Meow House Theatre

In Development: I plan to expand this quite a bit; it’s just all the various tips and tricks I’ve discovered in my years using a computer, and it’s a place for me to keep info for myself in an easier-to-find setup than looking through my 800+ bookmarks. I have no affiliation with and no vested interest in any of the hardware or software recommended.

How can I save streaming media? How can I download clips from sites that have blocked VDownloader, Keepvid, VideoDownloader, etc.?

I use Applian Technologies’ Replay A/V 8 - which is a fantastic program and I highly recommend it to anyone who wants to rip clips from places like CC or iFilm where they have blocked the usual methods of savings clips. You can also save streaming video, audio, radio, and lots of other stuff. Replay also offers a free version that lets you capture up to 5 minutes of video so if you only want short clips, try that. I think (but am not sure) that it has all the same features as the full version; it’s just only able to capture 5 minutes. Possibly the free version doesn’t have the built-in converter; if not, then all your video captures will be in FLV and you’ll have to convert them elsewhere. The pay version can do the conversion for you (and they are great quality–no unsynching in all the ones I’ve done). Upon installing you may have to configure the settings to make sure you are choosing the correct sound card. Otherwise, the program install will cause you to hear two different audio outputs when you use other programs on that computer, such as VLC or Windows Media Player. I also recommend visiting the Replay tech support section for lots of helpful info. I know that when I first had this problem with the double audio output, I sent an email and someone - an obvious real live person - at least answered me with a suggestion within 12 hours, although I ended up figuring out the solution myself. It’s a good program and worth the money. I don’t think any other application will let you rip from those blocked sites without a lot of roundabout tweaking and configuring of various “quasi-hacks.”

My computer won’t play MP4 files. How can I view these?

Windows Media Player, which most people have on their computers, does not play MP4 files. It actually doesn’t play a lot of files, which is why I recommend that everyone install a free universal media player. I have a fondness for Videolan VLC but there are many reputable providers of free universal players. You download and install and you will be able to play the great majority of the video and audio file types in existence - unlike with WMP, which not only cannot play many files, but merely tells you you don’t have the necessary codec without telling you how to get it or what that codec is … so it is fairly useless for anything except WMV files. A universal player will play video AVI, WMV, MPG, MPEG-1, MPEG-2, MP4, M4V, MOV, FLV, SWF, VOB, RAM, RM, 3GP, and many others; and audio MP3, MP4, AAC, WMA, WAV, and many others.

You can also use Apple QuickTime, which plays MP4 files and many others. I personally find VLC a little easier to use but I keep QuickTime installed anyway. Sometimes certain files that were compressed/decompressed (that’s where “codec” comes from) in a certain way won’t play in one but will in the other.

Videolan VLC: http://www.videolan.org/vlc
Apple QuickTime: http://www.apple.com/quicktime/download/win.html

Other universal media players are:
Softpedia Total Video Player: http://www.softpedia.com/get/Multimedia/Video/Video-Players/Total-Video-Player.shtml
Winamp: http://www.winamp.com/