Codec vs. filter

[Karkas]

Can anyone explain to me the difference between a filter and a codec? I've been looking around and can't seem to find a good contrast/comparison between the two.

It seems almost like the terms are used almost interchangeably but I'm certain they are not the same.

Thanks in advance!

[BigDid]

Hi,

Easy for codecs:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Codec
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_codecs

More tricky for filters; a good start: filters for signal processing:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Filter
Examples in avisynth filters:
http://avisynth.org/mediawiki/External_filters

I am not a good theorician so consider the folowing just as a starting point.
With a codec you can encode/transcode/recode/decode a flux (video and/or audio)
With a filter you can process/transform/adjust a signal or a flux

Did

[Karkas]

Hi,

Easy for codecs:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Codec
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_codecs

More tricky for filters; a good start: filters for signal processing:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Filter
Examples in avisynth filters:
http://avisynth.org/mediawiki/External_filters

I am not a good theorician so consider the folowing just as a starting point.
With a codec you can encode/transcode/recode/decode a flux (video and/or audio)
With a filter you can process/transform/adjust a signal or a flux

Did

Thanks for the links! I'll do some reading and post back if I have additional questions:)

[Karkas]

See, this is what I mean by confusing... Wiki (http://avisynth.org/mediawiki/External_filters#Source_Filters) has a bunch of decoders listed under "Source filters"

So is it a decoder as part of a coDEC, but still classified as a filter? If you are jsut talking about decoding a compression it can be called a filter?

I do notice other filters listed as doing things like fixing chroma or color matrix, etc. This is what I think of when I see the word "filter".

[Dark Shikari]

A codec is a piece of software to encode and decode video.

"Filter" means two different things. There's the actual meaning, referring to something that modifies a video/audio stream. Then there's the term "DirectShow filter" which refers to anything that can be inserted in a DirectShow processing chain, including encoders and decoders.