Help talk:Media/Archive 1

Material intended specifically for Wikipedia editors should appear elsewhere
There already is a page whose purpose is to teach Wikipedia editors how to make media files. It is located here:

Sound

This article, Media help, is meant not for editors but for readers--and that includes people who aren't computer experts. For this reason, we should keep Media help as short as possible, and written in very plain language.

I recommend that people with the relevant expertise update Sound and rename it Media, in parallel with the history of this page.

The material I just removed, which I hope will soon be integrated into Sound or Media, is repeated below.

Opus33 16:10, 1 May 2005 (UTC)


 * ==Making oggs==
 * ===Video===
 * Because most popular movie/audio formats are patented and require a royalty, there are no free all purpose video converters.


 * * For video, ffmpeg2theora is a command line encoder capable of converting numerous file formats (.mov, .mpg, .mpeg, .avi) into Ogg Theora. It works on Windows, Macintosh, and Linux/Unix.


 * *You can also use the encoder_example application included with libtheora in combination with a program like MPlayer that is capable of dumping raw (yuv4mpeg) video and sound to encode in Ogg Theora.


 * *For assistance with conversion, try contacting:
 * **Raul654
 * **brian0918 (Windows only)


 * ===Audio===
 * * For audio, Audacity is a high quality sound editor for Windows, Macintosh, and Linux/Unix. To use Audacity on mp3s, it requires that you install LAME.
 * **Lame download page for Windows
 * **Lame download page for Macintosh
 * *The command-line tool mpg321, based on libmad is a free mp3 decoder that can be used to play or decode mp3 files. The result can be encoded into Ogg Vorbis using oggenc or another vorbis-enabled encoder.


 * For technical assistance with conversion, try contacting:
 * ** The Uninvited Co., Inc.

xine should get mentioned
IMHO xine should be mentioned before totem, since totem is only an alternative frontend for the xinelib. kaffeine as KDE frontend should also get mentioned, since there are enough distributions with KDE. The default player in debian and SuSE do play theora already out of the box.

Does anyone know why the mimetype is ogg and not ogm for movies ? ogg let start the pure sound player usually while ogm would let start a video player.
 * I asked around before writing this page, and that was one of the questions I asked. I'm told that Ogm is for files with mpeg video and ogg vorbis audio. Mpeg, being patented, is unusable on Wikipedia; therefore, no ogm files on Wikipedia. Ogg is used for files that include theora video, vorbis audio, or both. &rarr;Raul654 17:43, May 4, 2005 (UTC)

Winamp
Yes, it only plays Vorbis files. However, wouldn't it be helpful to include it and specify its limitation? Since it is so popular, people will inevitably wonder why it isn't on the list. -Willmcw 22:08, May 18, 2005 (UTC)
 * Here's the crux of the problem. Winamp will tend to associate .ogg files (which can be either Theora or Vorbis) with itself, and people will inevitably download Theora files, play them in in the default player (winamp), and wonder why it is busted. Next, they'll click on the 'media help' link, come here, see winamp on the list of files, and wonder why it doesn't work. (You're assuming they are competent enough to launch a different player when they happen to see the movie file icon - you must be very optomistic) My solution is simply not to list it. If you can think of something better, please suggest it. &rarr;Raul654 22:12, May 18, 2005 (UTC)
 * Even if we don't say anything about Winamp the above scenarios is still likely for those who already have Winamp on their system. Why not add what you just explained? That would seem to provide more "help" than just omitting all reference to it. -Willmcw (01:39, May 19, 2005 (UTC))
 * Winamp will be the most common program people will have for playing oggs. I imagine that because of bandwidth limitations the number of audio files will greatly surpass the number the video files. With this in mind I think it is counterproductive to pretend that winamp doesn't play oggs. With ogg support in itunes broken with QT7 winamp is as close to the mainstream as ogg gets. Secretlondon 20:16, 14 September 2005 (UTC)
 * I have no problem listing winamp here, if and when it supports natively (or can be made to support) both theora and vorbis. Until that time, I think we can make due with the ones already listed here that are capable of doing both, and save ourselves the headache of providing tech support to hundreds or thousands of people who can't figure out why their ogg file won't play in winamp. &rarr;Raul654 22:11, 14 September 2005 (UTC)


 * There is currently a paragraph which reads:
 * It is highly recommended that you use a program which is capable of playing both Ogg Vorbis and Ogg Theora files. The reason is that both files use the same file extension, namely .ogg.
 * How about adding, Programs which can only play Ogg Vorbis files, such as Winamp, will still attempt to load Ogg Theora files but will fail to play them. Would that cover the topic? -Willmcw 03:26, May 19, 2005 (UTC)
 * Winamp is capable of playing Theora files. Just install the directshow filters from, then go to winamp preferences, go to Input (under Plug-ins), select Nullsoft Directshow Decoder and click the Configure button, and add ";OGG" to the list of extensions, and click OK. Now Winamp can play theora files. Reference: . --pile0nadestalk 22:20, 26 July 2005 (UTC)
 * Indeed this does work in my WinAmp 5.1 'full' (free). Except it kind of breaks playing Vorbis files, as they go through the DirectShow filter, not WinAmp's own input plug-in which provides tag reading, which does things like enable the Media Library to pick them and order them correctly. Does someone need to make a Theora input for WinAmp...?

I just spent the better part of the last hour trying to reproduce that, to no effect. Nullsoft directshow is not included with Winamp (or at least the version I use, lite) by default. I spent quite a bit of time hunting it down and trying to find out if that version (.94) is the newest version (which I was unable to do). I followed the rest of the directions, and it failed to play. &rarr;Raul654 22:45, July 26, 2005 (UTC)
 * Well, it works for me with the full version which comes with it. --pile0nadestalk 22:47, 26 July 2005 (UTC)
 * What version of Nullsoft directshow are you using? &rarr;Raul654 22:49, July 26, 2005 (UTC)
 * v0.94, which is the latest version, as it comes with the latest version of Winamp, v5.094. --pile0nadestalk 22:54, 26 July 2005 (UTC)

Ok, that's what I have. So I've followed the advice down the line, and it's not working. I asked in IRC, and user:FreplySpang (who has a non-lite version) tried it and failed too. We shouldn't be recommending this unless it's actually reliable and reproducable. &rarr;Raul654 23:02, July 26, 2005 (UTC)
 * Well, that's weird. I don't know why it would'nt work for you. --pile0nadestalk 23:18, 26 July 2005 (UTC)

I followed the same steps as both of them and failed to get ogg files to play on my winamp, i am also using the most current version of winamp with the most current plugins

I used the above advice for Nullsoft with the newest Winamp and XP Pro AND Illuminable's OGG Codecs installed and voila! I could now cue up those H-Bomb test videos, complete with Stravinsky (I think) music. It saved me the bother of downloading WMP 10!

