THE VLC MEDIA PLAYER

Friday, 14 November 2014

Why You Should Use VLC Media Player to Play Your DVDs

VLC is the most versatile and enormously powerful media player on the internet. Avi, mp3, mkv, mp4, mpg, flac, etc. VLC handles everything so well youll be wondering: how on earth did I ever go without this program?

Something we havent talked about much on this blog is VLCs DVD support. Weve mentioned that VLC can play DVDs, but we havent really explained why you really should uninstall your old dvd software and use VLC for all your DVD needs. VLC is in fact the very best DVD-player in existence and here is why.

Can Play Any Region

Do you have a stack of DVDs you cant play because the region is different? Just pop them into your pc and play them with VLC. VLC can play DVDs from any region without resetting your pc defaults or jumping through any other strange hoops.

Full Menu Support

VLC doesnt just take the main video file like some other media players that claim DVD support do. VLC Media Player will play a DVD like a dedicated DVD-player would: with full support for menus, chapters, subtitles, multiple audio, extras, and any other possible options.

Ability to Rip, Save and Convert

Some people hate having to get up to pop DVDs in and out of the tray every time they want to watch something. With VLC, you can put an end to this grave injustice. Just open the DVD once with VLC, and then use the options to rip and convert it to your hard drive.

This way, you can have your whole DVD collection sitting safely on your hard drive for your immediate viewing pleasure, instead of spending half the time changing DVDs and getting dirt and scratches all over them in the process.

More Responsive Controls

DVD controls can be a pain. Were not sure why most DVD players still refuse to use a timeline and, if you dont want to use chapters, force you to use the fast forward or rewind buttons to navigate through the file.

If you use VLC Media Player, you can use everything VLC is known for (great interface, easy controls, all kinds of tweaks and options) on any and all of your DVDs.

Whats the Point of Using Anything Else?

The fewer programs are installed on your pc, the less your machine will get bogged down by unnecessary system processes. There really is no reason whatsoever why you should have more than one media player installed when youve already got VLC Media Player. So do yourself a favour: get the free VLC download and get rid of all the others!

Similarly, whats the point of paying good money for a dedicated DVD-player, when you can just connect your laptop or pc to your TV and enjoy all the benefits of using not just VLC but everything else your computer has to offer on a bigger screen? It could hardly be any easier. All you need is an S-VIDEO or HD cable. Connect the two, navigate to the correct channel and youre ready to roll!

Download Music Straight from YouTube with VideoLan Client

How to Fix out of Sync Video/Audio with VLC Media Player

You spend half your evening looking for some obscure episode from a TV show from your youth. You finally find it and download it to your hard drive. The next day, you are distant and jittery. You cant concentrate. Youre just too excited about that show youre going to watch when you get back from work.

The clock strikes 5 and you drive home in a rush. You slip into something more comfortable, prepare some hot chocolate and set up your show. You press play and watch the intro. Pure nostalgia is flowing through your veins. Then disaster strikes and your day is ruined: the audio and video are out of sync.

VLC Media Playerto the Rescue

If this, or something similar, has ever happened to you, you know how frustrating it is to watch an out of sync video. It is enough to drive perfectly sane people to the point of desperation.

But VLC can provide relief.

One of the only media players in existence to offer this function, and the only one to do it in a straightforward, user-friendly way, VLC can slightly adjust the audio and/or video streams by a few milliseconds.

This way, you can finally fix those old shows youve been dying to watch, but dont have the nerves of steel to sit through in their current state.

Using the Track Synchronization Menu

VLC offers two ways to fix your badly out of sync files. The first is through the synchronization menu, which you can find in the Tools menu.

The Audio/Video track synchronization shows a slider next to it which you can adjust by clicking the up and down arrows on the right. A positive value means that the audio is rendered that particular amount of milliseconds before the video.

