Video Playback Issues

[trumpet]

When I use programs on my PC such as Windows Media Player and WinAmp to run video, the program always plays for about 1 second and then starts getting really choppy, to the point that it might as well be frozen. I can however, view videos online with no issue. I downloaded codecs, but that didn't help. Sometimes the video on the PC runs fine, but I don't know what is different about those times.

[jman98]

You're a little skimpy on details. For example what type of video (QuickTime, MPEG-2, Windows Media, Flash, etc.) is giving you problems? One of your issues could be too many downloaded codecs that are conflicting with each other. Try downloading and installing VLC to play your videos. It comes with its own codecs built into the player, so you don't have to download anything else. It often gives satisfactory results when other programs don't for playback.

And welcome to the forums.

[trumpet]

my files are .wmv
I downloaded DivX in between my post and your response
It worked for a couple runs, and now I get the same problem. Further, when the videos start malfunctioning, my computer locks up. I always open up the task manager and have end process ready to prevent a mass of lag, but now it doesn't matter - even when I close it the computer locks up. I'll try the VLC.

[Krispy Kritter]

The lag would seem to indicate codec issues. What are the specs for the wmv files? If you are trying to playback HD wmv files, for instance, you could just be having a resource issue (cpu, memory, codec, etc.)