Easier wording and layout for non-techies
I think this page needs to be made as easy as possible for non-editing end users who may have limited profficiency at installing new applications. Terms like "codec" will confuse/scare many users and should be avoided. Perhaps it would be better to use terminoligy such as "you may need to install free software in order to play audio and video files on wikipedia".

The whole thing could do with a friendlier layout. Think about Introduction. Could we not do something along these lines with three tabs: INTRODUCTION, AUDIO and VIDEO? The Macromedia Flash installation page is also a good example of balance between ease of use and technical information. TreveXtalk 11:56, 23 September 2005 (UTC)


 * Done it. Any thoughts? TreveXtalk 13:19, 23 September 2005 (UTC)


 * Very nice. I thought "Click here to install software" might be a little scary for people who are used to viruses and spam, so I changed it to "Directions on installing software". —Keenan Pepper 22:34, 23 September 2005 (UTC)

RealPlayer and HelixPlayer
It might be a good idea to mention RealPlayer and HelixPlayer for UNIX because they are much easier to install than VLC, XINE and MPlayer. They can play both Vorbis and Theora out-of-the-box on UNIX platforms and are available as precompiled binaries that work on all Linux distributions. There are plugins for the Windows version as well, but it's not necessary to mention it because DirectShow is easier to use.

http://www.real.com/linux https://helixcommunity.org https://player.helixcommunity.org/2004/downloads

-- 217.246.179.19 21:19, 22 Jun 2005 (UTC)
 * Real player is the ABSOLUTE WORST video player in existance. I will absolutely not recommend that trash on anyone. &rarr;Raul654 21:33, Jun 22, 2005 (UTC)
 * I completely agree. Also; the original statement is incorrect.  Because Realplayer is non-free software, it is very hard to get it to work in most Unixes.  VLC is far easier to get working, since it pretty much consists of one package, with no extra shit to make it work.  --CalPaterson 21:22, 5 March 2006 (UTC)

What about other media problems?
What about a FAQ page for further questions about media? I have VLC and it plays .ogg files, but there's clipping on either end of short files (like single words) so that I sometimes can't hear anything. I'm sure I'll be able to fix the setting or make it play it in something else, but the people this guide is for would be stranded. There should be more info than just how to install the media players. There should also be a FAQ to address common problems.

--Everlong 18:48, 31 March 2006 (UTC)

Can I upload mp3s?
reply on my talk page--hottie 10:15, 26 April 2006 (UTC)

Proposal to fix inaccuracy
I have just been pointed to this page, but it contains an important and often inaccurate assumption, which should be corrected. It says If your computer does not automatically play these files when you click on them, you can enable it to do so by downloading and installing free software from the Internet. This assumes that the user has control of the machine they are using. It is quite common for corporate PCs to be locked down, and other machines such as in Libraries or Cybercafés generally have the same limitation. In addition, I know computer users, particularly the Granny generation, who are not capable of installing software on their machines, and daren't risk it in case they break something which they will not be able to fix. Even Linux users can shy away from this task.

Normally, I'd just make the edit, but because the article has been dormant for some time, I instead propose the following new wording here. It is also more concise, being two words shorter : If your computer does not automatically play these files when you click on them, downloading and installing free software from the Internet can enable it to do so. What do people think? Stephen B Streater 20:49, 23 August 2006 (UTC)


 * At least one knowledgeable person has seen it, and no one objected, so I've fixed it. Stephen B Streater 22:46, 24 August 2006 (UTC)

Firefox
i have a problem playin these files on firefox, it begin good, but when i clic the stop button it crash nd i have a steady loud beep tone that doesnt turn off nd i have to restart the computer. Anyone else have that problem or its just my sound card?--ometzit&lt;col&gt; 20:13, 23 November 2006 (UTC)

Videos work!
The videos work great on Mac and Linux! Thanks! --Gmaxwell 04:45, 3 May 2005 (UTC)

They also work great in Windows if you hunt down the right codecs... I had to anyways, so it was another good reason to find them. - Thekittenofterra 08:16, 15 February 2007 (UTC)

New idea for videos
Before, when we started putting videos in articles, it was debated whether they should be inline or at the end. It was decided to put them at the end because that blocky video box breaks the flow. Well, I think I know how to go with the flow. Let's say you're doing someone's biography, and you have video of an important event in their life, so you want it to be next to the event in the text. What you do is take a screencapture of the video, upload that, place the image in the article next to the event's text, and in the caption of the image, say something like "Still shot from footage of the Wright Brother's flight. See here for the full video." That caption would provide a link to the video, maybe with some sort of mini icon in the caption to indicate that there is a film clip. In this way, the flow wouldn't be broken up anymore than an image breaks up the flow, and the article isn't left with a bunch of videos randomly clumped at the end. How does that sound? &mdash; BRIAN 0918 &bull; 2005-11-1 03:28