It takes a bit of experimentation to wrap your head around using this slider, but once you do, youll find it pretty easy to work with. Dont forget that you may have to click the Refresh button on the top right of the screen to update the video to your synchronization settings.

You can do the same for out of sync subtitle files, as we have discussed on our blog in the past.

Using the Shortcuts

The second way to synchronize your files is by using the default keyboard shortcuts J and K. Pressing these letters will move the audio 50 milliseconds backward or forward, respectively. This is usually easier to fix your files on the go.

If you dont like these shortcuts, you can of course change them in the Hotkey menu.

One Small Shortcoming

The synchronization options of VLC can really save you in a time of need, but there is one small problem: you cant save it.

So, if you resynchronize a video and then close it, youll have to sync it again when you want to watch it again. VLC might offer an option to save your sync preferences in its next version though, look forward to it!

VLC Media Player Versus Media Player Classic

We here at vlcmediaplayer.org are of course huge VLC-junkies. But that doesnt mean that we havent tried some of the other media players out there. Probably the best available free alternative to VLC is Media Player Classic.

In one respect, MPC does have an advantage over VLC. But in all others, VLC Media Player comes out the clear winner. Overall, choosing either of these for your media-playing needs would be a good choice and choosing both is even better. However, if you have to choose just one, get the free VLC download, because its the better media player overall.

Battleof the Media Titans

Comparing VLC and MPC is like comparing Coca Cola and Pepsi. Theres no doubt that these are the two best players out there (at least, on the windows platform), but some will prefer the former and others will prefer the latter. Before describing some relative advantages and disadvantages of the two, lets take some time to discuss how they are similar in their greatness.

Both are free and open source.
Both are slender and lightweight players.
Both are minimalistic in outlook, but have very powerful features.
Both are user-friendly and offer a great viewing experience.

As you can see, both of these media players have a lot going for them. The differences between the two are in the details.

Graphic Rendering and Computer Usage

Both players are lightweight and wont hog up your pcs resources, but it has to be said: Media Player Classic runs a little bit smoother than VLC. The difference is entirely unnoticeable on any machine that dates from 2005 or later, but on older machines, it cannot be denied that uses resources slightly more effectively, translating into a less choppy image.

Related to this is MPCs superior High Definition rendering. VLC is much better than Windows Media Player or Quicktime when rendering HD, but will still deliver choppier picture quality than Media Player Classic on less powerful machines.

So if your computer is old, MPC does have some things going for it.

Codecs and Formats

On the other hand, VLC Media Player is one single file download which contains everything you need to play all the audio and video files you would ever want to play. MPC, on the other hand, will require you to download codecs or codec packs to be able to play certain formats, and will refuse to play others entirely (like Blu-Rays, for which VLC has experimental support and incomplete or broken files).

Streaming Video and Playlist Functionality

Another advantage over MPC is VLCs streaming functionality. VLC allows you to play YouTube videos, convert and save them into different formats, watch podcasts, internet TV and much more. MPC does nothing like this.

The Playlist is also much better in VLC. More advanced users wont care much about this, but people who just want to enjoy their media player will greatly benefit from the great integrated playlist.

Final Verdict

VLC takes the cake because it has a lot more options and doesnt require any other codecs or other downloads. However, MPC is a great alternative and may even win out if you have a very old computer.

But, at the end, why to choose if you can have both?

Why You Should Use VLC Media Player to Play Your DVDs

Organize Your Media Files with VLC Media Player

When people say music player they usually think about software like iTunes, Winamp and foobar2000. While these are all great programs, another one should make the list, but is usually skipped, on account of its enormous popularity in a different niche:VLC Media Player.

This is probably the world’s favorite video player and is used by many millions of people every day. However, when it comes to music, it gets overlooked. Unfairly so, because this is by far one of the easiest, most user-friendly and least resource-consuming music player on the market.

It didnt always used to be like this. While this has been a great music player from the beginning, its media library used to be rudimentary and rather bad. Organizing your music was a chore on this software, which is why competitors like Winamp and iTunes were more often recommended.

