How to Encode video using "Apple QuickTime" Writing Library in FFmpeg

[deepfrayder]

Please advise/guide how to use/select "Apple QuickTime" Writing Library in FFmpeg for video encoding.

[Cornucopia]

Choose the codec, it will choose the library.

Scott

[deepfrayder]

Thanks for reply, what codec I have to choose for the "Apple QuickTime" Writing Library ?

[Cornucopia]

You are going about this (and your other questions) the wrong way.
Back up.

If you are doing this to understand the process: learn the basics of images, then video, then digital video, then compressed video, then work through the historical progression of codecs and their increasing efficiency, to get to which one(s) you probably should be using right now.

If you are doing this to get a file that can be played by a certain set of target systems/devices/apps and used by a certain audience: work your way backwards from what they tell you their needs are (so that you know you will be giving them what is fully supported and of optimal playback), and use tools that help you match your encoding outcome as closely as possible to those requirements.

Otherwise, you seem to be obtusely elliptical in your question.

Scott

[deepfrayder]

Dear Scott,

As you replied earlier, Choose the codec, it will choose the library. Please be kind and share the codec name simply for choosing "Apple QuickTime" Writing Library in FFmpeg for encoding.

[Cornucopia]

Go to the Apple website and look at what they used to offer re: codecs in their QT architecture. You will see scores of codecs, which work in a number of different ways. This is because codecs are designed differently to tackle the task of playback using different priorities.
The ffmpeg implementation is likely based on those legacy codecs (because all their current ones are now underpinned by the AV Foundation architecture), but because they had to reverse engineer them (they were proprietary/closed-source), they are not 100% compatible, and they are only a subset of the original list.

I'm not going to pick your codec for you. You should follow your needs' priorities to pick your codec. This may lead you to that family of codecs and that library, or it may not. Likely NOT, as the more popular codecs are mpeg-related. What are your priorities in this situation?

Scott

If you can no longer find them at Apple, look at wikipedia, or just look at this site. I've listed them a few times myself here in old posts from a decade or more ago.

[LigH.de]

You might even discover that what you are trying to achieve is futile. It may not matter which writing library was used, as long as the content streams were encoded by the correct codec with the required constraints supported by specific playback devices.


Sometimes it also requires additional flags in the container to pretend that a file has been created by a specific manufacturer's product (e.g. iTunes looks for such MP4 "atoms", and some converters like MeGUI can tell their preferred MP4 multiplexer – which may not be ffmpeg, but e.g. MP4Box – to add them for playback device compatibility).

[deepfrayder]

Thanks to all for the positive response and information. I'm looking for the codec to encode mp4 using "Apple QuickTime" Writing Library in FFmpeg, what codec and how I've to choose to enabling "Apple QuickTime" Writing Library in FFmpeg.

[Cornucopia]

...and we're back at the beginning again.

I can guess where you really are trying to take this. Shame you won't just say it. But it could be that you are going down that 1st option I mentioned, without putting in the effort of learning.

For reference, here's a bit from an old thread in early 2000s where I listed the QT codecs of the day:

(Nearly full) Example of Video codecs for QT6 (most are cross-platform, a few-*- also have corresponding AVI codecs):

• Uncompressed*
  3ivX*
  Component 4:2:2 YUV
  Animation
  Apple DV-PAL*
  Apple DV-NTSC*
  AVID MJPEG AVBV/NuVista*
  AVID MJPEG/JFIF Meridien Compressed*
  AVID Meridien Uncompressed YUV*
  Blackmagic 10bit
  Blackmagic 8bit
  BMP (sequence)*
  Cinepak*
  Component Video
  DivX 5.07*
  DVCPRO-PAL
  Graphics (8-16bit RGB)
  H261*
  H263*
  Indeo 3.2*
  Indeo 4.4*
  Indeo 5.1*
  Intel RAW*
  MNG
  MPEG4 (apple/iso version)
  MotionJPEG A
  MotionJPEG B
  MSVideo1*
  On2VP3*
  PhotoJPEG
  Planar RGB
  PNG
  Radius Soft DV
  Sorenson2
  Sorenson3
  Spherous Sphere
  TGA (Targa sequence)*
  TIFF (Tiff sequence)*
  Targa Trumotion2x (later became DUCK, then On2)*
  VideoPump
  ZygoVideo
  ...and MPEG2* with cost of additional plugin.

That's almost as much as AVI has. 8)

Scott

If you want to see what ffmpeg made use of with libquicktime in comparison, just google that.
Some overlap, some orphans.

But my betting money is elsewhere...


Scott

[LigH.de]

You want the MPEG-4 AVC (H.264) video format. Okay, ffmpeg offers e.g. the x264 codec to produce such video.

You want it inside the MP4 container. Okay, ffmpeg can multiplex that.

You want the MP4 container to look like it was created by the "Apple QuickTime" Writing Library ... why? Do you have any reason to believe you need that? Please explain your reasoning.
_

Or ... wait: Is it even the MP4 container? Or is it the MOV container? Unfortunately, the screenshot of MediaInfo in your starting post is incomplete. Please provide a complete MediaInfo analysis.

[deepfrayder]

It's mp42 (isom/mp41/avc1)

[Cornucopia]

Where'd you get those? Because they're misleading: avc1 is a codec, mp41 & mp42 could refer either to codec or container, isom refers to a container.

How about you...
Do what LigH.de suggested. See what comes out. Test it with your target equipment. If it works, you are done. If not, show us the full error message, and the full mediainfo of the coded file and/or the file itself (original, not YT).

Scott

[poisondeathray]

Did you want it actually done by Apple Quicktime ? If so, FFmpeg cannot use Apple Quicktime API directly. Use Apple Quicktime directly

You should provide the background information requested, such as why you are doing this etc... Because the "Writing Library" does not necessarily have anything to do with video or audio quality or compatibility

[deepfrayder]

Please check detailed mediainfo for your perusal.

[deepfrayder]

Appreciate all for the support and useful information.

Thanks everyone.

[amaipaipai]

Please advise/guide how to use/select "Apple QuickTime" Writing Library in FFmpeg for video encoding.

You can't, ffmpeg it's not a tool for this, I don't know why you need such a thing since this is just a "tag", it doesn't mean anything.


You can use the mp4tags [1] and do:

mp4tags.exe -tool "Apple Quicktime" video.mp4

This tool it's part of mp4v2 tools.