OGG
Why does Wikipedia use .ogg files? I can't run them on anything on my computer: and so on. Why not use .mp3? -- Thelb 4 21:29, 24 November 2005 (UTC)
 * Windows Media Player? NO
 * RealPlayer? NO
 * Quicktime Player? NO
 * I tried to download the RealPlayer extension, but it wouldn't even set up!! -- Thelb 4 21:33, 24 November 2005 (UTC)
 * Wikipedia doesn't use MP3 audio because the MP3 format is encumbered by patents, which make it impossible to legally encode MP3s with free software. Ogg Vorbis is guaranteed to be free of patents, and it's also technically superior. If you have a specific problem with the installation instructions, try to figure out what's wrong and make suggestions to improve the instructions, don't just whine. —Keenan Pepper 22:59, 24 November 2005 (UTC)
 * That's easy enough for you to say, Keenan Pepper. If those of us who can't get these dratted .ogg files to work could "figure out what's wrong" then we almost certainly wouldn't need any instructions in the first place. -- Picapica 20:59, 28 May 2006 (UTC) (standing up for the right to whine)
 * (To Thelb4) - Windows media player works just fine, just follow the directions on this page and install the codecs from illimunible. (To Picapica) We have directions here for every OS and are willing to work with people to solve their issues and/or make the directions more correct/intuitive/easy to follow. However, we will be doing so on *our* terms. To this end, one of the foundation's overriding goals is to make things Free (as in speech) and that means we must avoided patented formats. Raul654 21:04, 28 May 2006 (UTC)
 * Many thanks for the speedy reply, Raul. It did inspire to make the umpteenth attempt, and, I am glad to say, this time successfully. The fly in the ointment proved to be "Once downloading has finished, run the setup program and follow the instructions on screen." I think some of you techies forget how profoundly ignorant some of us ordinary users are in IT matters. I can drive a car, but I haven't the faintest idea what it means when a mechanic tells me something like "all you have to do is advance the carburettor settings" (< I just made that up, btw; it probably doesn't make sense!). To people like me "Run the setup program and..." sounds horribly like "open the bonnet and..." -- when I don't even know where the bonnet catch is. It took me a fair amount of sweat, I can tell you, to find out just where that program was, let alone attempt to run it. However, I got there in the end. I don't think there is much danger of your insulting users by making instructions too easy to follow. Techies will recognize an idiot's guide as soon as they see one, and so won't even bother to read on. The rest of us will be very grateful. I retain the right to whine... but many thanks all the same. -- Picapica 21:54, 28 May 2006 (UTC)

I am trying to convert some *.mov files to *.ogg... is there an app that will do this for me that is very easy to use... my OS is WindowsXP. ~mfinney
 * I have downloaded the ogg codecs installer from illiminable and ran the wizard. When finished, I started WMP10 and went to tools>options>file types. The ogg file types were not checked (ogg files [oga], [spx] and [ogv]). Each time I check them, and go back in, they are unchecked again. I cannot get ogg files to play. I'm using Win XP. Any ideas why this isn't straightforward? Bswee 18:28, 1 June 2006 (UTC)
 * It depends on how you are trying to play them. Assuming you are downloading them to your hard drive and double-clicking on the files, you have to make sure the files are properly associated with WMP. Go to any open folder, and then: tools->folder options->file types tab->ogg->advanced. (If there isn't one for ogg, create a new one by clicking "new"). THe default option (highlighted in black) is what happens when you double click on a file. Click the default option, then edit, then change the path to the WMP (c:\program files\Windows Media Player\wmplayer.exe by default on most newer machines). Raul654 18:34, 1 June 2006 (UTC)
 * Wow, thanks, all taken care of. The was no association in Folder Options. Thanks a mill. Bswee 18:42, 1 June 2006 (UTC)
 * When I've done this in the past, I did a two step conversion: .mov -> mpeg using virtual dub, and then mpeg -> ogg using ffmpeg2theora. Raul654 22:26, 27 December 2005 (UTC)

Wikipedia using .ogg will add one more reason for your listed players (Real, WMP, QUicktime) to support them. If nobody uses it, nobody will have reasons to support it. I'm completely in favour of this choice. 201.212.255.118 19:50, 18 December 2006 (UTC)

I am personally frustrated by the decision to only have .ogg files, which is not readily accessible with an 'off the shelf' computer. Doesn't that go against the whole idea of accessibility and making it easy for people to use wikipedia? Why not provide multiple file formats, if keeping .ogg files is such a big issue? I'm glad no one has come up with another brilliant idea like making wikipedia Linux only. --I 06:47, 8 January 2007 (UTC)
 * Wikipedia is less about accessibility and more about self-diagnosed aspergian nerds circlejerking over how great their open-source Linux apps and filetypes are. Honestly, when was the last time you were "encumbered" by an MP3 patent? "Oh darn, I'd really like to play this sound effect, but I'd better check my local laws first to make sure I can use MP3. Oh, accursed gods, why can't these plebeians see the light? Obscure, difficult to use, clumsy filetypes are THE FUTURE!"
 * The notion that anyone who would rather use a universally-accepted format is "just whining" is ridiculous. AllOtherNamesTaken 03:55, 17 April 2007 (UTC)

OGG is a joke. Nobody uses it and trying to force it on people just results in the site being less useable. LAME will encode MP3 files that have no licensing issues whatsoever and is what should be used. 67.161.77.15 21:12, 23 April 2007 (UTC)

BETTER WAY TO WATCH OGG ON VISTA/XP USING WINDOWS MEDIA PLAYER! I tried to use the instructions again and again. But alas, the oggs were all duds for me. A day or two ago I stumbled on a blog for ways to improve Windows, and I found this! Codec Pack. The only thing I am worried about is that you might have to open Windows Media Player's menu, and check off the codecs after the install, and the install is quiet large for the undeserving those with dial-up, or limited disk space. Plus its not available to Win98/ME/2000 if I understand right. So aside from all that its pretty neat. It grants access to more then just OGG too! SO I suggest we give this as an alternative, or something. If we can get more people to view media on Wikipedia, then it means we'll have more media! - Thekittenofterra 08:35, 15 February 2007 (UTC)

Cannot download media
This might be wrong place for my problem, but I want to bring it to someone's attention. I don't know who to contact regarding this and the relevant discussion page apparently wasn't enough to spread the word. The problem beeing - undownloadable media, in my case ogg file that cannot be downloaded. I get a file of 0 length. Actual sample not working is this [[Media:Vivaldi - Four Seasons 1 Spring mvt 1 Allegro - John Harrison violin.oga]]. Well it did work a few months ago, that I remember. But its been undownloadable for quite some time now. --Neikius 19:44, 16 April 2007 (UTC)
 * I get the same error, both from the link you provided and the four seasons article itself. Hrm... damned odd. I don't have time to investigate right now, but I'll look into it further a little later. Raul654 21:16, 23 April 2007 (UTC)
 * I had a talk with the server admins. For that particular file, problem is now fixed. Long story short - the lighthttpd implimentation Wikipedia relies on has a known bug that causes this behavior. For a given file, the problem can be fixed by purging the file (go to the image page, click edit, and in the URL, replace ?action=edit with ?action=purge) Raul654 06:23, 24 April 2007 (UTC)