But then it updated and introduced its new media library. There wasn’t a lot of fanfare, no great marketing efforts, but this doesn’t change anything about its value. Its new media library is just as easy and awesome as those of its competitors. And the fact that its integrated with so many of its other attractive functions means that you should definitely consider using it as your primary music player.

VideoLan Client Media Library: How It Works

Simply said, a media library is a permanent repository of your favorite music (and/or videos). You add them to the software and the program will remember them and make them available for you next time you open it up.

Technically speaking, it has a certain xspf file associated with its media library which it updates every time you make changes to your library. When you open VideoLan client, it automatically looks at this file and remembers what you put in it and how you organized it.

Where to Find It

You can find the media library by going to your playlist by pressing CTRL-L on your keyboard or selecting the option in the View menu. Once there, look to the left side of your screen and select Media Library it should be the second option.

VLC Media Library

If you havent used it before, the list will be empty. But dont worry, youll fill it in no time!

How to Use It

Simply drag media files or folders to the media library and drop them there. This media player will automatically create folders for them (though you may have to click them first to register them as folders). Just keep adding more stuff until your’e satisfied and voila: your music collection has been organized.

VLC Media Player

Next time you run the software, it will still all be there. Of course you can sort the list on artist, title, genre, album and more (right click on the area marked by the blue circle to choose new headers and click the headers to sort them) and you can also search for them with the handy search tool at the top right corner.

As you can see, you don’t need iTunes or foobar2000 to organize your media collection. Like always, VLC offers a great and easy solution to this problem as well.

List of VideoLan Client Keyboard Hotkeys

You already know that you can play any audio and video file withVLC Media Player, that its easy to install and to use, that youve got more options at your fingertips than you could ever need, and that the program is free and downloadable from this very website.

All that is obvious. And if it isnt, then shame on you, because weve been trying to hammer it in for years. But what you may not know yet is that you can make this already fantastic program even more fantastic by using the large list of customizable keyboard shortcuts to control its interface.

Whats a Keyboard Shortcut?

In case you dont know what a keyboard shortcut is and for some reason you cant guess the meaning by the name: a keyboard shortcut is a combination of keys on your keyboard that results in VLC (or another program) performing a certain function or command.

With these shortcuts, you can control the playback of your files, bring up all kinds of menus and streamline your VideoLan Client user experience.

Which Ones Should You Use?

As many as you feel like! Well explain in a minute how to look at the entire list and how to change them if you are so inclined, but for now, well just give you the most important ones to keep in mind.

Spacebar : Pressing the spacebar will play or pause whatever file you are playing.

F : This will switch to full screen if you are enjoying a video file. Pressing it again will switch back. Alternatively you can also double click the screen.

CTRL/ALT/SHIFT + LEFT/RIGHT : These are respectively medium, short and very short jumps backwards and forwards in the media file youre currently playing. Pressing CTRL, ALT, SHIFT and LEFT or RIGHT at the same time performs a long jump. [note: the default values are: long: 10 minutes ; medium: 1 minute ; short: 10 seconds ; very short: 3 seconds]

CTRL + UP/DOWN : This controls the volume. You can also use the mouse wheel for this.

CTRL + O : This opens up a menu where you can select a file to play.

CTRL + P : This brings up the preferences menu.

CTRL + L : This switches the playlist on or off.

The Hotkeys Menu

If youre unsatisfied with this list and you want more, or if you want to change some of these, then all it takes is to open up the hotkeys menu where you can consult and tweak as much you want.

Open up the Preferences menu (or press CTRL + P as we mentioned in the paragraph above) and click on the Hotkeys tab.

Here youll find a very long list of actions and their hotkeys. Simply double click on any hotkey you want to change or add new ones. For your information, global hotkeys work even when the media player is not the active window. Enjoy your newfound efficiency with VLC Media Player!

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