question about how to instal codec to play mpeg2

[jimdagys]

I have mpeg2 (from TV recording) that I want to play on the computer. But many computers will not play the file. Somebody said I need to download an mpeg2 codec. So I downloaded such a codec. It is a zip file and I don't know how to instal it. If I double click the zip file I see 3 entries (mpeg2Parser.ax, mpeg2decoder.ax and mpeg-2.exe). What should I do with these files?

[jimmalenko]

Double-click the exe ?


Either that or find a software DVD Player such as PowerDVD or WinDVD, and these should accept MPEG-2 files as well.

I think there's also some MPEG-2 codecs in the tools section here to your left.

[Forum Troll]

Or you could play the file with Media Player Classic or VideoLan player, as they have a built-in MPEG-2 codec.

[jimdagys]

Thank you for the help. On one computer I double clicked the exe as you said and was able to install the codec and then I could play the mpeg2 file in Windows Media Player. On another computer I got an error message when I tried to install the codec. The website where I got the mpeg2 codec (Stinkys) suggested that I first get VB6 Runtime DLL's which I found on another website and I was able to solve the problem. I am curious, why do some computers need those DLLs before you can install the codec? I have one other question. The other day I installed a plugin to get Tmpgenc to accept mpeg2. On some computers, it was necessary to install the plugin files directly in the Tmpgenc folder (for Tmpgenc to accept mpeg2), but on other computers, the the plugin files could be put anywhere on the computer and the plugin would work. Why is this?
I am in China and although hardly anyone can afford a computer, there are internet cafes everywere. It costs less than 20 cents an hour to use the computers and you can drink unlimited free tea. The internet cafes are open 24 hours and unlike the public computers in the USA, here you can download and delete software on the harddrive. It seems the only thing you can't do is alter the registry.