KAR
.* files can be uploaded as midi files. In any case, I suggest *:kar files can be directly uploaded .--HybridBoy 08:10, 12 May 2007 (UTC)

"MySQL" server/ system error 111
I'm experiencing problems playing media in my browser. I used to be able to watch videos from wikipedia in my browser but at some indeterminate time in the past, it stopped working. Every time I try to "watch in browser" I am given the following error message:

Warning: mysql_connect [function.mysql-connect]: Lost connection to MySQL server at 'reading initial communication packet', system error: 111 in /home/gmaxwell/public_html/jorbis/JOrbisPlayer.php on line 32 Couldn't connect to database: Lost connection to MySQL server at 'reading initial communication packet', system error: 111

I am using Mozilla Firefox v.2.0.0.4. What could be my problem here? -albrozdude 01:55, 1 July 2007 (UTC)


 * UPDATE I just tried something. By clicking "file info" and then using "play in browser" from the media page, I was able to view the video. However, attempting to do so via the article results in the error. In this case I am attempting to view media from Komodo dragon; however, this isn't the only media I've experienced the error with. -albrozdude 01:58, 1 July 2007 (UTC)


 * Okay, now it's working across the board. I did absolutely nothing, yet now I am able to play the media in my browser. Nevermind, I guess. -albrozdude 02:00, 1 July 2007 (UTC)

Different versions
I changed a version of a sample. If I click on the name of the song, VLC plays the old version, but while clicking on "play in browser" (Wikimedia player) plays the correct and updated version. Suggestions? ♫ Cricket02 15:58, 27 August 2007 (UTC)

Icon
The Wilhelm icon is oversized and intrusive. Its plain, its too wide, it creates white space, and it scrunches the aligned text. Can we reduce please. Ceoil 15:51, 9 September 2007 (UTC)
 * Yep. The screenshot is mine from S.H.E ... Firefox 2.0.0.6 with standard settings? gren グレン 07:15, 14 September 2007 (UTC)

Sound samples
Is it just my browser, or does anyone else notice that the sound samples are ill-shaped within the page, and protrudes unto the written text of the article? Is anyone working on this, please? It's been like this for a while. Oran e (talk)  19:19, 6 November 2007 (UTC)

Video in articles
I just uploaded some video, and now I would like to know how I can include this in articles... Guaka 00:30, 19 Jun 2005 (UTC)
 * Use the video template. See Apollo 17 for an example. &rarr;Raul654 01:08, Jun 19, 2005 (UTC)
 * Isn't there a more integrated way? It would be cool to have a little box with a play button, so that it's more like an image that is on the page itself. Guaka 02:04, 20 Jun 2005 (UTC)
 * Um, no, all images on Wikipedia redirect to their respective image pages. It is (almost) impossible to create a picture that, when you click on it, goes anywhere but its own image page. &rarr;Raul654 02:11, Jun 20, 2005 (UTC)


 * Buffering... Buffering...
 * This is frustrating! Guys you need to pick up your game re this display wiget or move to less open formats.  BTW this was not IE3 on dialup, but on Firefox 2.0.0.11 w/ JRE 1.6.0_03 on WinXP SP2 on a 6.9Mbps ADSL connection!.  Sorry to be so negative, I suppose it is a good start, but when we have other sites that do seamless video, we can't afford to look like the poorer cousin.  Aleast give the option to pre-load!... aarrgh!  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 124.168.210.143 (talk) 11:35, 6 December 2007 (UTC)

Playing works sometimes (Winamp)
When I click the sound-linked word in an article, Winamp automatically opens up and plays the audio file. However, if I go to the media page itself and click the play icon, or attempt to click media files in commons category pages, I get an error message telling me I don`t have the right software, prompting me to download the file or find a suitable player. Why is this? __meco (talk) 20:04, 7 December 2007 (UTC)

Doesn't work (Windows XP (SP2 fully patched) and Latest Windows Media Player
After 20 minutes of following the instructions and trying to get this to work on the above system (probably the most often used in the World today), it still does not work. This is the major technical weakness in the Wikipedia today. We should either fix it soon or use mp3. Greenshed (talk) 00:53, 13 December 2007 (UTC)

Rewrite
Since I've started putting up videos, I've gone ahead and rewritten this page. I need people who are familiar with ogg vorbis/theora on Mac and Linux/Unix to add instructions for getting it working on those platforms as well.

Remember, only list players here that will work with *any* .ogg file (that is, it should work with both vorbis and theora). &rarr;Raul654 18:17, Apr 28, 2005 (UTC)


 * According to the article one is for sound while the other is for video. Some people are interested in one but not the other.  A-giau 03:42, 10 May 2005 (UTC)
 * Vorbis is for sound, Theora is for video, and both use .ogg as their extension. Rather than hoping our viewers are knowledgable to tell the difference between them, we'll just do the very easy thing and limit our recommendations to players that can do *all* ogg files. &rarr;Raul654 23:01, May 14, 2005 (UTC)
 * Ogg is a container format. Vorbis (audio) and Theora (video) are stream formats that it can contain. It is not alone. Mkv,AVI,ASF are also containers. Come right down to it, so are MPEG-1,2,4. Some common types of media are given special filename extensions based upon their containees, rather than their containers. A .mp3 file is MPEG-1 or 2 containing only an Audio Layer 3 stream. A .wmv or .wma file is typically ASF containing Windows Media Video and/or audio.) —überRegenbogen (talk) 10:57, 28 December 2007 (UTC)

Double Play
When I click on a "Listen to media" button, the clip plays twice, the second instance starts less than a second after the first starts, which creates a strange "echo" effect. Does anyone know how to stop this? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 78.16.96.155 (talk) 13:09, 2 May 2008 (UTC)

Same thing is happening to me - see Audio and video talk page. Cavie78 (talk) 13:43, 7 July 2008 (UTC)

I'm unable to find the "Audio and video talk page", but I think I've narrowed this problem down to whether or not the "target" attribute is specified in the embed tag. The alternative is to use the playlist object to add media, and when I do this I get double-playback on second and subsequent plays of the video. (There are other ill effects coupled with this phenomenon, too.) However, when I add the media using the target attribute, double-playback doesn't happen. 67.193.128.97 (talk) 04:45, 8 November 2008 (UTC)

