If you want to download and convert videos from YouTube without having to spend ages doing so, look no further than this no-nonsense software. YouTube Catcher allows you to do everything (i.e. the downloading and conversion) from within the same window. All you need to do is input the link to the video and select the format you want to convert to and YouTube Catcher does the business for you - at a very quick pace to boot.

Rather handily, the program can also be used as a standalone file converter, letting you take a FLV file and transform it into a different format using a similar process. The program also dishes up a bevy of useful options, such as the ability to define the quality and resolution of the video, audio channels, codecs used and more. All in all, YouTube Catcher is a brilliant tool for quickly grabbing cool movies from the popular site.

Download YouTube Catcher 1.0.252 in Softonic

The ALShow codecs included movie player lets your watch all your videos, movies, and DVDs without searching for video codecs or audio codecs. From AVI to XviD, playing movies is first-click easy with codecs for all popular video, audio, and movie formats. ALShow also recognizes codecs that you do not have and automatically helps instantly install the right codecs. ALShow loads movies fast and plays movies smoothly.

No more video playback stuttering. Audio, video, and screen captures let you save portions of movies to share with friends. You can also import them to your favorite audio or video editor. Video looping lets you repeat parts of a movie. Captions and subtitles are supported for monitor and TV output. The ESC key hides ALShow when you are supposed to do homework. Click the tray icon to resume playing your DVD movie or video.

Download ALShow 1.62 Beta in Softonic

The Video Converter is a powerful, universal AVI MPEG converter. Video converter can convert video file between almost all popular video formats such as converting WMV to AVI, WMV to MPEG. Xilisoft Video Converter also supports converting video file between DVD, VCD, SVCD, MOV, RM, AVI, MPEG, WMV, 3GP, etc.

You can select the video and audio codec, set the output parameters. In addition, the video converter provides a powerful way to convert video file to all popular audio file, including MP2, MP3, AC3, RA, M4A, OGG, AAC etc. all conversion processes, such as AVI to MPEG, WMV to MPEG, WMV to AVI, are very easy and fast with hight quality.

Download Xilisoft Video Converter 5.0.98.0729 in Softonic

With such an ever growing range of multimedia devices, no wonder format converters are becoming so popular these days!

Any Audio/Video Converter is one of those converters: a simple, easy-to-use application that support pretty much any format you can find nowadays and lets you convert both audio and video files in just a few steps.

The program works with a list where you add the files you want to convert, no matter what format they are. Then you configure the conversion options for each one of them separately and finally click on the "Convert" button to let the program do the rest. I think this method is quite handy and saves you loads of work and time; pity the trial version only accepts one file on this list!

Any Audio/Video Converter includes a built-in player in its interface, but it's only good to watch the video while it's being converted and not preview it before actually starting the process.

With Any Audio/Video Converter you can convert basically any audio and video file you can think of, in a quite easy process that involves very little effort.

Download Any Audio/Video Converter 5.3 in Softonic

Prism video file conversion software is a free video file format converter for Windows. It can convert video files from avi, mpg, vob, wmv (Windows Media Video formats) and more into avi, asf or wmv files.

Prism video converter is very easy to use. Just add the files you want to convert to the list, select the format you want to use, and then click the convert button.

Designed to be very easy and intuitive to use, this software will have you up and running within minutes. Simply download now and install.

Take a look at what this program has to offer:

• Converts all video formats that have a DirectShow based codec to AVI and Windows Media Video formats
• If you can play the video file using 'Windows Media Player' you can convert it using Prism
• Set compression/encoder rates of output files
• Set resolution and frame rate of output files
• Prism can be added to your right click menu for easy access
• Prism video file converter has an intuitive and easy to use interface

Download Prism Video Converter 1.15 in Softonic

River Past Screen Recorder is River Past's award winning screen video recorder. It is the fastest screen video recorder on the market, with a speed comparable to TechSmith's Camtesia Studio, and way better than any other similar software we have tested.

Capture AVI video from the full screen, a window, a rectangle region, or a defined area around the cursor. Decide whether you want the cursor image to be included. You can even record audio into the AVI, from the microphone, line-in, or speakers. River Past Screen Recorder Pro allows you to record to WMV files using Microsoft's Windows Media Screen codec, which is specialized in producing high quality and small screen videos.

