Re: FAQ: #20050710 Crashes & Hangs

I tried to D/L the RENAME CODECS from the Kelly site but I can't open the zip
file, says its not valid or corrupt. Any suggestions please?...

"John Kelly" wrote:

> Hello,
>
> I don't see any record of you downloading the program. But, as you will
> note from the message you quoted, there is no longer any mention of the
> tutorial...the program is now so easy to use that a tutorial is no longer
> necessary. When you download the program you will notice that yourself.
>
> Best Wishes.....John Kelly
> www.the-kellys.org
>
>
> "Jenny" <Jenny@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
> news:1ADF4C9E-44D3-484A-A112-B91475415D42@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> > Where is the tutorial on the site?
> >
> > "webmaster@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx" wrote:
> >
> >>
> >> Movie Maker FAQ 1 Last updated 6th January 2005
> >>
> >> Crashing and Hanging
> >> ================
> >>
> >> 1) What is a Codec?
> >> ==============
> >>
> >> A Codec is software that was first created to deal with the transposition
> >> of data from one form into another. One of the first important Codecs
> >> was a procedure still used today called Soundex. I believe the first
> >> proper use of Soundex was by the Mormons. Most of us use Soundex or its
> >> equivalent every time we use a spell checker. The Mormons use it in their
> >> vast database of all persons baptised by them. It enables very fast data
> >> searches on similar sounding words that are not necessarily spelled the
> >> same way. Soundex though is a one way procedure. Its a CODER The other
> >> part of the word Codec is derived from the word DECODER. Joining the two
> >> parts together we get the word CODEC...Codec.
> >>
> >> With regard to Codecs and any Video or Audio playing software. MP3 or WMA
> >> audio files have been compressed using CODER routines. When you play
> >> those files on your computer you are using the DECODER routines to
> >> produce a sound or video signal that can be seen/heard on your machine.
> >>
> >> With regard to Audio/Video editing software. A Codec is used to compress
> >> the data so that it occupies as small a space as possible usually on a
> >> hard drive. But in the case of editing a file the Codec must first expand
> >> the compressed data before the edit can occur and afterwards compress it
> >> again when the data is saved to a new file.
> >>
> >> The problems with Codecs arise from "Calls" A call is the expression used
> >> to define the way one software module talks to another so that
> >> information can be passed between the two. The problem occurs when the
> >> Call is not properly formatted, or the reply is not understood. This
> >> becomes a problem that the calling software must handle. When the calling
> >> software fails to handle the error it can do one of a number of
> >> things....the correct way is to contain the error and respond with an
> >> alternative approach and possibly inform the user that the error
> >> occurred, the other approach we are all to familiar with, either the
> >> software or the machine crashes and probably taking all of your hard work
> >> with it.
> >>
> >>
> >> 2) Movie Maker crashes, what can I do?
> >> ============================
> >>
> >> From item one above there is a good chance that your problem arises from
> >> a problem with a Codec. Movie Maker version 2.1 was supposed to address
> >> this issue by giving you the user the ability to disable one or more of
> >> the Codecs on your machine. The problem however is not fully addressed
> >> and results in some Codecs not being exposed to the disable option. If
> >> its that particular Codec that is causing the problem you are stuck.
> >>
> >> You need to know which Codec it is, where it is, possibly what other
> >> software installed it and what other dependencies exist. In other words
> >> you need to know a LOT of things. The proper way of dealing with the
> >> issue would be to remove the offending Codec but that's not very
> >> practical as you may really need the other software that depends on it.
> >>
> >> There is a temporary solution available in the form of a program called
> >> "Rename Codecs" It has been in use for perhaps a year now by many
> >> hundreds of people and with great success. There have been a total of 6
> >> times that the program did not solve the users problem (At the time of
> >> writing this) You can obtain your FREE copy of the program from
> >> www.the-kellys.org The basics of the program are that it will offer you
> >> the option of temporarily renaming Codecs that are known to be a problem
> >> for Movie Maker. You would do that before using Movie Maker. Once you are
> >> finished using the program you again run Movie Maker and use the RESTORE
> >> option to put those Codecs back into operation...its very easy to use.
