Pretty Good Media Player

[ronbo613]

I'm always fooling around with videos and media players, I've been checking out the VideoLan-VLC media player. It seems like a pretty cool little player with lots of features and plays many different formats and file types.
It's free, open source software, you might want to check it out.

[RUSH2112]

VLC is the do-anything player. The only thing I do not use it for is watching movies that I have as DVD Images (VOB files), because it doesn't support the menus or transitioning from one file to another (at least not as I have figured out). I don't think I've yet to come across a file VLC cant play though. Its great.

AND cross-platform

[The Spirit of X21]

VLC is the do-anything player.

Amen! You don't know how happy I was to find out that I could use it instead of FLV Player to watch my downloaded flash videos (bows to VLC.)

[sugo]

I use Media Player Classic. I prefer its UI over VLC.

[dr_st]

I use BSPlayer and just install codecs.

Someone once characterized VLC as "a bunch of codecs and a crappy interface". I found it funny, although I have nothing against VLC in particular.

[Purcy]

I like the Core Media Player : http://www.tucows.com/preview/299014 for my laptop and the Core Pocket Media Player for my PDA; both are free.

[ronbo613]

I'm not a big fan of installing codec packs, sometimes they can cause problems and you have a hard time figuring out what the deal is because so many codecs were installed at the same time.
I still use Windows Media Player 9 to check out the video clips I make for my websites because that's what most people use, so I've got to make sure they work with it. I actually still like Windows Media Player 6.2(wmplayer2.exe) to view MPEG1 and AVI files, that's where Media Player Classic got it's "look".
After using the ATI MPEG2 codec and WMP 9 to watch DVDs, that's pretty bad, so I tried VLC. It's got a few quirks, as most open source software does, but it's got pretty good DVD playback features and plays just about every other kind of file. Pretty good for free.

The only thing I do not use it for is watching movies that I have as DVD Images (VOB files), because it doesn't support the menus or transitioning from one file to another (at least not as I have figured out).

If you rip the entire DVD to a folder, then use "Open Directory", can you use the menus and stuff like you are using the disc? I just started fooling around with the player, haven't tried that yet.

[Turbo Audi]

Definitely VLC! I use it in Linux and XP.

WMP Classic is excellent for DVDs, before MSFT took to codecs away.

For MP3/M4A/OGG playback, nothing beats the new Winamp for XP. No need to install plug-ins anymore. Plays everything!

[Deckard]

Yup, discovered it a while ago. Once you used it, you just can't go back to another.

Nice piece of software.

[dorin]

any idea how to make vlc to play rm, rmv files? the only way is to instal real alternative, and then it plays with media classic. i'd love to make vlc play rmv files, then effectivly it'd be the only player i use (besides winamp)

[dr_st]

any idea how to make vlc to play rm, rmv files? the only way is to instal real alternative, and then it plays with media classic. i'd love to make vlc play rmv files, then effectivly it'd be the only player i use (besides winamp)

Real Alternative will make RM files play in any player that works with codecs (again, I use BSPlayer). Does VLC work with codecs or just with whatever is built-in into it?

For the record, I've never seen a codec pack screw something on a system (except sometimes you need to tune them so that they actually work).

And WinAmp still uses plugins, just comes with most of them pre-installed by now.

[ronbo613]

Looks like no Real Media support with VLC. Just about everything else though.
Stoked to see it play Quicktime files(I don't have QT installed), wonder if the VLC .mov plugin will work with streaming QT files through Firefox?