Debut Video Capture is very easy to use: its interface offers a preview of what will be recorded, although in the case of screen recording, this is pretty confusing as the image repeats itself ad finitum. Besides that, everything in Debut Video Capture is controlled with three simple buttons (record, pause and stop) so that gives you an idea about the simplicity of the program.

Recordings can be done in a variety of formats, and each one has its own configuration settings. An interesting option is the possibility to download related programs from the same developer. Debut Video Capture also enables you to email the videos or upload them to an FTP server right after recording them. However, we did miss an embedded player with which to revise our recordings.

Debut Video Capture is a basic video recorder for your PC, and while it's not perfect, it will allow you to capture screencasts and incoming video

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Using VDownloader is really simple. Just paste a video URL into the interface and click the download button. The latest version of VDownloader has increased its download and conversion speed, which makes it even a more interesting tool.

You can also search for videos about a specific topic with the program's built-in search tool. The good thing about VDownloader is that you can use it with virtually any video sharing website, just by entering the video URL.

VDownloader features a number of output conversion profiles, so you can make the downloaded videos compatible with your portable device or media player. Alternatively, you can download the files in original format. Bear in mind though that if you choose this option, you won’t be able to convert the file afterwards.

To save you time, VDownloader will batch download up to ten videos at once and features a scheduler so it can be set to download files whenever is most convenient for you. The program includes other extra features, but sadly they’re only available in the Pro version of the program.

VDownloader is a handy, effective video downloader and converter that works with all popular video sharing sites.

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This is where MediaInfo comes in handy, by analyzing any media file you open with it and displaying a complete report with all the information available about that specific file. The information displayed by MediaInfo includes basic data such as file name, playtime, file size and the likes, as well as more specific details like used codec, bitrate, channel, sample rate and resolution, among others.

The information provided by MediaInfo can be displayed in a variety of ways, from a basic data sheet or plain text to a tree-like structure or an HTML document. It can also be exported to a file but surprisingly enough MediaInfo doesn't include an option to obtain a printed copy.

Another thing I missed in MediaInfo is the possibility to obtain more information from the Internet (a web link would have been enough) or being able to download the necessary codec if it's not present in the system.

With MediaInfo you can obtain a complete report on any audio or video file, display it in several ways and also export it to several formats though it doesn't support printing and lacks some advanced functionality.

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Format Factory's supported formats include WMV, AVI, MPG, MP3, WMA, AAC, JPG, PNG, GIF, and many more. Better still, Format Factory supports media formats used by most major portable devices, including PSP and iPhone.

The app is very easy to use, although it does have a slightly unintuitive interface. Format Factory's file browser doesn't appear until you select the target format, which is a bit weird, but as long as you know this it's no problem. You can select individual files to convert, or complete folders, and also tweak some basic conversion settings.

Format Factory isn't particularly original but what makes it really useful is that it handles images as well as audio and video. Most converters like this only handle audio and video, so adding images to the mix gives it an edge, especially considering it's free. We also like the Audio Joiner in Format Factory, which allows you to take two separate clips, join them together and then convert them. It would've been nice to have preset profiles for mobile conversions, but you can't always have it all in a free app!

Format Factory is an excellent conversion tool for anyone who converts between video, audio and images on a regular basis.

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The good news is that many of these channels are useful (especially for sports fans) and the streaming quality is stable and high quality. The media player looks slick and refined and it loads incredibly quickly. You can watch CNN, Fox News and other custom made channels by users such as News 24/7 and lots of Japanese cartoon channels.

You can view channels by most viewed, most discussed and top rated and all of these inevitably mean sports channels - either football or golf. You can view any channel in full screen mode simply by double clicking on the screen or using the expander button at the base of the screen. Unfortunately, you can't chat with other users viewing the channels although there is a lively forum.

Veetle is an excellent innovation that brings quality TV viewing directly to your browser. It could do with a more organized way of listing channels and schedules but it's a very good start.

