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  1. Just purchased a new Core 2 Vista Home Premium PC. Is there any need to install a codecs package, such as the Vista Codec pack from Free Codecs?
    T4Express ran great on a test - 40% faster than my HT 3.0
    The Film Machine didn't work - loaded and got stuck when I tried to open an avi.
    Media Player played the avi.
    Appreciate the help.
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  2. Originally Posted by doggyofone
    Just purchased a new Core 2 Vista Home Premium PC. Is there any need to install a codecs package, such as the Vista Codec pack from Free Codecs?
    It depends on what you need to do and what players you use. If you use a player like VLC or KMplayer that has built in codecs you may not need to install any VFW or Directshow codecs. If you want to edit with VirtualDub or some other VFW based editor you'll probably need some VFW and ACM codecs. If you want to play MP4 or MKV files with Windows Media Player you'll need an appropriate splitter like Haali. You'll probably also need MPEG 4 (Divx), AVC and AAC (audio) decoders.

    I don't know anything about "Vista Codec pack from Free Codecs" but I would avoid codec packs and install the individual codecs and file splitters you need. Use GSpot to determine what you need when you find a file that doesn't play.
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  3. Mod Neophyte Super Moderator redwudz's Avatar
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    If you must use a codec pack, this is the only one I would recommend for Vista as it was researched and developed for the OS: http://www.jtow.net/users/triess/ And read the directions throughly before installing. There is also other useful Vista info and programs further down that page.

    With most any codec pack, they will overwrite existing codecs of the same type and may leave both the old and the new codecs broken. That's where most of the problems start. You need to remove the old ones first. Codec packs like K-lite generally cause more damage than good as they indiscriminately install old, corrupted or the wrong versions of codecs. It's a lot harder to clean up the mess than to install a codec.

    If in doubt, just install ffdshow and by itself it will handle most formats.
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  4. Thanks a lot for the info. jtow is a great info site. This is the pack that I did download. I wanted to check before making a mess of things.
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  5. Mod Neophyte Super Moderator redwudz's Avatar
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    I've been using it for a couple of months with no issues. It's obvious that the author is conscientious about his software. I did install it first before I put any other codecs in the system, and that's really the way to go.

    Tweak UAC is on his page also. It makes it easier to control UAC. I use it in 'silent' mode and still have most of the protection and a lot less of the irritation. I also recommend the freeware version of Zone Alarm that does much more than the built in Vista firewall for security. I use AVG free with my Vista computer for anti-virus protection.

    If you are running Vista, this compatibility site is good information: http://www.iexbeta.com/wiki/index.php/Windows_Vista_Software_Compatibility_List
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  6. Re: http://www.jtow.net/users/triess/

    The list of components it includes looks like it should be free of conflicts. Except maybe Gabest and Haali.
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  7. Thanks again for the help. Gonna use Zonalarm. PC comes with Norton security for 3 mos, but never liked Norton and it doesn't get good ratings. I've got NOD32 for AV. Cheers
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