Download River Past Screen Recorder 7.7.11 in Softonic

GVC will help you convert your audio and video files using the FFMPEG codec via a simple and intuitive interface.

It is compatible with the most widely used video formats, and you can use it to extract the audio formats from films - great for making your own soundtracks, ring tones etc. The interface however is not simple for those that are not familiar with Visual Basic 2005 Express Edition. However, the good thing is that it's not that hard to learn and there are instructions with the program to help you get to grips with it. FFMPEG can decode (and convert) files of almost any format, including some rare formats such as game music files. You can convert any video file to the following format - AVI, ASF, MOV, MP4, 3GPP, 3GPP2, MPG, FLV, SWF, WMV, DV, OGG, MKV, RM. With audio, you can convert any audio file to the following formats - MP2, MP3, MP4, AIFF, FLAC, OGG, WMA, WAV, AC3, AMR. There's also the option to convert VCD .DAT files and DVD .VOB files to MPG. However for many it will be the audio extraction that is the most useful feature of this program and if only it was a bit simpler to use, it would be more popular.

The solid converter and audio extractor although you'll need to brush up your Visual Basic skills to use it.

Download GVC 0.6 Beta 1.7z in Softonic

Taking video shots of your desktop is essential for those that are building tutorials or trying to help others in using a program.

The problem is that sometimes, the recording software can be often be complicated or difficult to use but Screen Video Recorder attempts to be one of those rare breeds that keeps everything to an absolute basic minimum. Although it only saves video captures in AVI or WMV format (which are not exactly the smallest formats to share via e-mail or upload etc) it compensates by making taking screen captures very easy indeed.

The interface consists of little more than small window that allows you to stop and start recordings with a few options to configure the audio codec you want to use, video codec, start a timer and a hotkey that you'd like to use to start and stop recordings. The region that's captured depends on which of the 5 options you've asked it to record - random region, window, full screen, fixed size and fixed region.

However, it not only covers screen activity but it can also record images from webcams attached to IM clients such as AIM, ICQ, MSN and Yahoo Messenger. It can also capture video from TV Cards, DVD's and just about any other video input device except video cameras.

A very simple screen video capture tool just about anyone can use for capturing screen activity, webcam chats and video in general.

Download Screen Video Recorder 1.5.33.0 in Softonic

If you have different devices with video capabilities, you need a complete video tool like ALO AVI MPEG WMV 3GP MP4 iPod PSP Converter.

With ALO AVI MPEG WMV 3GP MP4 iPod PSP Converter you can convert from the most popular video formats to those formats used in devices such as the iPod, the Zune, the PSP, the PS3 or the Apple TV. All you have to do is load the source video, select the target format and let the program take care of the rest. Plus, you can convert several videos simultaneously.

Formats are conveniently organized in profiles according to the target device.
ALO AVI MPEG WMV 3GP MP4 iPod PSP Converter lets you tweak those target profiles by customizing bitrate, frame rate, video codec, audio bitrate and other elements, but unfortunately you can't save this customization as a new personal profile.

ALO AVI MPEG WMV 3GP MP4 iPod PSP Converter features a straightforward interface and is really easy to use. It includes a video window preview, but it's meant to only show video as it's being converted, not work as a built-in player.

With ALO AVI MPEG WMV 3GP MP4 iPod PSP Converter you'll always find the right combination to convert videos from one format to another and watch them on any device.

Download ALO AVI MPEG WMV 3GP MP4 iPod PSP Converter 5.1 in Softonic

MediaCoder is a free universal audio/video batch transcoder, putting together lots of excellent audio/video codecs and tools from the open source community into an all-in-one solution, capable of transcoding among different audio/video formats with many extra features.

Download MediaCoder 0.6.1.4140 in Softonic

StaxRip allows you to easily convert your DVD's, DVB or DV captures, or almost any other source format. As a open source application StaxRip is completely free. The program supports the most popular video formats (DivX, XviD, x264, MPEG-2, MPEG-4), audio formats (MP3, AC3, MP2/MPA, AAC, DTS, WAV) and container formats (AVI, MP4, MPG, MKV, DivX).