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VLC media player nightly supports partially encrypted Blu-ray discs and brings a more polished look and enhancements to the options and codecs in this flexible player. VLC media player nightly is more visually striking with a new sidebar allowing quick access to your playlist, media folders or online streams. The final version will also include a search tool so you can find missing media much more easily than before.

Blu-ray support

The most important feature in VLC media player nightly however is Blu-ray support. However, for legal reasons, it will only open partially encrypted Blu-ray discs. It can also now output audio to Android and iOS devices. Note that it can also be quite unstable as this is effectively a beta release of VLC media player.

VLC media player nightly is an exciting glimpse at how VLC media player will look and finally supports Blu-ray discs.

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VLC media player nightly supports partially encrypted Blu-ray discs and brings a more polished look and enhancements to the options and codecs in this flexible player. VLC media player nightly is more visually striking with a new sidebar allowing quick access to your playlist, media folders or online streams. The final version will also include a search tool so you can find missing media much more easily than before.

Blu-ray support

The most important feature in VLC media player nightly however is Blu-ray support. However, for legal reasons, it will only open partially encrypted Blu-ray discs. It can also now output audio to Android and iOS devices. Note that it can also be quite unstable as this is effectively a beta release of VLC media player.

VLC media player nightly is an exciting glimpse at how VLC media player will look and finally supports Blu-ray discs.

Download VLC media player nightly 2.1.0 32 Bit in Softonic

In a market that's saturated with media players, Zoom Player attempts to be two players in one - a no fuss simple one and an advanced one with just about every imaginable tweaking and customization option.

It's a unique offering and chances are that if you've found your current player lacking in some department, you'll find what you're looking for in Zoom Player. If you just want a bare bones media player, then you may be better opting for something like VLC Media Player but Zoom Player lets you have your cake and eat it if you need something with a little more to offer.

The basic version of Zoom Player comes installed with a graphic equalizer, playlist editor and everything else that you'd expect in a basic player. Zoom Player's professional version however comes with a whole lot more power, including a more powerful Playlist Manager, added safety features (such as password protection), Media Definitions plus Web Remote (so you can control Zoom Player from your web browser) and an Extended command line interface, exposing many Zoom Player functions directly from the command line. Finally, the professional version also supports playback of DRM protected movies and music (Windows Media DRM).

Zoom Player's interface is slimline but expandable very easily. By clicking on the circle of dots in the bottom right hand corner however, you reveal a top bar within the main screen which is packed with features. The symbols used in the menu aren't particularly helpful as they look like hieroglyphs so your only option is to work out what each one does by trial and error. These advanced features include a station manager (for streaming radio and TV channels), skin changer and media library editor.

Indeed, the amount of options in Zoom Player available will intimidate anyone that just wants a playback application. It takes quite a while to understand what all the audio options offer, for example, although there is an extensive list of help files that comes bundled with the installation to help you. This is probably the biggest annoyance of Zoom Player: the advanced options seem extremely "spread-out" and it's rather overwhelming to get to grips with where they all, let alone what they do.

On the plus side, one particularly useful feature of Zoom Player is that if you don't have the correct codec installed, it will tell you the exact one you need without the need for a third party inspection device. Playback is smooth, files are loaded quickly and the playlist supports ID3 tags. You can also easily change skins through the skins editor plus you can download more from the developer site.

Zoom Player is two players in one - a basic player that serves you well and an advanced player that offers a lot of options that you'll probably never need but will no doubt appeal to power users.

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Vidcoder is the ideal tool if you want to rip movies from DVD or configure the encoding of video files you already have. The interface is simple and clean and there are bunches of simple features that make using it really easy. The best of these are subtitle support, the ability to queue and pause conversions and configurable presets.

When configuring your videos with Vidcoder, you'll be able to use the program's excellent configuration options to make sure you get it just right. From picture settings such as video resolution and cropping, to advanced specs such as filters and bitrate calculator, you're sure to be able to configure your videos in Vidcoder precisely to your specifications.

