Hi-def Video with VLC Media Player
VLC Media Player
November 18, 2009
I've been using VLC Media Player for several years now, and find it to be so much better to use than the other video players out there. First off, I can use it for all of my video playback (except in rare moments). It runs every video file without issue, doesn't seem to be as sluggish as Media Player, it's not Quicktime and it just simply works.
As it turns out, however, it can have limits to it's abilities as well as. One afternoon I started to watch a video and noticed some irritating hiccups in the files playback on my laptop. The stuttering may not have been the end of the world to some but I had to find out how to fix it or at the very least try. I was more then ready to accpet the fact that my laptops graphics card just wasn't up to snuff. I mean, I had just run the file a couple days earlier on my desktop computer without any problems.
After a little Google search, I was able to find some information where people made mention to "the dreaded .mkv file" on VLC Media Player. Coincidentally enough, that was the exact same file extension as this video I have been trying to view.
As it turns out, there's a simple fix for it and it worked like a charm for me. Below, I will explain the steps needed to take to get .mkv files to run on my laptop's VLC install without any interruptions or mishaps.
First, open VLC Media Player. Click the TOOLS menu along the toolbar and then click PREFERENCES (or ctrl-p).
Now, in the lower left corner, is the SHOW SETTINGS area. Click the "ALL" radio button.
This will open the advanced settings options.
Once the ALL settings is selected, you will see, along the left side, the INPUT / CODECS
section.
Double click that to open a 'submenu' which lists different types of codecs. Double click
VIDEO CODECS to expand that submenu.
Click on x264 and that will open the H.264/MPEG4 AVC encoder (x264) setting options in
the window. Finally, check the SKIP LOOP FILTER checkbox (see image below) and then click
SAVE.
That should be all there is to getting VLC Media Player to play those .mkv video files without any stuttering issues. Since I have made this simple change to my VLC Media Player on my laptop, I have not had anymore problems viewing any video file.
More Projects:
Complete Project List
November 27, 2009
If you have ever maintained a website, weather it was a small three or four page site or a much larger site, you have probably noticed that updating your pages can get a little tricky and in some cases, very repetitive. One h...
Hi-def Video with VLC Media Player
November 18, 2009
I was having trouble watching hi-def or .mkv video files with VLC Media Player so I went looking for a solution. It was only a matter of checking one check box in the preferences menu...
Ubuntu Linux Info
April 03, 2009
This is where I will be keeping any and all of the information that has been very useful to me in setting up my Ubuntu system the way I want....
Software Alternatives
March 26, 2009
This is a list I have compiled of free software that can be used in place of far more expensive consumer products....
MAME Cabinet
April 05, 2008
My MAME cabinet build diary. (Taking much longer than I expected)...