The cross-platform VLC player is known to almost everyone, but most users do not even realize that it can be used not only to play media content, but also to perform many other tasks. Which ones - about this in the new issue of our software section
The interest in the VLC player, developed by enthusiasts since 1996 as part of the VideoLAN project, is due to several reasons. Firstly, the mentioned product is extremely popular among adherents of free software (the number of downloads exceeds 485 million!) And is available for all kinds of operating systems, including mobile ones. Secondly, not so long ago there was a major release of a new build of the program, which has matured to version 2.0.x and received a lot of interesting functions. Finally, thirdly, for many users VLC is still associated exclusively with a tool for watching video and listening to audio, the powerful filling of which allows you to solve much more interesting tasks in practical terms. Today's publication is devoted to their summary, provided for greater clarity with an abundance of screenshots.
Converting files
With the widespread proliferation of portable computing devices with different technical characteristics, the problem of converting multimedia data from one format to another has become more urgent than ever, which can be dealt with once or twice using VLC tools. You just need to open the program, press Ctrl + R, select one or several objects requiring processing on the "File" tab and click on the "Convert / Save" button.
Next, you need to enter the name of the resulting file, select the output format with a suitable profile for compressing the data and start the processing by clicking the "Start" button. If you want, you can go to the profile settings and play around with the codec parameters, picture resolution, bit rate and other audio / video characteristics up to including subtitles in the converted video. Aligning the codecs may require some knowledge from the user, which can always be found on the pages of the VideoLAN Wiki.
Using clips as the background of the work environment
One of the interesting features of the VLC player is the ability to output video directly to the desktop of the operating system. To activate multimedia wallpapers, the role of which can be played by your favorite motion picture, you should go to the advanced settings of the program and in the "Video" field check the box next to the item "Video on the desktop". After that, all that remains is to select a similar menu item in the main application window and make sure that the operations performed have benefited the business.
Watching YouTube videos
It is well known that to view the content presented on the YouTube server, you need a browser with the installed Adobe Flash plug-in or HTML5 support. In the absence of an appropriate web browser at hand, the notorious VLC player can resolve the deadlock. The technique is simple: press Ctrl + N, copy the URL of the online video you like into the form for entering the URL and click on the "Play" button. If you have a mediocre Internet channel, it will not be superfluous to open a tab with additional parameters and adjust the amount of cache memory used when playing YouTube content. This foresight will help you avoid annoying pauses during video playback.
Transcription of audio recordings
The question of converting dictaphone records into text format often baffles even experienced computer users: the cat cried the appropriate software that simplifies the solution of the problem, and often there is no point in them and about the same tenth. It is much more effective in such cases to adopt VLC with the buttons "Step backward", "Step forward" and "Cycle A → B" brought out through the interface settings to the toolbar. Using the mentioned controls, you can instantly rewind the recording ten seconds back and forth and activate the cyclic scrolling of selected sections of the audio file, which is useful when transcribing lectures, interviews, translators' dictations and other audio data.
Users with good memory can, instead of customizing the program interface, resort to the practical use of the player's "hot" keys system, which allows performing various actions, including rewinding the content being played on the computer. It should be noted that almost all VLC controls are duplicated with corresponding keyboard shortcuts, configurable depending on user preferences.
Organization of streaming audio / video broadcasting
And this task can be handled by means of VLC. In order to use the player as a server for streaming multimedia content, you need to make a number of program settings, guided by this (in English) or this (in Russian) instruction. In particular, you will need to decide on the broadcast source, select the network protocol that will be used for online broadcasting, set the data transcoding settings into a suitable format, and activate the transmission of the media stream to client machines. Since broadcasts of multimedia data dictate very strict requirements for the bandwidth of communication channels, it is correct to make sure that the Internet connection used can withstand the high flow of outgoing traffic before deploying a video server.
Saving streaming content to a file
Since we are talking about organizing online broadcasting using VLC, it would be logical to mention the player's ability not only to distribute content over the network, but also to save streaming content broadcast by someone to disk, automatically converting it to the most preferred format. This operation is carried out by analogy with the method of watching YouTube videos described above, with the only exception that after entering the URL, you need to click "Convert" rather than "Play". A window will open with the settings for saving the input stream and the parameters of the codecs that will be used for data conversion. After pointing a marathon in them, you can, mindful of copyrights and copyrights, start "robbing" the audio / video stream.
Taking screenshots from a video stream
Unlike a number of alternative media players, VLC includes special tools for creating snapshots of the movies being played. There is no need to fiddle with the Print Screen key, the operating system clipboard and graphic editors - just press Shift + S and the program will automatically write the selected frame to the computer disk in the specified directory. By default, images are saved in PNG format, which can be changed to JPG if desired.
