VLC+Media+Player

[[image:etec602/vlc_image1.png width="144" height="144"]] [[image:etec602/logoBlue.png width="235" height="78"]]
=The VLC Media Player=

Description
The VLC Media Player is a free, open-source multimedia player that can playback audio-visual media in just about any format. Some of the player's useful features are that it works on most platforms, does not require additional codec packs to playback media, is free of ads and user tracking, is fairly easy to use, and provides ample support for its users. The casual VLC Media Player user will appreciate its clean and simple interface (Fig. 1), while sophisticated users should find the advanced options more than adequate. For those wanting more detailed specifications, VideoLAN's website provides various links to its technical information. The VLC Media Player also allows users to advance playback frame-by-frame, slow-down or speed-up playback, and performs live recording of streaming video. However, it should be noted that VLC Media Player's features are not as robust for the Mac user, when compared to PC users, due to a lack of developers or contributors on the Mac side of VideoLAN's development team. For example, the media player for Macintosh does not contain the video recording option that is available on the PC media player.



History
VideoLAN produces video software under the GNU General Public License. It started out as a student project in 1996 and later obtained backing from VideoLAN, an organization based in France. The VideoLAN project describes itself as a non-profit organization with developers in 20 different countries. For a more detailed history of VideoLAN and the VideoLAN project, please see Wikipedia's write-up on the VLC media player.

Impact on Teaching and Learning
Student generated media provides students and teachers with another alternative for demonstrating and assessing what was learned. Gone are the days of written reports, pencil and paper tests, and front-of-the-class lectures as the only means of instruction. Many of today's teachers and students have grown up in a digital world that is constantly evolving with the advent of new technologies. Yet, as developers race to market their products to consumers, what continues to be most frustrating for users of new technologies is the inability of these products or devices to work with one another, or even with previous versions of itself. Concern over the cost of media production tools seems to have given way to questions about compatibility, flexibility, and usability.

The VLC Media Player is a seemingly simple concept that may provide everything a consumer could want in a multimedia player. It is a free, easy to use, open-source application that allows users to view or listen to whatever they want, regardless of format or platform. In other words, the VLC Media Player allows schools and educators to get back to concentrating on how best to deliver instruction, within their working budgets, without the added burden of compatibility issues.

Practical Applications
The VLC Media Player saves teachers and students time and energy by simplifying the single most important aspect of media production...the presentation of the finished product. With so many different media creation tools and applications to choose from, teachers only have time to provide students with instructions and procedures necessary to produce a media project, using one or two media tools. However, for one reason or another, students do not always use the tools presented to them by their teachers. Many 21st century learners have the capability to use a variety of tools to complete a task, but still do not comprehend the limitations and problems that can arise from not following the teacher's instructions. In their minds, it should not matter what format or media software was used, as long as the completed product meets the lesson's criteria. While this thinking may indeed be true, some teachers demonstrate little patience or sympathy for students who run into technical problems as a result of not following instructions. Since the VLC Media Player can playback most media formats, across various computer platforms, it allows students and teachers to use just about any media creation software they are comfortable with, or have access to, without regard for compatibility when completing a video or audio assignment. Procrastinators everywhere can rejoice over having one less thing to worry about.

Examples or Demonstrations
media type="youtube" key="WRtTpzpcoJk?version=3" height="228" width="380" //Uploaded// //to YouTube.com// //by PCMichiana on Sep 18, 2009 //

media type="youtube" key="DGXmJEVKRT0?version=3" height="234" width="384" //Uploaded// //to YouTube.com// //by iCrackUriDevice on Jan 8, 2011 //