How about embedded in flash or shockwave?
--Agreed. Flash is the de facto standard for audio and video on the Web, most people browsing Wikipedia have it installed, and it's easy for users to figure out. Why are we four years behind the curve on this one? 67.149.147.188 (talk) 19:25, 25 December 2008 (UTC)

I have a player
I do have a player that recognises these files but it is not recognised. I have to select "download file" then select "open" but the computer recognises that I have a player so maybe something is amiss. No problem playing. ThisMunkey (talk) 00:05, 2 March 2008 (UTC)

I have one too-- click the button to play a sound, get an error message,  click "more",  click "download",  and then select "OK" at which point my (firefox) browser fires up the gxine plugin and plays the sound with no problems. Can't this process be made to work in a simpler way? --Rtellason (talk) 06:01, 30 December 2008 (UTC)

Promote VLC
Might I suggest you promote VLC more? It works all OS's except some older Macs. It's also open source and is simpler to install than a new codec pack on most systems. I'm not going to edit this page; you're doing a great job, but perhaps it might be easier to concentrate on one player. VLC, most of the time, is a "one size fits all" solution to most codecs. --CalPaterson 21:28, 5 March 2006 (UTC)


 * Well, we can't really "promote" VLC because that would violate WP:NPOV, but you're welcome to add relevant facts in support of it. —Keenan Pepper 21:42, 5 March 2006 (UTC)


 * Furthermore, none of these free media players are especially great. VLC, MPC, MPlayer, and even Microsofts WMP all fail under different circumstances and have various UI problems.  VLC has particular problems with single-frame stepping, which is annoying when you're trying to really study something. 24.16.88.14 (talk) 16:49, 2 January 2009 (UTC)

Page implies MPEG-1 is propriety
Page states "Sound files on Wikipedia generally use the Vorbis audio format, and video files use the Theora format. These are roughly similar to other formats used to play digital audio and video such as MP3 and MPEG. The difference is that these Ogg formats are completely free, open, and unpatented." I certainly agree that MP3 in patent encumbered, and that MPEG-2 is patent encumbered, but MPEG-1 Video with Layer II Audio is patent unencumbered so far as I can tell. As in I have not been able to find any listed patents for it in several internet searches and also in asking on the gstreamer-devel mailing list. Basically, I'm asking for a fact check on claiming that all MPEG formats are not free, open and unpatented. Jrincayc (talk) 03:44, 13 September 2008 (UTC)


 * OGG uses the same technology as all the other formats - DCT block coding. How can one be sure it is less encumbered by patents? Besides, the vast majority of computers cannot play OGG, so it's annoying to see wikipedia try to shove it down our throats.  It seems to be about politics. 24.16.88.14 (talk) 16:51, 2 January 2009 (UTC)

Latest Version of Firefox
After having upgraded to the latest version of Firefox, I am no longer able to play off soundfiles. Any suggestions for solutions? I have already redownloaded Java and VLC, but to no avail. V85 (talk) 20:58, 10 March 2009 (UTC)
 * http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia_talk:Media_help_(Ogg) No problem mate ;)--83.12.91.242 (talk) 22:13, 20 March 2009 (UTC)

I see a lot of people are complaining that OGG doesn't work

 * 1) Go here: http://www.cccp-project.net/
 * 2) Install it. Leave all options at their default.
 * 3) Download your OGG file.
 * 4) Right click it and choose open with.
 * 5) Choose Zoom Player, and tick "Always open with this program".
 * 6) Stop complaining that OGG sucks and that Wikipedia should use MP3. OGG is an awesome format; you suck for not doing your research.
 * Side-note: I have to mention that I find the "Sorry, your system does not appear to have any supported player software. Please download a player" message very ignorant. If you want media to play in the browser, go make a Flash audio/video player. Otherwise, change that to say something like "Sorry, your browser does not appear to have any supported player plugins. Please either download a plugin, or download this file to listen/watch on your computer". I'm sure I can't be the only one who doesn't want his browser infested with a million laggy plugins - Flash is enough by itself.

~  Keiji (iNVERTED)  ( Talk )  21:07, 14 May 2009 (UTC)


 * I totally agree. Ogg is an awesome format. You can also use the newest Firefox to play Ogg files (without any further plugins). Firefox 3.5 includes native support for Ogg (Theora and Vorbis). So stop complaining about Ogg. --93.208.168.61 (talk) 22:54, 13 July 2009 (UTC)


 * I must admit that I forgot FF had native Ogg support, but I use Chrome anyhow. Still, I guess it would be a good idea to support the HTML5 player that FF uses in addition to whatever is currently available. ~  Keiji (iNVERTED)  ( Talk )  00:23, 14 July 2009 (UTC)
 * It in the chromium builds (chrome's development branch). Opera supports it in some experimental builds too.  Safari supports the tag but doesn't include the ogg codecs.  — Dispenser 06:03, 4 August 2009 (UTC)

Flash Ogg Vorbis
~dispenser/view/Flash_Vorbis

It's a quick demo that I threw together from some released code on the net. Tim Starling has stated that he prefers not to have another media player client to avoid extra maintenance and support. However, I think this would be useful to get out there as it allows more people to listen to Vorbis audio. — Dispenser 06:03, 4 August 2009 (UTC)

Browser support for Ogg Vorbis
From the discussions above, it has been obvious that particularly in the early days, the requirement for Ogg decreed by Jimbo Wales back in 2004 was extremely painful. Now, five years later, Firefox and Chrome has added built-in support for Ogg via the and tags. See how far we have come? Persistence is a good thing. - Yuhong (talk) 16:24, 20 October 2009 (UTC)

Great idea
I know, let's add a button that can crash browsers to Wikipedia because we love Vorbis so much. Yeah, great idea, let's do that! Reinistalk 18:54, 19 October 2007 (UTC)


 * If your browser is crashing, that's a security defect and you should be notifying your browser vendor... 99.224.115.100 (talk) —Preceding undated comment added 13:18, 29 October 2009 (UTC).

Ditch OGG
Ogg is a nonstandard format no normal computer users use. Please make the switch to mp3. mp3 is also an open standard. Doshindude (talk) 03:17, 19 February 2008 (UTC)


 * MP3 is a nonstandard format, and it's only shipped with O/S like Microsoft Windows, and used on commercial sites, that's basically the only reason it's popular. MP3 is not an open standard.. or else we'd be using it. The idea is that OGG will become the standard, which there was lack of for the past 10 years. 99.224.115.100 (talk) —Preceding undated comment added 13:21, 29 October 2009 (UTC).