Features of StaxRip:

• No spyware, adware or any other form of malware
• No registry bloat, settings are saved in files within the application's directory
• No lost settings after a fresh windows installation
• No awkward setup/installer, no system changes, system bloat and trash
• Easy to use and highly customizable
• Reasonable default values for filters, codecs etc.
• Rich help system including, online help, context sensitive help and forum support
• Rich and convenient cutting facilities e.g. to remove ads
• Batch processing (jobs)
• Rich feature set to manage, integrate and download required third party application
• AviSynth powered to achieve excellent video quality and support of virtually any source format

Download StaxRip 1.1.1.0 in Softonic

With so many Flash video sites out there, it's important to have a way t convert your videos to something more conventional or editable such as AVI.

Flash2Video supports the conversion of Macromedia Flash SWF files to AVI and can then compress them to DIV and XVID if you have the codecs installed. The developers claim it "has the fastest conversion speed in the world" which is definitely exagerating a bit but it is remarkably quick. The program supports a range of diemnsions and resolutions and so it doesn't matter what size your video is although larger file sizes take slightly longer. You can line up videos for conversion at your leisure so the best thing to do is just make a conversion list and leave it running while you are away from your PC. One excellent feature is the ability to preview your videos as they upload - so you can check whether your conversions are being carried out successfully. The image and sound quality is generally excellent for converted videos and the interface is very user friendly. If you get stuck at any stage, the program also has an extensive and well annotated help file.

Easy to use and lightening fast, Flash2Video is a powerful converter although it would be nice if it supported more output formats.

Download Flash2Video 5.36 in Softonic

If your webcam software doesn't exactly impress then River Past Cam can help you get the most out of your camera.

I've lost count of the number of times that I've installed a webcam and the camera hasn't worked for various reasons or the software has just proved cumbersome and useless. Usually, such software gives you very little control over codec standards or compression formats used but Cam Do differs in that it gives you maximum control where all the other fail to. It allows you to specify everything from the file format, codec, and quality of your files, right up to where the audio is taken from. You can define which codec you want to use according to what you are going to use your webcam for - Cinepak, Ideo 4 and 5, Microsoft Video 1, Motion JPEG, DivX and XviD (the developers recommend the latter two for the best speed and quality). Alternatively, audio can be recorded from any source, including microphone, line-in, or speakers and the recording volume can be adjusted manually even during the recording. You've also got full control over the sample rate, channel used, bits per sample, and bitrate as well as control over when the camera is activated due to a scheduler.

For maximum control over your webcam and when and how it is used, Cam Do is an excellent piece of software.

Download River Past Cam Do 3.7.6 in Softonic

My Video Converter is one of the most powerful video conversion tools you'll ever use with the ability to convert to AVI, MPEG, VCD, DVD and WMV formats. The range of this program is really impressive as it converts almost every imaginable video format such as AVI/DIVX/XVID/DIV, MPEG/MPG/DAT, WMV/ASF/ASX, RM/RMVB, MOV/QT, 3GP/3G2, MP4/M4V, and FLV.

The interface is simple but elegant with main features including adjust output video quality, adjust 4:3 or 16:9 video aspect. Whatsmore, all the latest encoders and codecs are built-in and regularly updated ensuring no errors during converting.

The conversion process consists of nothing more than selecting the video file, choosing the format and making the adjustments required i.e. type, aspect ratio, video resolution etc. The whole process is fast and easy although for some strange reason, the developers have not included a DVD, VCD or SVCD burner for your creations.

Download My Video Converter 1.2.29 in Softonic

AC3Filter is a filter for the reproduction of AVI video codecs with AC3 sound tracks AC3 and MPEG2 (DVD). It provides numerous options to configure the audio using the equalizer to change settings such as voice or subwoofer gain. Compatible with DolbySurround, Dolby ProLogic and Dolby ProLogic II.

Download AC3Filter 1.50a in Softonic

There are so many video and audio formats that sometimes you need a helping hand just to know which codec you need to play that darn file that won't open up in your multimedia player.

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. This information 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 the program 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 there's no option to obtain a printed copy.

Also, I missed 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.

