And Vista recognizes more media file formats
and graphics hardware out of the box than, say, Windows XP. But as
they say, the devil is in the details, and, as it turns out, in the codecs as well.
Playing Video
Ever encounter a video file Windows won??™t play? Unlike most other types of
files, the filename extension alone doesn??™t dictate the encoding scheme. All .jpg
image files use standard JPEG compression, but a given .mpg movie file may
employ any one of dozens of available compression standards, called codecs.
Without the proper codec for a video file, you won??™t be able to play the
video or even convert it into another format.
A codec (which stands for compressor/decompressor) is software installed
on your PC, akin to a device driver, with all the pitfalls and frustrations that
implies. Codecs are frequently buggy, causing video distortion or even
crashes. Vista only includes codecs for a few common standards; need anything
else, and you??™re on your own. And, of course, the More Information
link Media Player shows you when it can??™t play a video doesn??™t provide anything
one would recognize as useful information.
Playing Video | 149
Working with
Media
To play a particular video, you need to install the same codec that was used
to create (compress) the video in the first place, regardless of the player
application you??™re using. To determine which codec was used, you??™ll need a
program like GSpot (http://www.headbands.
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