Quicktime

Hi,

Not sure where to post this (New resident) but I was wondering if anyone knew of a good FREE flv to mov converter?

Thanks for any help.

- Blaine.

Try MPEG Streamclip, it's available for Mac and Windows:

http://www.squared5.com/



I use it fairly frequently, and it gives a good number of conversion options.

EDIT: I'm pretty sure it needs quicktime installed, and I should warn you that it's a bit technical. The default quicktime codec for export is Apple Motion JPEG which you probably don't want to use. Ironically, I'm on the forums today to get opinions about the best codec to use, so I can't help you with that.

But look for my thread, hopefully it will have an answer.

When considering a codec, it is dependant on what you want to acheive and the audiences you wish to reach.

Just to confuse matters, some codec like mp4 and h.264 are also wrapper formats in their own right. For instance you can use a mp4 codec within a h.264 format movie and vice versa. To explain in a simple way, if you take a bmp and convert it with a Jpeg compression (codec) routine, then place that into a word doccument, add a embedded spreadsheet, a font with text and save it, you have a Doc format (wrapper) which contains other embedded formats. Now crunch that in a Zip file, and you have now created another wrapper holding a Doc file, containing.... you get the idea.

Once the Zip file is delivered and decompressed (codec), you now have intact the various other components. Obviously each form of 'destructive' compression routine reduces the quality, in the case of the Jpeg, depending on the amount you want to crunch that file size. You cannot reverse that process, unlike the Zip wrapper format.

Mp4 comes under that catagory, once applied as a codec, it is not reversible. Now to confuse you perhaps. Using mp4 as a wrapper (delivery format) you can use a H.264 as a codec (Mp4 as the zip format, and H.264 as the Jpeg cruncher), which is less agressive and potentially more controllable.

H.264 format (deliverable format - wrapper) was developed as a format for RSTP (streaming without downloading any data into storage before rendering). The header element of the media being 'hinted' which is a form of indexing the media so you can go straight to any section of the file without waiting for it to download. When rendering to that output format (wrapper), you can use a codec that will do many things depending on its type.

Mp4 can create low data bit rate streams, at the expense of both quality and the work that the rendering engine has to do before it can be viewed, so its a trade off in some respects.

mov and avi are both wrapper formats and have no codec properties, you can choose what level of compression you want within that wrapper. A wrapper format tells the OS which player has been asigned to render that format. That player must have the compatible codec installed in order to render it. Just because you have a particular codec and wrap that in a common format, doesn't automatically mean anyone with the same player, will have that codec. Most are public domain and free to download and install, some are not and are classed as specialist.

Back to your question, use a default codec that comes with a common player. Second Life currently only supports QuickTime, so choose wisely.