new mplayer builds eliminate need for win32 codecs?

[Claude Jones]

It's being reported over on the pclinuxos list that they have a new build of 
mplayer available that eliminates the need for win32 codecs and will allow 
the playing of proprietary media files without having to resort to use 
of 'questionable' codecs. I've been trying to find out what exactly that 
means. On first glance, it looks like they've got Real media working without 
the codecs but it's not clear if that equally applies to Windows Media. If 
this were to be true for both, that would be a great stride forward, no? In 
my world, Windows Media is a need, not a luxury - I'm in video production and 
Windows Media is such an integral part of my workflow that it can't be 
replaced with the opensource alternatives.
-- 
Claude Jones
Brunswick, MD, USA