Call us crazy (and we know you do), but we're firmly convinced that there's some kind of conspiracy of silence or something regarding QuickTime. We didn't comment on it at the time, but a few weeks ago faithful viewer Stephen White brought to our attention a New York Times article about web video. It claimed that, as far as market share among the competing architectures was concerned, RealPlayer was in the lead, QuickTime was in second place, and Microsoft's Media Player was bringing up the rear, but gaining fast. The really wonky thing, though, was that the article barely mentioned QuickTime, only to say something like "QuickTime is not comparable, since unlike the other two offerings, it is not geared towards streaming media." Say what? Them's fightin' words! So now millions of Times readers think QuickTime can't stream. Great.

At the time we just wrote the whole thing off to ignorance and a Times research department that needs to switch from heroin to speed. But now PC World Online's posted its "streaming shootout" article comparing RealPlayer to Windows Media-- and QuickTime is nowhere to be found. Point by point, the article lists the pros and cons of the respective technologies, eventually concluding that performance and quality of the two are virtually identical. Meanwhile, unlike in the Times article, QuickTime isn't even listed as a fringe technology. Strangely enough, though, bundled with the article is a "QuickVote" poll, asking readers which streaming technology they prefer: RealPlayer, Windows Media, QuickTime, or "other." (There are others?) So while QuickTime evidently didn't rate highly enough to make the cut for the article itself, at least it's represented in the poll.

Even funnier, though, are the ongoing results of said poll. At last check, QuickTime was waaay out in front, with 56% of the over 13,000 votes cast. RealPlayer was in second place, with only 27%, and Windows Media scores a distant third with a measly 16%. (1% chose "other," so apparently there is something else out there-- or 145 respondents seriously lack hand-eye coordination.) In light of this frustrating tendency of the press to ignore QuickTime, it's pretty gratifying to see even a meaningless poll trumpet QuickTime's popularity. Feel free to skew those results however you see fit.