[whatwg] Some <video> questions

[Maciej Stachowiak]

On Jan 31, 2008, at 3:01 PM, Charles wrote:

>> Inserting a [SWF] file into a video element is similar to inserting
>> an HTML file that happens to have a link to video: sure, it links
>> to a video, but it does a billion other things too - it isn't
>> in itself the video.
>
> I hear you.  FWIW, here's a QuickTime Movie that's also not in  
> itself the
> video:  http://wiltgen.net/tempy/badder.mov
>
> Please pardon the content.  It's what I had handy from some previous
> testing.   :^)
>
> Sementically that Movie *is* video (even though technially it  
> contains no
> media), and so it seems desirable to want to embed it using  
> <video>.  And
> we'll be able to in Safari, but not IE.  Or at least, I'm pretty  
> confident
> that Apple won't be packaging QuickTime as DirectShow filters.
>
> Imagine the QuickTime plug-in being able to register itself with  
> IE's brower
> as a handler for <video> types that IE otherwise wouldn't handle.   
> That
> seems like a very desirable thing, but the more we talk the more it  
> seems
> outside the scope of what HTML5 can solve.

If IE implemented <video> based on DirectShow, then it seems there  
would already be a way for Apple to do that (write a DirectShow filter).

I can't promise either way that Apple would or wouldn't provide  
extended video codecs to IE's <video>, but I don't think the decision  
will depend deeply on whether the relevant API is ActiveX or  
DirectShow or something else.

Regards,
Maciej