> >>
> >> There is an additional option. You can use the options within XP to turn
> >> off the various levels of video acceleration that your graphics card
> >> has. Doing this is not a good idea but if you do you must understand that
> >> every program that relies on those abilities will either run badly or
> >> not at all. To turn the acceleration down right click your desktop and
> >> select PROPERTIES, then SETTINGS then ADVANCED and then TROUBLERSHOOT.
> >> You will then see a slider bar which should normally be positioned on
> >> the far right. You can move it one step at a time and then close the
> >> dialog down and re-try Movie Maker. You can repeat those steps until
> >> (and if) Movie Maker works properly.
> >>
> >> A lot of video programs give you the opportunity of taking a snap shot of
> >> the video displayed, Intervideo WinDVD 5 does a good job of this. Movie
> >> Maker also has this option. BUT, if you turn the acceleration down as
> >> above, you will no longer be able to take those snapshots. This is not a
> >> great problem of course as you can change the acceleration back. But it
> >> is rather tedious.
> >>
> >>
> >> 3) How do I make my system perform better and stop Movie Maker crashing
> >> =======================================================
> >>
> >> This is by far the best way of doing things. Whilst the Rename Codec
> >> program is a MUST when you really do need to keep "other" software on
> >> your system, the following approach will ensure that your system runs at
> >> its best speed and will be less likely to crash at all from Video or
> >> Audio problems.
> >>
> >> You need to download the latest versions of DirectX and the Windows
> >> Codecs pack together with the latest version of Windows Media Player.
> >> You should NOT try to install these packages via the Internet, you should
> >> get the standalone versions. The reason is obvious once you know it.
> >> Suppose those updates you did some time back are not working
> >> properly...it may be that they were not installed properly or it may be
> >> that a file is either corrupt or simply missing. How would you know???
> >> The more experienced may spot the problem but the average user will not.
> >> So why download the full package??? That's easy. When you unzip a
> >> package several checks are made to ensure the integrity of the files
> >> inside the zip. If there is a problem you will be told there and
> >> then...the file is corrupt or damaged in some other way....you do not
> >> need to trust an install over the Internet and the possibility of data
> >> being missed....
> >>
> >> You can get the packages via these links...
> >>
> >>
> >> Codec Pack
> >> -----------------
> >> http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/format/codecdownload.aspx
> >>
> >> DirectX
> >> ----------
> >> http://go.microsoft.com/?LinkID=1081813
> >>
> >> Windows Media Player
> >> ---------------------------------
> >> http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=b446ae53-3759-40cf-80d5-cde4bbe07999&displaylang=en
> >>
> >> Movie Maker for XP
> >> ---------------------------
> >> http://www.microsoft.com/athome/security/protect/windowsxp/choose.aspx
> >>
> >> The link for Movie Maker is actually a link to SP2 (Service Pack 2). This
> >> a large download. Its not to bad if you have a reasonably fast broadband
> >> connection, but if the download fails its a long way back to the start!!!
> >> Personally I would recommend you obtain A CD version of SP2...its
> >> available on the Windows Magazine and from Microsoft directly
> >>
> >> Drivers for your graphics card
> >> ----------------------------------
> >> I have discovered that most people are confused on the issue of drivers
> >> for their graphics card in that when advised to acquire the latest driver
> >> they go straight to the Microsoft website and get one from them. Their is
> >> a problem with that in that the drivers supplied by Microsoft are
> >> Generic.
> >>
> >> I made the mistake of going direct to Microsoft some time back and the
> >> result was that I could only run the machine in the basic "Safe Mode" the
> >> driver was the most up to date and was definitely more recent than the
> >> existing driver. It took some time to understand what was going on I must
> >> admit......
> >>
> >> The graphics card was an NVidia GForce 4 etc and was manufactured by
> >> Gainward. After several attempts at getting the Microsoft driver to
> >> install I decided that the download MUST BE corrupted in some way, So I
> >> went to the NVidia website and downloaded their driver (Same version
> >> number as the one from Microsoft) I had the exact same problems!!! In the
> >> end I went to the Gainward website and downloaded the most up to date
> >> driver they had.....once installed the graphics card performed better
> >> than ever and with more configuration options than I would ever need.