Chrome in Supported Browsers List
On the "Installing audio and video software" page, I see Firefox is mentioned as having native Ogg support. The current stable version of Chrome (3), however, also has native Ogg Vorbis/Theora playback support on all platforms. This option should be mentioned. Tuxcantfly (talk) 21:00, 11 November 2009 (UTC)

sound file from another Wiki
Andrzej Wajda has an audio link that doesn't work because the file in question is hosted on the German WP, not this one. How should I make this file available on the English WP? Lfh (talk) 16:54, 10 January 2010 (UTC)
 * If you upload it to the Commons, it will automatically be available to all projects. - SCEhard T 19:54, 10 January 2010 (UTC)

Using Silverlight 3's Raw AV Pipeline for Ogg Vorbis and Theora Playback
The latest version of Silverlight supports 3rd-party codecs via the raw AV pipeline, as mentioned in the release notes. An Ogg Vorbis player in Silverlight has already been implemented; a Theora version would also be possible. Given that Cortado is a rather inadequate solution for those using browsers without native Ogg support, and Silverlight's install base is steadily increasing, perhaps a Silverlight-based Ogg player should be added as an option? Is there any project ongoing at bringing a Silverlight-based Ogg Vorbis/Theora viewing option that I can get involved in? Tuxcantfly (talk) 20:43, 11 November 2009 (UTC)
 * In fact a pure C# Theora decoder has already been written; all that remains is to create the hooks to the Silverlight raw AV pipeline API. Tuxcantfly (talk) 21:13, 11 November 2009 (UTC)
 * And there now apparently exists a plugin by Nuanti that does just this; http://arstechnica.com/open-source/news/2010/02/nuanti-brings-html5-and-ogg-theora-video-to-silverlight.ars Tuxcantfly (talk) 00:24, 6 February 2010 (UTC)

Player
Whatever software you're suing for your player is absolutely horrendous. Something needs to be done about this. ~Rayvn 22:02, 7 July 2010 (UTC)  —Preceding unsigned comment added by RayvnEQ (talk • contribs)
 * Well, it's open source so you could do something about it. Or failing that, you could contribute to encourage someone else to. Stephen B Streater (talk) 06:46, 8 July 2010 (UTC)

Medical sounds
I have started adding medical sounds to Wikipedia such as this one:

The first second or two does not play properly the first time around. One must let it play through and play it a second time for the beginning to work properly. Does anyone else have this problem?

Doc James (talk · contribs · email) 01:35, 10 October 2010 (UTC)

Replace Java with Flash
The embedded player for audio currently uses Java, which presents several drawbacks, at least of my machines:


 * It take almost 10 seconds to just load/initiate the applet before any control elements appear
 * Loading of Java in Internet Explorer on Windows, Firefox on Win and Mac and Safari on Mac completely freezes the browser for a few seconds during this load, which disrupts the browsing and is very annoying
 * The seek bar is Java is very unresponsive

If we would replace those Java applets with Flash, all of those problems would disappear. Loading of Flash content is instantaneous, the player is usable on all major operating systems (Win, Mac, Linux), widespread and would provide a much smoother experience. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.177.200.152 (talk) 10:57, 6 July 2008 (UTC)
 * Totally agreed. Personally, I refuse to install the bloated mess that is Java on any computer I own. ~  Keiji (iNVERTED)  ( Talk )  21:14, 14 May 2009 (UTC)
 * Unfortunately this would require an Ogg demuxer and Theora and Vorbis decoder to be re-implemented in ActionScript (which will have rather slow performance due to Adobe's slow VM), and also Flash doesn't allow direct access to the video pipeline, so some roundabout hack would have to be used to actually paint the video on screen (again, GPU-accelerated rendering won't be used, leading to even slower performance). At any rate, a flash-based Ogg Vorbis/Theora player will be extremely CPU-hungry. Implementing something similar for Silverlight 3, however, would be considerably easier since it allows access to the raw AV pipeline, enabling the usage of 3rd-party codecs (indeed, an Ogg Vorbis player for Silverlight 3 has already been implemented). See section "Using Silverlight 3's Raw AV Pipeline for Ogg Vorbis and Theora Playback" for details. Tuxcantfly (talk) 20:57, 11 November 2009 (UTC)
 * See ~dispenser/view/Flash_Vorbis for a Flash 10 Ogg Vorbis implementation. — Dispenser 22:57, 11 November 2009 (UTC)

There's no reason why Java shouldn't work very well - and it has the possibilities of being extended beyond a trivial player in future. Open source may take time, but it generally gets there in the end. Stephen B Streater (talk) 06:44, 8 July 2010 (UTC) I agree. Java player is ugly and has bugs. Even if its stays as Java, it has to be improved. "Native Browser Support" player is ugly and buggy too. But no one seems to be bothered by that. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 139.179.96.235 (talk) 16:47, 10 February 2011 (UTC)

Double play problem
Has this been addressed? -- Doc James (talk · contribs · email) 04:15, 7 March 2011 (UTC)

'Play in Browser' stops before the end of the file
When I use 'Play in Browser' for an ogg audio file, the Java applet seems to stop playback before the end of the file is reached. If the sound is very short (e.g. the Wilhelm Scream) I only hear a very brief click lasting a fraction of a second before playback stops. The player 'thinks' it has played the whole file. Using Sun Java Standard Edition 6 version 1.6.0 under MS Windows XP. Any ideas? 217.155.138.250 16:08, 29 August 2007 (UTC)
 * I just checked it and I'd say the file is defective or not uploaded properly (Image:Wilhelm.ogg) because I can play other files fine. Maybe a note on the talk page of the file and/or article to alert someone would help. ♫ Cricket02 17:35, 29 August 2007 (UTC)
 * Thanks Cricket02! Glad it's not just me, but other files also seem to stop before they end as well - e.g. Castle thunder (sound effect) plays ok, but seems to cut off before the end of the sound effect. Same with tarzan yell ?? 217.155.138.250 19:03, 29 August 2007 (UTC)
 * I clicked on the file info of those clips, and they are very short, 47 kb and 97 kb respectively. In comparison, a typical 30-second sample of a song is around 130-150 kb.  Seems they are copyrighted and used under fair-use, so there are restrictions when it comes to using recorded copyrighted material, i.e. 10% of the file or 30 seconds, whichever is less.  I'd say that the clips, while short, are compliant and are 10% of the actual recording.  So I'd say its definately not you.   ♫ Cricket02 19:11, 29 August 2007 (UTC)
 * Just to leave a note : I had a similar problem with a .ogv (theora/vorbis) in Firefox 3.5 (so without a Java applet) where the playback would stop a few seconds before the real end. It was caused by a soundtrack shorter than the video track, Firefox stopping at the end of the audio track. I tested with the Firefox 4beta and the bug seems to have been fixed. 11:11, 14 March 2011 (UTC) —Preceding unsigned comment added by 80.11.130.10 (talk)