Remote player control
Another documented but rarely used feature of VLC is the ability to remotely manipulate the program through the web interface. Its beauty is that any computing device connected to the local network with an Internet browser on board, be it a smartphone or tablet, can act as a remote control. Those interested can personally verify the flexibility of this tool by activating the remote control interface in the player's settings and connecting to it via a browser. "Through the air" you can control almost all the main functions of the application: adjust the volume, control the playback of files and playlist, manipulate the equalizer settings and other VLC parameters.
Assembling video puzzles
For those who like to while away their free time solving various kinds of puzzles and logical puzzles, VLC can also do a good job. No tricks and shamanic dances with a tambourine - just open a window with graphic effects, put a tick in front of the "Puzzle" item and get from the video being played back a mosaic divided into many fragments, which must be assembled into a single whole. The difficulty of the game can be adjusted by increasing the rows and columns of the puzzle. Control is carried out through dexterous movement of elements with the mouse.
Viewing Photos
Being designed for working with multimedia data, VLC does a good job at performing other tasks. With built-in support for JPG, PNG, XCF, GIF, TIFF, LBM, PCX, and Targa (TGA) image formats, the player can be used as a simple image viewer that perfectly complements the program's features listed above.
It is hoped that the post we published will serve as good food for thought for all VLC users and, perhaps, make someone radically reconsider their attitude towards opensourse solutions, which are often head and shoulders above commercial products. And in terms of the quality of implementation, and the functionality carefully laid out by the developers.
Over the years, the hard drive of any user's computer has been visited by many applications for playing media files. Depending on the time period, different apps were at the top of the ratings: VPlayer, BestPlayer KMPlayer, etc.
Currently, an excellent program in this category is VLC Media Player. VLC allows you to watch videos without the need to install external codecs, download materials from video websites and convert files from one formats to others.
Our guide will show you how to use the most interesting features of the app, including those hidden deep in the settings.
VLC player - appearance and accessories
In standard mode, the VLC interface does not support all functions. For example, the button for recording or capturing an image is missing. You can activate the visibility of additional settings by selecting the item Additional controls in the View menu.
Interface appearance applications can be changed using "skins". You can find a selection of them at https://www.videolan.org/vlc/skins.php. Download the file of the skin you like and save it in the folder Program Files (x86) / VideoLAN / VLC / skins... When starting the VLC player, call the settings window (by pressing the combination Ctrl + P) and on the tab Interface, select the Custom style check box, and then specify the location of the file. The theme will be activated after restarting the program.
Change settings of interface elements according to your needs, you can through the menu Instruments → Interface customization... In the window Toolbar editor you can change the location of individual elements of the interface, as well as add new functions and customize them.
Even more functions... Despite the fact that in VLC player initially has a fairly large set of functions, the community centered around the program creates new additions for it. An example of an interesting extension for VLC is the automatic subtitle download module for the video being played. Add-ons can be obtained from https://addons.videolan.org. Download and save it in the folder Program Files (x86) / VideoLAN / VLC / lua / extensions... Run VLC player- the module will be automatically initialized.
VLC player - download and watch videos from the network
Among the countless YouTube content, there is something for everyone. VLC Media Player allows not only to reproduce materials published there directly in the application window, but also to download copies of them to the hard drive of the local computer.
To do this, copy the url YouTube video and then paste it into VLC by opening the menu Media → Open URL(or use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + N). Then confirm your selection by clicking the Play button. The movie starts playing.
Now press Ctrl + J keys - this will bring up a window Information about the media source, in which you will find out the settings of the codec, and in the line Location you will find the path to download this movie. Copy it and paste it into the address bar of your browser, and then go to the address.
If the movie starts playing, then it can be downloaded and viewed offline (just right-click on it and select Save video as ... or click the Save in Yandex Browser button).
Stabilize streaming video... With an unstable Internet connection or problems with the server, there may be problems with the playback of material from the Internet. VLC can handle that too. When you start streaming video from the network, check the box Show advanced options.
The value will appear in the window Caching the default is 1000ms. You can increase this value so that the player downloads video "with a margin" and thus eliminates the risk of delays. For this, a text box is used Change settings... Enter the line there: network-caching = 1000, where instead of 1000 you can enter a larger value.
VLC player - smartphone as a remote control
The VLC player can be controlled using a mobile device: smartphone and tablet. This is useful when, for example, you are watching video from a connected computer on your TV or when you are showing a presentation.
Open the settings panel VLC by pressing Ctrl + P. A window will open Simple settings... At the very bottom, check the All box to display the advanced options of the player (note that the window changes its name to Advanced settings).
