The final release of Windows Media Player 10 was done on September 2, 2004. Click here for more.

Note: Judging by the number of search referrers from Google and Yahoo that point to this entry with “uninstall windows media player 10” in the referrer address, here is a starting point that hopefully will help - but the linked pages are not my advice, and I make no warranty of any kind: Support Newsgroups at Microsoft for Windows Media Player 10 Beta Thread: Uninstalling 10 to 9 Thread: Can't use/uninstall WMP10 Who would have thought my web log entry would be first on Google for that phrase? Crazy... And a quick (not quite as helpful) note to people who installed and are having problems: This is beta software, blatantly labeled as such, so a bug-free experience should be the exception, not the rule. In other words, no surprise whatsoever that it's glitchy. That said, please use the newsgroup link above and post your issues with helpful and descriptive language. Remember the newsgroups are for getting help and reporting problems, so don't flame, but be complete in the info you provide. For a list of the information you should provide, look here. Help make the next version better - earn your whining privilege.

Microsoft today announced the technical beta of Windows Media Player 10. Anyone can download and give it a whirl, so long as you're running Windows XP.

Just keep in mind, it's beta software, and so your mileage may vary, especially if you need to uninstall or roll back and use protected media files, so player beware. Be sure to read the release notes before you install. Miracle of miracles, and something I have noticed we are seeing more and more often, thank goodness: No reboot required!

Looks like end-to-end media usability, from file to device synchronization, is the goal here. They're playing up advanced support for a big variety of media devices, which is to be expected after all the announcements recently about media-anywhere products.

I did get a broken image in the UI, and the streaming appears to be a WinMedia v9 experience. I noted tabs in the player named “Rip” and “Burn,” and direct support for these. In fact, everything is generally well laid out and easy to find, which is nice.

The interface is sleeker and easier to get around in. It was nice to fire it up and not have to download the funky HTML content on a “Guide” page - by default it started in the “Now Playing” (play-list) mode. Cool.

I don't do a lot of online media purchasing yet, but there's built-in support for online stores (presently there are links to Napster and CinemaNow.com). In the player, a static page describes a new “digital media mall” concept, where a variety of stores will be available to download, stream, rent or purchase media content.