Download MediaInfo 0.7.7.2 in Softonic

Digital Media Converter makes it easy for you to convert your video and audio files from one format to another. Now you can organize and batch convert all your video and audio files between: VCD, DVD, AVI (DivX, MS MPEG4, uncompressed, etc), MPEG-1, MPEG-2 (PAL, NTSC), MP3, MOV, WMA, WMV, and WAV formats.

Making VCD and DVD format files is simple with Digital Media Converter. You can do even more, such as extracting the audio from the video and saving just the audio tracks. You can use the advanced settings to change the video frame size, audio / video compression codec, frequency, and the number of channels in an audio stream. The program's mass conversion capability lets you multi-select files and add entire folders for conversion.

It gives you complete control over the files that you want to convert. Digital Media Converter uses the Microsoft DirectShow technology and can therefore convert faster than other conventional products. You do not need to be a professional to use this tool. The software provides default settings and auto-select features designed to give you high quality and low size conversions.

Download Digital Media Converter 2.79 in Softonic

Although it might appear like some sort of Communist software, CCCP is actually just a pack of codecs to help just about any video run on your system.

The full title is the "Combined Community Codec Pack". In reality, it's more like a filter pack than a codec pack but the developers say that "filter doesn't begin with C and we wanted a good acronym"! For anyone who understands Russian, the developers also like to point out that the name is also a pun on the Russian name Союз Советских Социалистических Республик, which is transliterated into the Latin alphabet as "Soyuz Sovietskikh Sotsialisticheskikh Respublik", or "Union of Soviet Socialist Republics", abbreviated as "СССР" or "USSR". Anyway, the CCCP codec pack was created to replace the filter packs provided by other groups which simply often did not work properly or broke compatibility for other formats. In reality, it is an extremely powerful Codec pack, playing back effortlessly most popular formats and some unpopular ones too. There are now fiddly options to get it working although if you have other codec packs installed, you may experience some conflicts or significant slowdown in reproduction of your films.

However, overall, this is an impressive pack which deals with just about anything and I quite like the attitude of the developers and their ironic communist branding.

Download Combined Community Codec Pack 2008-01-24 in Softonic

One of the most frustrating things about video playback is when you don't have the right codecs installed.

SMPlayer attempts to do away with this problem completely by attempting to play videos regardless of the codecs they need. It does this by using the MPlayer engine which the developers claim can play almost all video formats. In reality, this is not always the case. What you may find is that if you're trying to play a WMV file protected by DRM for example, you will see snippets of the film but not the whole thing. However, the player has many other great features that make it an interesting proposition. One of the most useful is the way it remembers most of the settings of files that you play a bit like a DVD Player. If you turn off a film because you're a bit tired, when you open it later, it will start from exactly the same point where you left it with all the original settings including subtitles and audio. One other area where the player excels is in subtitling. SMPlayer allows you to choose subtitles in a variety of formats allowing you to choose the font, size, and even colors.

There are many other great aspects to SMPlayer - audio track switching, mouse scrolling and multiple speed playback - that on top of it's codec free playback, make it an excellent choice.

Download SMPlayer 0.6.1 in Softonic

In an age of multiple media players all with different codecs and formats, it's nice to know there's at least one out there that can play just about anything.

Haihaisoft Universal Player supports almost all popular digital media formats and can also play digital media files protected by DRM-X. Amongst the players it can emulate are Windows Media Player, Real Player, Adobe Flash Player, Apple QuickTime Player, PowerDVD and Flash Video (FLV) Player. Whatsmore though, this player embeds itself into Internet Explorer meaning that whenever you are presented with a format compatible with any of these file types, you can watch it instantly. The number of formats it can play is mind-boggling, including those protected by DRM such as WMV(Windows Media Video), WMA(Windows Media Audio), ASF, WMS, DVD, VCD, SVCD, MOV, RM, RMVB, AVI, MPEG, WMV, 3GP, FLV, SWF, MP3, AMR, M4A, ACC, OGG, MIDI, GIF and JPEG file format. Best of all, the program is constantly updated with the latest codecs so you don't need to worry about it suddenly not being able to play files.

A completely free player that supports just about any format imaginable and embeds itself into IE perfectly.

Download Haihaisoft Universal Player 1.0.7.1 in Softonic