Left, in the section Interface click Basic interfaces and in the right pane, check the Web box. An entry will appear in the field below http... Go to the left pane again, expand Interface → Basic interfaces and select Lua... In the right pane of the window, in the part Lua HTTP in field Password enter password, save settings, close VLC player and run it again.
The next step is to change the settings of the Windows firewall, which should provide communication between the player and the smartphone. If on restarting VLC the firewall does not display a warning, you must make these changes yourself in the firewall settings.
When the firewall allows communication between the mobile device and the player, you need to find out the IP address of your computer - you can find it using the system command line invoked by the command cmd entered in the system search. In the window that opens, enter ipconfig... An IP address is a sequence of numbers next to IPv4 Address.
Now launch a web browser on your smartphone and in the address bar, enter the IP address of the computer, marked: 8080 (the port is used by VLC for remote control). Enter the previously set password, and a control panel will appear, allowing you to control playback on your computer.
VLC Player - Improving Video Quality
Low-res videos don't look good when viewed in full screen. In such cases, the filters built into the VLC player can be helpful. The shortcut Ctrl + E will bring up a window Adjustments and Effects... In chapter Video effects you will find options designed to sharpen and soften images, as well as improve contrast and color.
Optimal image: fixed window size. In accordance with the default settings, the player displays the movie in a resolution-sized window after the movie is turned on. In some situations, this can be inconvenient, for example, when the video resolution is greater than the monitor resolution, then the player window will go "outside" the screen, and the interface control buttons will be inaccessible. VLC player allows you to define the overall window size for all playable content.
This can be done by opening Preferences (Ctrl + P). Select All at the bottom of the window for more options. Go to section Video in the left pane, and in the right, in the section Window settings enter the desired window size. Uncheck the box Autoscale video and save your changes.
Synchronization of sound and picture... In some multimedia materials, the audio track is not synchronized with the video. V VLC player you can try to minimize this problem. In the window Effects and Filters(Ctrl + E) go to the tab Synchronization... Customization Sync audio track used to determine the displacement of the sound. You may need to revisit this setting several times before you can find the optimal value.
VLC Player - Precise Navigation
Taking a screenshot at a specific point in a movie is not easy. In the end, there are several tens of frames in one second of playback (depending on the recording standard of the material). Pressing the PrintScreen key at the right time can be problematic.
VLC player has a special function for this. Stop the video playback at the right moment, right-click the image and select the command Video → To take a photo... By default, the image will be saved in the system folder Images.
When using the function of capturing a video frame and saving it as a graphic file, the mechanism of high-precision navigation for a specific frame of material is very convenient. Start playback and click on the Frame by Frame button.
Each subsequent press moves the video one frame.
Go to a specific location in a movie- this option is useful, especially when playing long materials, the viewing of which you have stopped for some reason. If you resume playback, you can immediately return to the point where you last stopped. After downloading the file, press Ctrl + T, in the window field Time transition enter the time at which playback was paused. VLC will resume the movie from that location.
Pause when minimizing interface... Are you playing a movie while your email or instant messaging client is running in the background? You can quickly react to a new message, without the need to shift the video in time and minimize the VLC window. Minimizing the player window will immediately pause playback.
In the program settings (Ctrl + P), on the tab Interface, check the box Collapse pause... Click the Save button.
VLC player - video recording
VLC player allows you to record broadcasts made using your webcam. This way you will save, for example, a Skype conversation file. The corresponding parameters are available in the program settings.
After pressing the key combination Ctrl + P in the window Simple settings open the tab Input / Codecs... In chapter Files specify the path to save the file. Save the settings and then open the menu A source(Ctrl + C). In the tab Capture device in the window Device selection select a webcam. Click the Play button and start recording.
Tip: if the dropdown Capture mode select Screen(the default is DirectShow), you will be able to record the contents of the monitor screen, for example, for streaming games... In chapter Options specify the size of the created video. It should be at least 15 frames / sec for the material to be smooth.
Video conversion... If your device cannot cope with the playback of a video or audio file, as a rule, this is due to the lack of support for the format in which the file is saved. In such cases, it is necessary to convert the file to a format that the device can handle.
If the system has VLC, then you do not need to install additional tools - the player performs such a transformation.
To do this, use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + R. Click them and bring up a dialog box A source... Use the + Add button to select the files to convert. Under the button Convert / Save the drop-down menu is hidden; choosing the Convert option, you will open another window in which you can specify the target format of the converted file.