Vidcoder's probably not the ideal beginner's application, as it does have lots of advanced settings that need to be configured before you start. Unfortunately, it can't deal with CSS protection, so if you want to rip from protected DVDs, you'll have to find a third party application to do the job.

DVD and movie ripping is made easy and flexible with Vidcoder.

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With FileBot you can not only rename all those files at the same time with a single mouse click, but also look for subtitles in different languages, obtain more information about your favorite shows and movies, and also check the file's integrity with SFC, MD5 or SHA1. Renaming files will help you have your media library better organized, and also look much better on Windows Explorer.

Unfortunately FileBot is not very intuitive. The program features a sidebar with links to its main functions (renaming, verifying, searching for subtitles…) but there's no documentation to explain how to use each of them. Also, the sources used by FileBot are all grayed out, which gives you the wrong impression that they won’t work.

Once you get over these initial difficulties, FileBot is actually quite an effective app. As long as there's a small hint in the file name, it’ll find the right titles for any movies or TV shows you have on your hard drive in just a few seconds.

Bear in mind though that once you press the Rename button in FileBot, there’s no preview window or confirmation dialog. Also, if you need subtitles, we advise you to search for them before renaming the video file; otherwise it’ll be difficult to pick the right subtitle version.

FileBot is a handy renaming tool specializing in media files, such as movies, TV shows and so on.

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Although there are a number of skins for the J. River Media Center, none of them particularly help in the looks department. What is attractive, however, is the variety of viewing modes available: the four screen options available will take you from quick access to more theater-like viewing for movies and television. Playback quality is good, especially for audio, and larger screen options don't compromise viewing.

J. River Media Center has all the features you would expect from a modern player. As well as the standard audio, video and images, you can also subscribe to and manage podcasts, burn and rip CDs, sync with handheld devices, control via remote control, stream from the 'net and connect to high definition television (although to do this you'll need a tuner). Add this to J. River Media Center's extensive organizational, tagging and management abilities and J. River Media Center begins to look like a serious threat to other multimedia players.

Don't be fooled into thinking that the J. River Media Center is just a pretty face. It also has a fully functional browser, allowing you to search for information related to your music - and more - on the internet. Tech fans won't be disappointed either - J. River Media Center has a huge variety of configuration options ranging from the esthetic to the advanced, including a DSP (digital signal processor) studio for tweaking your audio, a media editor and audio recorder.

Often, a major problem with programs that try to do a lot is that they overreach and end up compromising quality. Not so with J. River Media Center. In the short time I tested it, the program performed perfectly, was easy to use and gave great quality output. If you just want a program that will play your CDs, you can probably get away with something lighter, but if you are looking for an integral multimedia manager with plenty of options, J. River Media Center might be the program for you.

J. River Media Center provides options galore and great quality - what more can you ask for in a multimedia player?

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Avidemux is a free video editor designed for simple cutting, filtering and encoding. Its very flexible, supporting AVI, DVD compatible MPEG files, MP4 and ASF files using a variety of codecs. This means there is no messing around converting it to DV format before you can edit it in a third party editing application. Tasks can be automated using projects, job queues and powerful scripting capabilities.

Avidemux is completely open source and works across platforms, so it's ideal for those that are working on both Macs and PCs. However, the look and feel of Avidemux could do with some work. It looks like some kind of Windows 95 throwback app but don't judge the book by its cover. Avidemux is very powerful and although it's not particularly intuitive at first, with trial and error you can quickly learn the editing basics.

Note that although it claims to handle MPEG clips I was confronted with an 'H.264' error which meant it has to operate in 'Safe' mode and led to the loss of several frames.

It's far from perfect, but Avidemux is a handy tool for anyone that wants to perform basic editing for free and doesn't want to have to convert to another format first.

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