Early discussion moved from Wikipedia talk:Audio help
Check the hydrogenaudio site. There is no dispute that the best Ogg Vorbis encoders produce better quality audio than the best MP3 encoders at the same bitrate. MP3 requires about a 20% increase in bitrate to make up the difference, even with the best encoders.

By the way, though this is mere semantics, it's not the MP3 format itself that is encumbered by patents. It's the encoding and decoding technlogy.

The Uninvited Co., Inc. 02:53, 20 Feb 2005 (UTC)


 * Well.. it's semantics but... One of the Thomson patents covers perceptual encoding using subbanding. It's not possible to encode a valid MP3 file without violating the patent because it is very broad. Thus the claim that the format itself is encombered isn't *that* far from reality. (don't you love wiki's ability to have conversations spanning years?)--Gmaxwell 21:33, 25 July 2006 (UTC)

Should this page be moved to the help namespace? -- Tarquin 11:21, 27 Mar 2005 (UTC)


 * Yup; doesn't it belong at Help:Audio? &mdash;Michael Z. 2005-03-27 14:26 Z 

I have changed the url for Ogg Vorbis support for windows from http://tobias.everwicked.com/oggds.htm to http://www.illiminable.com/ogg/ With this one you have not only Ogg Vorbis but also Ogg Speex, Ogg Theora and Ogg FLAC. Wikipedia does also use Ogg Theora for video so that is better. --Walter 22:49, 10 Apr 2005 (UTC)

--- Do you think the link to this page from the audio could be changed from the question mark to (help) or something like that. Thanks. Zscout370 11:18, 25 Apr 2005 (UTC)

The site http://www.illiminable.com/ keeps coming up with a network error when I try to access it to download the relevant codecs. Any advise? 80.192.162.44 (talk) 13:18, 28 January 2012 (UTC)

Why not .webm ?
Is there a reason why .webm seems to not be supported? If not here, where should this question be posted? Thanks - K (talk) 11:38, 25 February 2012 (UTC)

Non default encoding is stupid
As acknowledged on the page, Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X do not support these formats by default, and require additional software to play them. It's not as though they are popular OSes. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 201.23.91.220 (talk) 15:50, 21 July 2012 (UTC)
 * THANK you. I can't even upload a new audio file to Wikisource because I have no clue what the original sounds like... BECAUSE I CAN'T OPEN IT!!! >:-( Stolengood (talk) 01:33, 3 August 2012 (UTC)

OGG
Very surprising that Wikipedia would stick with something that the typical user can't figure out. That doesn't make the user stupid, just cuz they don't want to jack with codecs, or install Ubuntu. But it kind of seems to be a punishment for the user not being able to, or just not wanting to do that. Hell, like the last time OGG reared it's head, all I wanted to do was hear how to pronounce "laissez faire". Wikipedia's answer: forget it. That's like going to the dentist with a cavity and the dude hands you the freakin' drill. With so much else going for it, to encode sound files--which could be so useful--in this format, makes no sense to me. Not down on OGG, it's cool for Nix junkies, and I know that as with many open source creations, probably has some superior traits to the other sounds formats hacked out by software corporations. But to make something unusable for the vast majority of users, just because of a leaning towards a certain operating system? If you have to have OGG, put some other options side by side. Surely you can figure that out. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 216.177.184.105 (talk) 04:44, 29 September 2008 (UTC)


 * - Wikipedia should use WebM, not OGV. But both formats just work on any normal OS, no other format is so easy to use. Jankratochvil (talk) 15:58, 9 August 2012 (UTC)

- Eh? Doesn't Firefox 3.5 come with OGG decoding? If not, just go get the codec... it's not like mid or mpeg etc are any more usable. 99.224.115.100 (talk) —Preceding undated comment added 13:00, 29 October 2009 (UTC).

iPhone
Doesn't work with an iPhone. I came to this article page expecting to find media help. SunCreator (talk) 05:28, 11 February 2010 (UTC)


 * Does the Cortado java plugin work? I haven't figured out if java is supported in the iPhone. There may not be an option on the iphone since as I understand it only supports H.264 and a MPEG-4 subset . Both those options are not possible for Wikipedia due to patent licensing fees.  It may be possible that Safari on the iPhone just cannot be used with Wikipedia sound and video files. Sorry. Jrincayc (talk) 15:17, 12 February 2010 (UTC)


 * While the iPhone hardware has native Java support, it isn't enabled in iPhone OS. Also, Apple refuses to support Ogg due to lack of hardware decoders and possible submarine patents.  "Debating Ogg Theora and H.264" is a good summary of the support for the video tag.  We probably should write something on this.  — Dispenser 18:48, 12 February 2010 (UTC)


 * So how about someone putting a comment on Media help (Ogg) that the iphone is not currently supported due to its lack of java and Ogg support, and if they have ideas they can discuss it here? Jrincayc (talk) 14:53, 14 February 2010 (UTC)


 * Fixed-point decoders for hardware without floating point units have been available since at least 2012 (See Tremor). Risk from a Submarine patent is pretty remote since the United States signed-on to TRIPS.   54.240.196.185 (talk) 23:14, 6 May 2013 (UTC)


 * One possibility for the iPhone platform might be the Wikipanion app by Robert Chin. -- Elegie (talk) 05:54, 5 June 2012 (UTC)

Windows RT
I am on a state of the art tablet, the Nokia 2520 and I cannot get OGG working here either. This is like an ipad on steroids. Modern interface, IE11, xbox music, Silverlight and Flash. Downloaded "ogg player" app but wiki sound file still wont play. Why can't Wikipedia follow Microsoft standards?

