised that you must not give your personal MMP Registration String away since in future versions of WinPlay3 this string will be used to buy music (The MMP Registration String can be compared to a credit card number and its corresponding PIN).

IMPORTANT RELEASE NOTE:

As for WinPlay3 version 2.3 b5, the MMP Registration String will not be evaluated and

thus the entered string has no effect on the functionality and capabilities of WinPlay3.

The MMP input dialog box is provided for compatibility with forthcoming commercial implementations of MMP only.


MMP Registration String

The MMP Registration String is the sequence of (at least 41) characters you might have received from your distributor.

It is personalised for each single user and must not be given away!


Alias
Alias for MMP Registration Strings

You have the possibility to assign an alias for your MMP Registration String. This alias is used for an easy identification of the corresponding MMP Registration String.

This feature will be needed when you are using several different distributors to download your music from.


File Menu

- Play File

Play an MPEG Layer-3 File from local drives.

- Play Location

Play an MPEG Layer-3 File from a WorldWideWeb-Server.

- Exit

Exit WinPlay3.


Options Menu

- Output

Select WinPlay3's output parameters to match your PC hardware capabilities.

- Play

Select Repeat or Shuffle mode. (Note: Shuffle is not yet implemented in this version of WinPlay3.)

- Proxy

Let's you select a Proxy in case you are behind a firewall.
If you are not sure whether you need a Proxy or not - look at the settings of your WorldWideWeb-Browser or ask your system-administrator
(You won't need a Proxy, if you are directly connected to the Internet).

- Url

Select the mode in which WorldWideWeb-connections are handled.

- MMP Registration String

Insert your MMP Registration String to play personalised MMP files.


Help Menu

- Index

Open this Helpfile.

- Using Help

Open the Microsoft® Windows™ "Help on Help".

- About

Display WinPlay3's version and copyright information.


Known Problems

Video adapter & Sound cards

Some video adapters influence the DMA transfer to the sound card.
There may be drop-outs - most likely when you move or scroll windows - even if you have a fast CPU.
This is not a bug in WinPlay3 - it will happen as well if you use the Windows Media Player.

Incompatible MPEG Layer-3 files

Some first-generation MPEG Layer-3 encoder produce MPEG Layer-3 files which are not compliant with the ISO/MPEG standard. A message box will pop-up to indicate such files.


DOS Boxes

DOS boxes significantly influence the multitasking behaviour of Microsoft Windows. Since WinPlay3 requires cooperative multitasking, the use of DOS boxes may cause drops of audio data during a play process, especially on slow machines.


Titlebar

Displays the name of the current track.


Track

Displays the current track number.


Time

Displays the current playing time.


Status

Displays wether WinPlay3 is playing or paused.


Synchronization Status

Displays the Synchronization Status.


Frame Counter

Displays the number of decoded Frames.


Sample Rate

Displays the sample rate of the current track.


Stereo

If current track is stereo recorded, this indicator is lit.


ISO/MPEG Version

Displays the current ISO/MPEG Version

(ISO/MPEG-1 or ISO/MPEG-2).


Bitrate

Displays the Bitrate of the current track.


ISO/MPEG Layer

Displays the ISO/MPEG Layer of the current track

(Always "III" in WinPlay3).


Play

Play a Layer 3 audio track or continue playing if Pause was pressed.

Replay the current track by a double-click.


Stop

Stop playing a Layer 3 audio track.


Pause

Pause playing a Layer 3 audio track.


Last track

Seek to the last Layer 3 audio track of the playlist.


Next track

Seek to the next Layer 3 audio track of the playlist.


Eject

Open the Play dialog.


Info

Displays information about the current track.
Extended information is available for MMP files.


Progress Status

Displays the Progress Status.


HTTP Indicator

This indicator gets highlighted if you play directly from a WorldWideWeb-Server.


File Indicator

This indicator gets highlighted if you play a file from one of your local drives.


Play File Dialog

Click any control to get more information.


Select File

Specify MPEG Layer-3 audio files to play.

You can use the CTRL and the SHIFT key to select multiple files.


Select directory

Selects the current directory.


Select filter

Selects the current file extension filter.


Select drive

Selects the current drive.


OK

Confirm and save your selection.


Cancel

Discard your selection.


Play Location Dialog

Click any control to get more information.


Url Location

Enter a URL (Uniform Resource Locator) here.


Popup

Press this button to get a list of last recently selected URLs.


OK

Confirm and save your selection.


Cancel

Discard your selection.


Options Output Dialog

Click any control to get more information.


Output Frequency

If you have an audio device that does not support the sample rates

of the MPEG audio files (32 kHz, 44.1 kHz or 48 kHz),

or your CPU is 486 class, select Half or Quarter.

User of Pentium CPUs should select Full.

(Default setting when you start WinPlay3 the first time)


Output Resolution

Select 8 bit if you only have an 8 bit audio board.

Otherwise, select 16 bit.

(Default setting when you start WinPlay3 the first time)

Note: Only 16 bit audio boards guarantee full listening satisfaction.


Output Stereo Mode

If you only have a mono output device, or you want to speed up the decoding process,

select Downmix. This is especially necessary on the 486 machines with stereo bitstreams.


CPU Type

Select the CPU Type of your PC.


OK

Confirm and save your output settings.


Cancel

Discard your output settings.


Options URL Dialog

Click any control to get more information.


Play & Save

WinPlay3 will prompt for a filename before playing a file from a WorldWideWeb-Server.


Play only

WinPlay3 will play files from a WorldWideWeb-Server without saving to disk.


Save only

WinPlay3 will save files from a WorldWideWeb-Server without playing them.


Ask user

Let WinPlay3 popup a dialog every time you play a file from a WorldWideWeb-Server.


Play after save

WinPlay3 will play a file after downloading it from a WorldWideWeb-Server.


Default Directory

Enter the default directory in which you want to store files
downloaded from a WorldWideWeb-Server.


Browse

Click here to point & select the default directory.


OK

Confirm and save your URL settings.


Cancel

Discard your URL settings.


Ask User Dialog

Click any control to get more information.


Play & Save

WinPlay3 will prompt for a filename before playing the file from a WorldWideWeb-Server.


Play only

WinPlay3 will play the file from a WorldWideWeb-Server without saving to disk.


Save only

WinPlay3 will save the file from a WorldWideWeb-Server without playing it.


Play after save

WinPlay3 will play the file after downloading it from a WorldWideWeb-Server.


Cancel Request

Cancel a request for playing a file form a WorldWideWeb-Server.