I suppose I'm looking for help in two areas. First I've never understood
where to find the tools that could tell me which codecs I need, which codecs
I have, and how to install new ones. Second, I've used Pinnacle 9.x to
render an MPG video using the DVD quality setting. I can play the video
just fine on the WinXP PC where it was rendered, but the video doesn't play
on a Mac or Vista PC. Is there a more generic setting in Pinnacle?

How can I tell which codecs the MPG needs?
How can I tell which codecs are installed in Windows?
How do I go about installing additional codecs?

wow. That's too much to ask for. Maybe if you could point me at a website
or white paper that explains these issues?

Thanks for your help.


** Posted from http://www.teranews.com **

On Tue, 8 Apr 2008 14:02:19 -0700, in 'rec.video.desktop',
in article <Codecs for Pinnacle Video on Vista and Mac>,
"wdsnews" <wdsnews.0640@oregoncity.com> wrote:

I can't help you with a Pinnacle-specific question/problem, keeping as
I do as far away from Pinnacle software as I possibly can, but I can
tell you that if you encoded a file using DVD-Video settings, the
video stream should have been encoded using an MPEG-2 codec and that
to successfully play back that file on any given system is going to
require that an MPEG-2 video codec be installed and working on that
system. Not all systems have MPEG-2 video codecs installed.

Then there's the question of the audio stream, which was probably
Dolby Digital AC-3 encoded, thus creating the need for a functional
AC-3 codec to be installed on the playback system.

You need to download and install a (free) copy of GSpot.

http://www.headbands.com/gspot/

There are similar programs available, but GSpot is the best, in my
opinion.

GSpot will also tell you this, including old-skool ACM (Audio
Compression Manager) and (Video Compression Manager) codecs as well as
modern DirectX/DirectShow filters.

I *don't* recommend so-called "codec packs". Instead, locate,
download, and install audio and video codecs only as needed to create
or playback specific media files.

As above.

Hope this helps.

--
Frank, Independent Consultant, New York, NY
[Please remove 'nojunkmail.' from address to reply via e-mail.]
Read Frank's thoughts on HDV at http://www.humanvalues.net/hdv/
(also covers AVCHD and XDCAM EX).

"wdsnews" <wdsnews.0640@oregoncity.com> wrote in message
news:73caf$47fbdd5c$29046@news.teranews.com

The collection of codecs on a PC are a moving target.

There are lists of audio and video codecs in

Control Panel
Sounds and Audio devices
Hardware

Under Hardware there are two lists

Audio Codecs
Video Codecs

AFAIK unless you load the right MPEG video codec on a PC, there won't be one
unless you are running one of the versions of Vista that comes with one.
I've never seen a version of XP that comes with the right video codec for
MPEG that will let you play a video DVD or DVD-format video file, even the
Media version. Historically, loading DVD-playing software like PowerDVD or
WinDVD loads the right codec.

To see if you have the right codec(s) for playing DVDs:

Click Start, click Run, type dvdupgrd /detect, and then press ENTER

The control panel items mentioned above.

Most Codecs are installed by a SETUP program that came with the Codec.


http://support.microsoft.com/kb/306331/EN-US/

thank you!


"Frank" <frank@nojunkmail.humanvalues.net> wrote in message
news:1c0ov3lb86psjkv2b1ccgpu7f97jpnp5o0@4ax.com...

** Posted from http://www.teranews.com **

thank you!


"Arny Krueger" <arnyk@hotpop.com> wrote in message
news:gamdndzXWr8DOGHanZ2dnUVZ_jednZ2d@comcast.com. ..

** Posted from http://www.teranews.com **