Playing MP4 files -- actually 3GP files

[hummingbird]

Can anybody explain this:

Last night I d/l a BBC podcast video file with an .MP4 filetype.
I tried to play it using Media Player Classic but it wouldn't run
and gave me a list of codec error messages.
I then poked it through GSpot but it also showed a codec problem.

Not wanting to install more codecs, I was just about to delete the
file when I saw a note on GSpot that MP4 files are equal or similar
to .3GP files so I changed the filetype to .3GP and hey presto -
the video played in MPC with no hitches.

I find this puzzling. Do these players/progs not check the file
headers to determine the actual codecs required to render? or do
they just check the filetype and go from there?

 

[John Jay Smith]

Windows media player plays even if the extension is wrong

it notifies you of this with a pop up

 

[hummingbird]

Windows media player plays even if the extension is wrong
it notifies you of this with a pop up

I don't think the BBC filetype was actually wrong per se - MP4 is
a new variety of 3GP and I wouldn't want to do anything drastic like
switching to WMP ;-)

My puzzlement was why MPC didn't check the headers or why it didn't
simply use the same codecs since the files are identical or close to.

It's not a problem for me since I can always change the filetype
of MP4s to 3GP in future if it's necessary.

 

[John Jay Smith]

quicktime alternative can play those I think....

 

[hummingbird]

quicktime alternative can play those I think....

Thanks I've that too I'll give it a try.

 

[MLC]

venerdì 28 luglio 2006 hummingbird ha scritto:

Thanks I've that too I'll give it a try.

No, out of the box it doesn't, it plays only the audio, and the video is
black. Maybe with some codec?

 

[hummingbird]

venerdì 28 luglio 2006 hummingbird ha scritto:



No, out of the box it doesn't, it plays only the audio, and the video is
black. Maybe with some codec?

Ok thanks, I'll forget then it because I got that video to play in MPC
by changing its filetype.