Audio file length in player
It would be great if the web player indicated the total length of the audio file like YouTube does (e.g. 0:30/3:40). Currently, it only shows a running timer (e.g. 0:30) and one has to either play the entire file, move the slider to the end or go to the file description page to find the length. --Joshua Issac (talk) 13:49, 13 November 2013 (UTC)

Help with a new user?
Hi! I'm not as overly familiar with media uploading on Wikipedia in general as my experience is pretty much limited to images and even then my knowledge is mostly about images along the lines of official logos, book covers, and movie posters. I have a new user (User:Fengxiaolu) on my page that is interested in creating an article and uploading her own media to Wikipedia and to Wikimedia Commons in general. She has asked about uploading her own movies and I have to admit that I don't really know anything about that. There's an ongoing communication on my talk page, so I have no big problem with anyone wanting to continue the discussion there- especially since I could definitely benefit from it as a whole. (User_talk:Tokyogirl79) I've pinged her in this note so just in case there are any comments here, Fengxiaolu will be able to see them as well. Tokyogirl79 (｡◕‿◕｡)   08:51, 19 May 2014 (UTC)

Application Blocked by Security Settings?
Hello, I am using the 64-bit version of Microsoft Internet Explorer and every time I try to play an .OGG file, I get an error message saying "Application Blocked by Security Settings. Name: pid_mwe_player_3. Location: http://bits.wikmedia.org. Your security settings have blocked an untrusted application from running." What could be causing this error message and how do I fix it? Thanks. Illegitimate Barrister 13:53, 16 July 2014 (UTC)
 * Use a different browser or try to implement one or all of these suggestions:
 * http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/ie/forum/ie11-iewindows8_1/application-blocked-by-security-settings/17b9b99f-8d1b-4269-afb5-fb568322c1fd
 * http://community.spiceworks.com/how_to/show/64624-your-security-settings-have-blocked-an-untrusted-application-from-running
 * http://www.javarippers.com/index.php/19/jdk-1-7-51-update-issue
 * Good luck. -- Michael Bednarek (talk) 06:53, 17 July 2014 (UTC)
 * Still no joy, unfortunately. Illegitimate Barrister 14:45, 18 July 2014 (UTC)
 * Even using a different browser doesn't work? That's odd and I'm out of further ideas. -- Michael Bednarek (talk) 07:06, 19 July 2014 (UTC)

Google Chrome works just fine, however, I.E. still doesn't work after all those tries. I'd like to get I.E. working with Wikipedia .OGG files, though. Illegitimate Barrister 12:00, 19 July 2014 (UTC)

MIME type
The .ogg media files seem to be getting served as MIME type "application/octetstream". Isn't there a more specific MIME type for Ogg format? Anyway, isn't "application/octet-stream" supposed to have a dash in it?


 * Doing :about plugin in firefox with the vlc plugin installed shows "application/x-ogg". It'd be great if (1) we used that MIME type or something else that will make it work (2) we took the google video src code and made a wikimedia player... basically the same idea of VLC plugin installer but without the restrictions. -- Kowey 02:48, 13 July 2005 (UTC)


 * The content type is now (the correct) .  However, it should probably be   for Ogg Vorbis when that type eventually gets registered (or maybe   in the mean time), and any equivalent type for the combination of Vorbis and Theora in Ogg.
 * --Joe Llywelyn Griffith Blakesley talk contrib 19:13, 23 January 2006 (UTC)


 * The separate audio/ogg and video/ogg mimetypes have been officially ratified. New Ogg MIME Types ratified Configuring servers for Ogg media and of course MIME Types and File Extensions. Looking forward to proper parsing :) Smithjd25 (talk) 22:51, 28 December 2014 (UTC)

January 2015
Lack of integrity of description: "Some Wikipedia articles include sound or video files, which can be played on almost all personal computers. However, your computer must have the right software....Microsoft Windows, iOS, and OS X do not support these formats by default, and require additional software to play them..". In effect this says yes but then contradicts with no, obvious trying to give a distorted view. This is as helpful as saying almost all personal computers can be made to fly an A380 jetliner or land a probe on an asteroid the size of a caravan several light-years away. For what should be but isn't a central function of Wikipedia, it is disgraceful that there is little honesty or realism in this description - the same arrogant attitudes and flawed thinking that gives us atypical inaccessible file formats for sound and image. Realistic description and a serious attempt at help might counteract the atypical nature but no, you just make it much worse. Wikipedia completely killed pronunciation advice with completely inaccessible technology, description and help. Wikipedia would not render its text in green on blue because you know colour-blind people can't read it (and that would be immoral) but here you think it is fine to gives us file formats that most of us fail to access even after lots of effort. This is anti-encyclopedia. It's been a problem from inception, many years. Why? This is so obviously poor and counterproductive, I wonder if it purposely so for some commercial reasons. Why else the lack of transparency and explanation even if we must have these formats? 114.198.108.79 (talk) 06:10, 11 January 2015 (UTC)

Volume resets to max when hitting play
So upon reading an article about audio signals I was about to listen to a sawtooth wave sample. Expecting the file to be loud, I lowered the volume on the player.

Then I proceed getting my ears sawtoothed by the player that is resetting the volume when the playback starts.

Can't this be addressed?--86.218.77.194 (talk) 13:10, 5 February 2015 (UTC)
 * It seems that the audio play-back software starts playing with its volume slider set to maximum volume. Users have of course the option of controlling the volume at their device. -- Michael Bednarek (talk) 15:23, 5 February 2015 (UTC)

Software not compatible
My computer is broken. I am currently viewing on a mobile device, so the software might not be compatible. Please make software that is compatible with mobile devices. Sausagea1000 (talk) 07:12, 11 January 2017 (UTC)

Downloading Software
I signed up to this site using an iPhone 7. I'm not able to listen, on the first page where it says "listen to grey noise", or the 2nd option, I think it's listen to white noise, not sure cause I'm not on that page now and I forgot. Anyway, is there some kind of software or app that I can download so I can listen to these and also any EVP'S? Thanks! Alliecakes1492 (talk) 19:45, 19 February 2017 (UTC)