Codecs Codecs Codecs

What are codecs and why do they matter?

This is what the wise Wikipedia has to say about codecs.
"A codec is a device or program capable of performing encoding and decoding on a digital data stream or signal. The word codec may be a combination of any of the following: 'Compressor-Decompressor', 'Coder-Decoder', or 'Compression/Decompression algorithm'."

Remember as a kid those decoders you used to get in the boxes of cereal? That red film that you placed over the red picture that had a mystery message was the decoder.

When media files are created, codecs are used to compress the file into a specified format. When those files are read, the corresponding codec is then used to read, or open, the file. For instance, there are many mpeg 2 codecs that can be used to encode a video file. That same group of codecs may be used to open an mpeg2 file, however they may not decode it properly or entirely.

You may find that after installing a new video editing software or DVD encoder that your presentation software does not play media files properly. Just like those cereal box decoders, the red film may reveal a portion of the message but the green film will reveal the message in its entirety.If you have a file that seems to be improperly decoded you can install new codecs for your software to use so that it can read the entire file.

The following solution seems to solve many of the codec issues I have encountered. Originally this solution was designed to deal with the newest Cyberlink Power DVD software Dell and others were using at the end of '05 and beginning of '06. Here is the link used by MediaShout for solving codec related issues. www.mediashout.com/download/InstallingCodecs.pdf

The instructions have a link to the K-lite Mega Codec pack from www.codecs.com. This codec pack includes a quicktime alternative, and mp4 support. It will allow the playback of .mov, m4a, m4v, mp4, h.264.

If you have updated your drivers and still not getting audio from a video file or DVD playback is poor or non-existent, try installing these new codecs to get better playback.

Still having problems? leave a questions in the comments.