> >>
> >> So why did an older driver work better than the most recent from NVidia
> >> ??? Its simple when you know why .... Gainward produce high capability
> >> cards and in order to achieve some of their aims they change the way the
> >> NVidia chipset works. This requires a modified driver....and they produce
> >> their own. The card is still based on the NVidia and conforms to the
> >> basic design....but it runs very much faster because of code
> >> optimisation, and that optimisation is missing from the Microsoft or
> >> NVidia drivers.
> >>
> >> The result of all this is that you should ALWAYS go to the website of the
> >> MANUFACTURER of the card and not the manufacturer of the chipset (in my
> >> case NVidia)
> >>
> >> The Method
> >> -----------------
> >> Reboot your computer and install SP2. After the install has completed you
> >> should reboot your computer twice...yes boring but desirable
> >>
> >> After the reboot you should now install the DirectX pack and reboot
> >> again.
> >>
> >> After that reboot install the Codec Pack and reboot yet again.
> >>
> >> After that install Windows Media Player and reboot again
> >>
> >> Finally install the latest driver for your graphics card.
> >>
> >> Rebooting the machine does perform an important task. It completes
> >> installation process's and ensures that previously existing file locks
> >> are removed. Under certain conditions XP will not overwrite a file if it
> >> has been locked. Note that this is not the same as marking a file as
> >> Read Only.
> >>
> >> Windows XP Video Decoder Checkup Utility
> >> ---------------------------------------------------------------
> >>
> >> This utility can be obtained here...
> >>
> >> http://www.microsoft.com/windowsmobile/portablemediacenter/decoder.mspx
> >>
> >> A very useful program but with a problem. It reports that I have the MGI
> >> MPEG-2 Video Decoder on one of my machines...I have NO MGI software on
> >> my system!!
> >>
> >> I would not let that put you off using it as it does have a useful
> >> purpose even though the same objective can be achieved via other already
> >> existing routes within XP. I am in favour of this program as it does give
> >> good advice on which Codec you should select as the preferred Codec
> >>
> >>
> >> 4) What files does Movie Maker NOT like?
> >> ==============================
> >>
> >> Any MPEG based file will cause Movie Maker problems even though they
> >> seldom cause problems for Media Player. There are a number of
> >> reasons...Media Player does not need the CODER part of the Codec and
> >> there are many methods/procedures/algothims used to Code an MPeg file
> >> and its that wide range of methods that Movie Maker can not address. Its
> >> not really a bug but the method of dealing with the issue, well there is
> >> no method...Movie Maker gives an error and crashes or it just crashes.
> >> The particular file extensions are Mpeg, MPG and MP3.
> >>
> >> JPeg still images can also be a problem and for similar reasons to MPeg
> >> files. There are a number of formats for a JPeg and it seems that the
> >> older formats are not properly dealt with. To work around the issue you
> >> can reduce the compression used in creating the JPeg and NOT use the
> >> progressive format method
> >>
> >> The best solution for these problems is to convert the file into a more
> >> acceptable format, and as it happens a format that is more easily worked
> >> on by Movie Maker...the conversion you should employ are
> >>
> >> MPeg, MPG convert to AVI, MP3 convert to WAV and JPeg, JPG convert to a
> >> standard bitmap BMP
> >>
> >> NOTES
> >> ======
> >>
> >> There are several other approaches you can take to solving a Codec issue.
> >> I have seen several other methods of solving the problem, and basically
> >> they don't. Instead they treat the symptom and not the problem itself.
> >> Several other methods involve damaging the picture of your computers
> >> layout (that's a bad pun by the way) and simply doing that involves the
> >> risk of permanent damage to that picture.
> >>
> >> The program Rename Codecs also damages that picture of your system but it
> >> does at least provide a user friendly way of restoring your system and
> >> that method requires no prior knowledge on your part about where, which
> >> and how to make those changes.
> >>
> >> All efforts are made to ensure that the information is accurate. As no
> >> one is perfect I would be happy to hear of any errors found in this
> >> document (send an e-mail to webmaster@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx). If you have any
> >> doubts at all over following the advice given here you should NOT attempt
> >> it.
> >>
> >> The contents of this FAQ are liable to change with out prior
> >> notification.
> >>
> >> The Webmaster
> >> Check out the Free Video and Stills Hosting at The Kellys
> >> Coming soon Get your Personal News Distributor (PND from
> >> www.the-kellys.org
> >> www.the-kellys.org
> >> www.the-kellys.co.uk
> >>
>
>
>
.

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