A long time ago, when data storage was analog, videos were stored as signals on magnetic tape. You might remember Betamax and VHS tapes, huge black lumps that doubled as paperweight. Then the compact disc was born, followed shortly by the rise of digital video and the demise of physical video rental shops like Blockbuster.
But it was really the compact disc that got the video storage ball rolling. The ultimate goal was to shrink videos into the smallest size possible for easy transfer and storage, and still get the highest picture quality. There was a boom in video compression and decompression (aka “codec”) technology, and programs were created to encode and decode digital video files.
So what is Xvid? Xvid is a codec software used to compress and decompress digital video. Think of it as a set of instructions that tells a media player how to “read” a video file. Without codecs installed in your system, some videos will not play in your media player.
Xvid started as an open-source project in 2001. It was later dropped to develop the proprietary DivX codec, but some of the original developers decided to continue Xvid. As of May 31, 2011, Xvid download is available in the latest stable version, 1.3.2.
Open source means you do not have to pay for downloading, using and even changing the building blocks of the program. How is this possible? Legions of volunteer programmers from all over the world develop Xvid and make it available for you and me so you can Xvid codec download for free.
What is Xvid? – Video File Formats
So just what is Xvid? Xvid itself is not a file format like .avi. Videos encoded using Xvid are not called .xvid, they are called MPEG-4 ASP (Motion Picture Experts Group-4 Advanced Simple Profile) files. There are many other video files formats that can be played on compatible programs or devices. Which output format you use depends on many factors.
You’d normally want videos of high quality but manageable file size in an online setting like YouTube. Xvid can convert a video into a file with MP3 audio in an AVI container. In short, an .avi file. Sometimes you don’t know what computer your viewer will be using, and you just want to the video to play. The format that seems to work best is MPEG-1 with MPEG-1 Layer 2 audio.
For mobile devices like Zune and iPod, videos should be coded into MP4 file formats. ASP (H.263) is also supported in certain resolutions and bitrates. The Matroska (.mkv) container is also becoming popular, particularly for multiple streaming videos with subtitles. MPEG-4 (.mp4) also supports streaming, but there are limitations with this type.
What is Xvid? – Encoding a DVD Movie into Xvid
To see Xvid in action, let’s convert a DVD movie into an Xvid-supported file. You’ll need the Xvid codec, a DVD, DVD ripper software, and your computer. Insert the DVD you want to encode into your disc drive. Wait for the computer to display the DVD icon in “My Computer” or your desktop.
Download a DVD ripper program like DVD Ripper Wizard or iSofter DVD Ripper Deluxe. The program will allow you extract the files from the DVD and convert them to Xvid format. Follow the onscreen prompts to install the software in your system.
When installation is finished, launch the DVD ripper software. Depending on the program, you can select individual chapters to encode or just copy the whole DVD file. Select “Xvid” as the output format and choose a destination folder for the encoded files. Press “OK”, “Start” or “Go” to start the ripping and encoding process. A pop-up will alert you when the video file is finished encoding.
If you haven’t downloaded the Xvid codec yet, go to Xvid Codec to get it. Once installed, go to the destination folder for your encoded file and open the Xvid file with Windows Media Player or VLC. If you have any problems with installing or using it, read through our ‘What is Xvid?‘ article again.Now you have a backup of your DVD in case something ever happens to it.