Amarok. Problems with internet radio streams

[Nigel Henry]

This is on Kubuntu Intrepid with Amarok 1.4.10 (Using KDE 3.5.10).

I'm having problems with Amarok playing windows media streams from the BBC for 
radio. I drag the link for a stream (radio 7 for example) into Amarok's add 
stream, and it shows up as: http://bbc.co.uk/radio/listen/live/r7.asx

I ok that. Then a cookie alert, so I select the "all cookies from this domain" 
option, then accept. Now Amarok says "populating playlist", and it loads up 
32 tracks, which are for this bbc radio 7 stream.

Now the problem. I press play, Amarok loads the buffer, then starts to play 
the radio 7 stream, but only for about 44 secs, then it stops playing.

I say it stops playing. At least the sound stops, but Amarok still says it's 
playing the stream, the timer is running, and gkrellm shows the stream 
traffic is still there. amarok appears to just play the first of the 32 
tracks, then stop. If I click on the second track, it buffers, and plays a 
bit more, and so on, if I click on subsequent tracks.

I know this stream will play almost continuously (as I'm on dialup, and there 
are bandwidth issues with windows media, and iplayer flash streams), as I 
tried it on Windows Media Player in an old XP install, and it played with 
patches of silence as it refilled the buffer.

I've left Amarok alone now, and every few minutes it moves onto the next 
track, buffers, and plays a bit more. All a bit weird eh!

I've put the link to the BBC page with the WMA links below. If someone on 
dialup, and on broadband would try one of the links, and see if they are 
getting the same as I am on dialup, I would be gratefull.

http://iplayerhelp.external.bbc.co.uk/help/streaming_programmes/real_wma_streams

Perhaps there is something I need to configure in Amarok to play these streams 
continuously, if anyone has any suggestions.

Incidentally, VLC behaves in exactly the same way, plays a bit, then stops.

Realplayer plays the BBC's real media streams without problems on dialup 
(20kbps), but I believe they are soon going to drop realmedia streams 
completely soon, which is why I'm trying to get the WMA ones working, 
although due to the bandwidth requirements of both windows media, iplayer 
flash streams, I don't think they are ever going to play like like the real 
medi streams, unless they do something about reducing the bandwidth.

Thanks for any help with this problem.

Nigel.