What's the Difference between an encodr and converter?

[perfection]

What's the real difference - I thought that a converter must rely n an encoder or am i missing something here?

[redwudz]

Usually a 'encoder' is the codec used to convert the file to another format. A 'converter' would usually be a front end or GUI for the codec to make it easier to use. A converter like SUPER uses several different audio and video codecs, along with other programs to feed instructions to the codecs, demux and mux the audio and video back together and perform other operations. A codec just encodes.

The terms are likely all misused at times.

[Alex_ander]

A codec just encodes.
The terms are likely all misused at times.

The word codec comes from 'coder+decoder' (of the same format; a similar thing is with modem = modulator + demodulator). It is more correct to call 'encoder' (the word 'coder' is not often used now, MediaCoder exists though) the thing that just encodes, e.g. the famous Lame mp3 encoder (lame_enc.dll being one of its compilation types) is not a codec, divx and xvid are.
As for the question, encoders always work with uncompressed material (many of them have options to first decompress imported material). Converters can be built to do it either way and use faster transcoding procedures for some types of material (e.g. MPEG transcoding used in DVDShrink and other programs is fast but it just degrades encoded structures for reducing bitrate instead of decompression + encoding). Frontends to codecs are not necessarily as destructive but in many cases you want to be sure it applies procedures you expect from it (first decompresses, then encodes with parameters suitable for your particular video) and to manually edit or correct something before conversion. If you don't get the desired control over video with a converter (and in most cases you don't) it is better to use a specialized encoder and an editor (like CCE and AviSynth).

[perfection]

Thanks - got that now