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Apple Deprecating Quicktime For Windows, Micro Trends Urges Users To Uninstall (trendmicro.com)

harryjohnston writes: Usually when a vendor deprecates a software product and stops releasing security updates, they provide some sort of advance notice that they're intending to do so. The least we would expect is for them to announce an unexpected end-of-life themselves. However, Trend Micro released a security advisory today describing two zero-day vulnerabilities for Quicktime for Windows, and according to them, Apple told Trend Micro -- but apparently nobody else -- that they have deprecated Quicktime for Windows and will not be releasing a patch. The Register has an article on the announcement. Apple did not respond to their request for comment.

5 of 212 comments (clear)

  1. Re:I hope there is a misunderstanding by myid · · Score: 5, Informative

    Regarding browser plug-ins, this article on Apple's website tells you how to remove QuickTime 7 for Windows. The article states,

    Uninstalling QuickTime 7 also removes the legacy QuickTime 7 web plug-in, if present. Websites increasingly use the HTML5 web standard for a better video-playback experience across a wide range of browsers and devices, without additional software or plug-ins. Removing legacy browser plug-ins enhances the security of your PC.

  2. Re:I hope there is a misunderstanding by Lumpy · · Score: 5, Informative

    There is. The summary and the story is completely freaking wrong.

    It's the browser plugin only that is discontinued. Quicktime is still supported as it is a big part of video editing on both platforms. Hell my latest canon 4K pro camera writes video in MOV format natively.

    --
    Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
  3. Re:Not the first time... by CrankyFool · · Score: 2, Informative

    Technically, Flash was first a Macromedia product. Adobe got Flash when it purchased Macromedia in the early 2000s.

    (Possibly few people will care about the distinction -- I worked at Macromedia at the time, and Adobe was considered our singular nemesis, so I ... kinda like to remind people Adobe didn't come up with Flash. Of course Flash being what it is, I'm not sure that's a good thing :) )

  4. Re:Not the first time... by Stormwatch · · Score: 4, Informative

    Technically, Flash - or FutureSplash Animator - was first a FutureWave product.

  5. Re:I hope there is a misunderstanding by Solandri · · Score: 5, Informative

    MOV is just a container format (as are MP4 and AVI and MKV and a bunch of others) . Containers wrap up separate video, audio, subtitles, chapter lists, etc. files into one package so it's easier to move them around. The actual video file is usually h.264 (almost everything new) or MPEG4, the sound usually AAC or AC3 or MP3, subtitles are .srt or .sub, chapter lists are usually just a text file, etc. There are a bunch of other supported formats as well. Read all about them here.

    When your computer "plays" a container file, it first demuxes (de-multiplexes, or separates out) the individual files, then uses the appropriate codec to play each one. That's why sometimes one MOV or AVI file will play fine while another does not - you are probably missing a required codec for the latter file, or your codec is out of date. "Support" for a container format is trivial, as it just amounts to what types of files are supported, what order you're putting the actual files in the container, and what kind of padding and indexing is added. Some containers add more features though, which is where you start getting into trouble with vulnerabilities. If you give your container format the ability to change the kitchen sink, then a browser extension which supports your container will allow a website to change the user's kitchen sink.

    A long, long time ago, back in the RealPlayer days, Quicktime was an actual video format. But it's long since been superseded (it was rolled into MPEG4).