What exactly is "ffdshow" ?

[mike23]

Because on my system a MPEG4 codec was missing I was directed to ffdshow package. Ok, I downloaded and installed it.

Much to my surprise I was asked some unexpected questions during installation:
e.g.
Which video codec should be supported:
XVID, DivX5, MS MPEG4v3,...

Is ffdshow a replacement for these codecs (I installed them separately before) ?

Or is it an extension ?

Or is it used only as a plugin for some programs (Which? ) ?

Are there any alternatives to ffdshow?

I would appreciate a basic explanation.

Thank you

[Awatef]

Well, ffdshow can be seen as an all-in-one decoding solution for all video files you'll ever cross on the street! :D
BUT! you can disable some options in it so that after all it doesn't decode something you don't want it to decode!
If you can't get friends with the idea, you can still get some codec recognition program like MediaInfo to get codec details of the video file that is "harassing" you and search for that specific codec via Google :)

[unskinnyboy]

What exactly is "ffdshow" ?
:search:

http://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?t=112690

[CWR03]

To put it in layman's terms (and hopefully I'm accurate) ffdshow is a codec handler. It alows you to individually select which codecs will decode which formats, useful mainly if you're having problems with only one file type. It has many other features such as filters, resizers, the ability to "grab" frames, etc., all of which are listed when you click Start > All Programs > ffdshow > Configuration.