VLC Player - Audio Features
To through the VLC player listen to radio broadcasts broadcast by internet radio stations, press the key combination Ctrl + L. In the new window, click the section at the bottom of the left pane Icecast Radio Directory... The application downloads the list of stations and displays them in the right pane. Double-clicking on any station name will start playback.
If you often listen to music from your computer, and also play music from the Last.fm service catalog, you can use the VLC player to "show" which style of recordings you prefer. This will use your local audio collection.
Open the advanced settings of the player (Ctrl + P) and if you select All, expand the section Interface and select Management interfaces... Check the box Transferring information about listened songs to Last.fm... In a text box audioscrobbler enter your Last.fm user details and save the changes. Last.fm will take the style of locally stored posts into account when suggesting new posts to you.
VLC Media Player- one of the most successful programs for watching video, listening to audio. VLC-player does not need any third-party codecs, and therefore works flawlessly and "eats" almost any format. It is easy to install, configure and use. These advantages have made VLC one of the most popular media players(according to the results of a poll on the Rutracker.Org forum, he takes an honorable second place). Few people know that in addition to the ability to play media files, VLC has a number of others useful and interesting functions.
1. Streaming to VLC
Those who use the VLC player on their local network to view IPTV (an alternative to the IPTV-Player program) probably know about the possibility of playing a streaming signal. But if you have not heard about such a function, then we will dwell on it a little.
Signals from all kinds of media sources (video files, DVD, radio, satellite and digital TV, etc.) through servers with VLC installed and configured on them broadcast the stream to the Internet or a local network using SAP, UPnP, podcasts.
On the client side, the "receiver" of the stream can easily be VLC Media Player. To receive a signal in local network just open the Playlist (CTRL + L), go to the "Local network" section in the sidebar and select the protocol (perhaps the Windows Firewall window will pop up - allow the program to access in Private and Public networks).
To view / listen to podcasts, move the mouse over the Podcasts item in the Internet section. A plus sign will be displayed to the right, by clicking on which you can add the podcast address to the Favorites list.
Well, finally, it is very easy to open any streaming source on the Internet or LAN using the menu Media -> Open URL .
As we noted above, the streaming function in VLC is implemented, however, for the average user, it is quite difficult to set up and is the topic of a separate article.
2. Record and convert video and audio to VLC
Well, we think that many of our readers hear about this for the first time. Yes, indeed VLC can convert media files, rip. And not only! It also allows you to record streams / video signals of capture devices and even video from your computer screen! For all these "magic" functions of VLC Media Player, the menu item is responsible Media -> Convert / Save .
As you can see in the window that opens, you can record / convert 4 things to VLC: a local file, a disk (CD / DVD), a stream or a signal from a capture device. The setting of each of the items is available in the corresponding tabs.
Let's look at two small examples.
1. Convert files and rip DVD / CD / BluRay discs. Conversion of individual files is available on the "File" tab. All you need to do is add files for conversion, click "Convert / Save" and select the desired format in the window that opens:
With RIPs, everything is also very simple. First, select the media type and Disk device, then click on the "Convert / Save" button and select the rip format:
2. Capturing video from the Desktop using VLC. This function is implemented on the "Capture device" tab. Select the Capture Mode "Screen", enter the capture rate (in fps), click "Convert / Save" and configure the output mode by specifying the location of the recorded file and the format of the output stream:
For those who are thirsty and suffering, I will say right away: convert to DivX / Xvid VLC can't do it =)
3. Video, audio effects
VLC can transform video and audio on the fly using built-in filters and effects. You can customize them by going to the menu Tools -> Effects and Filters ... Useful features include equalizer, dynamic range compression (makes audio louder), picture adjustments, cropping, video / audio desynchronization, anti-flicker filters, and more. Various artistic filters and effects are also available.
4. Saving video frames (screenshots)
Surely many have tried to take screenshots at the time of playing a video file using the PrintScreen button, followed by inserting and saving the snapshot in Paint. In VLC, this is a waste of time. A screenshot can be taken in one click using the command Video -> Make snapshot, or using the context menu:
The folder for saving screenshots can be using the menu item Tools -> Options -> Video , section "Video images":
5. Play video in ASCII style
The function, of course, is comic, but it still arouses curiosity ... probably everyone has seen the pictures "drawn" by the text. So, VLC can play videos in this style. You can enable this mode in the Tools -> Options -> Video menu. In the "Display" section, select "Output in color ASCII graphics":
If you had a file in the playback queue, restart it. Filter result below =)
Conclusion
The VLC developers never cease to amaze us with their necessary, well, or just interesting functions that they supply to their product. The main thing is the simplicity and versatility of this program, which made VLC one of the most popular media players in the world. If you are ready to report on any function that, in your opinion, deserves to be in our review, write in the comments.
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