What is a Codec (e.g. DivX?), and how does it differ from a File Format (e.g. MPG)?
Problem
I'm so confused... what is the difference between an audio/video codec (which apparently is a shorthand for "encoder/decoder", kind of like how "modem" is really "modulator/demodulator") and an audio/video format? (Am I even using the correct terminology?) i.e.: What is the difference between saying something is "MPEG-4" and saying something uses the "DivX" codec? Why does Windows Media Player sometimes run files, and sometimes not? Also, which of the following are codecs, which ones are file formats, and which ones are neither? Quicktime MOV MPEG (1, 2, 3, 4) WMV FFmpeg AVC Xvid DivX (how is it different from its palindrome, Xvid?) H.264
Error Output
.mpg
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1 Fix
Fix for: What is a Codec (e.g. DivX?), and how does it differ from a File Format (e.g. MPG)?
Some main definitions: A codec (e.g., H.264, HEVC, VP9) is only responsible for the video or audio part, and one or more codecs can be merged into a container. A container (e.g., MP4, MKV) is responsible for keeping them together and this is also what you usually open up in your media player of choice. A particular encoder (e.g., x264, libvpx) is responsible for turning an input stream into a codec-compliant bitstream. There are often multiple encoders for one particular codec. As you can see, …
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