Rendering Plug-in User Overview (deprecated)
This page documents a feature that may be unavailable in future versions of Windows Media Player and the Windows Media Player SDK.
To the user, rendering plug-ins are add-on features that enable Windows Media Player to render content in a Windows Media file that ordinarily wouldn't be available using Windows Media Player alone. The result of a rendering plug-in could be something obvious, like a custom animation video being displayed, or something subtle, like new functionality that lets the user click on a video image to change the playback experience.
Users can install and uninstall rendering plug-ins by using the Plug-ins tab of the Options dialog box in Windows Media Player. Rendering plug-ins may implement a property page, which users can also access from the Plug-ins tab. A property page provides the user with a way to change settings that affect the way a rendering plug-in works. For example, a property page might include radio buttons that allow the user to choose a background color.
Windows Media Player can display a small graphic, or series of graphics, in the status area of the Player to indicate to the user that a rendering plug-in is active. This graphic is provided to the Player by the plug-in if the plug-in supports this feature.