If anyone has any suggestions or additions please PM me (rather than replying here) so I can add them to the list; you will be credited
I've seen a lot of posts about codecs and video players recently, so I decided to put together a list of the most common ones, along with some other links and utilities. I'll update this post regularly so check back often.
CODECS
For the noobs who have no idea what a codec is (or why they clicked on this post), codec is short for 'compressor/decompressor,' and is basically used to allow you to play certain video and audio files. If you have a file that you cannot play, chances are you don't have the correct codec installed. In general, the four most essential codecs you should have installed are:
DivX - very popular AVI video codec, updated fairly regularly and comes with optional DivX player
XViD - good quality up-and-coming video codec, a lot of current video files are using this codec nowadays
Other XViD binaries:
koepi's XViD binary (recommended)
nic's XViD binary
unmaniac's XViD binary
(thanks Mithras)
ffdshow - essential companion for DivX and XViD files
AC3 - used for audio, this is a must-have companion to the above codecs (used for .avi and DVD video)
I don't like to use those 'all-in-one' codec packs for two reasons: first, you will only ever use 10% of the tons of codecs they include (thus wasting valuable disk space), and second, they install many useless utilities which are unnecessary (plus they eat up major system resources).
PLAYERS
You should be able to play almost anything now, so all you need is a player:
BSPlayer - excellent player, fully skinable and user-friendly
Crystal Player - powerful player, includes many useful features (esp. audio skewing), also fully skinable
VideoLAN - comes with it's own internal codecs, can play almost anything where other players won't!
Media Player - good ol' MP, doesn't have the best features but gets the job done
Real Alternative - an alternative to RealPlayer, this installs codecs that allow you to view RealMedia files in Media Player
Quicktime Alternative - same as above except it plays Quicktime files
Zoom Player - excellent alternative to media player (and other media players for that matter) (thanks Mithras)
Winamp - we all know this one! Plays most audio and video types, and has a huge fan base thus skins and plugins are plentiful. My personal favourite for audio.
UTILITIES
If you're still having problems, try some of these utilities and programs:
TMPGEnc Plus - good video editing program, allows you to rip audio and video streams and adjust them as you want
VCDGear - great for ripping videos from VCD's or DVD's (even straight from CD images without mounting them)
GSpot - a must-have program, it analyses video/audio files and tells you which codecs you need to play them
Gordian Knot Codec Pack - probably one of the best codec packs out there. it has the following codecs: divx3.11alpha, divx5.12 pro, xvid koepi 1.0.2, huffyuv 0.2.2.1, ac3filter 0.70b, mpgaudioax, morgan stream switcher and ffdshow alpha 2004-08-28. (thanks Mithras)
RIPPING AND ENCODING
'Ripping' is basically extracting and/or converting a video or audio file from one format/medium to another, e.g. you can rip a DVD movie into the DiVX format. 'Encoding' is changing from one format to another, which can also occur during ripping.
Dr DiVX - Easy-to-use video converter that encodes to DiVX with minimal effort. It also has a ton of options so you can tweak every little aspect of your video file. My personal favourite!
VirtualDub - Great video converter/resampler, which allows you to convert, split, join and rip various video formats. My favourite feature is that you can rip audio and video streams separately and easily.
LINKAGE
Doom9 - Great site that has tons of info on everything from ripping to encoding to playing. Definitely worth a look.
Afterdawn - Guides for DVD, DiVX, VCD and all the rest, with a useful glossary.
VideoHelp - Excellent n00b-friendly site with information and guides on just about anything DVD or video related.
Digital-Digest - An old classic, this place has been around for ages; chock full of useful information and a discussion board.
CD Freaks - This site is full of up-to-date news stories and reviews, and is a wealth of information for any video 'freak.'
dvd.box.sk - Has great categorised sections and a ton of information, well worth a look.
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