Movie File Terminology - from Confusion to Movie Download Revolution!

From Movie Theaters to Multiplexes and then to homeMPEG-4: this is a set of standards for a file for video
cinema systems. From Betamax to VHS. From VHSand audio, put together by the "Moving Picture Experts
to DVD. Analogue to digital. We all know the story soGroup" (hence MPEG) and yes, it is their 4th version at
far.the standard. So you can now download a movie in
But are you up to date with the latest? If you are newMPEG-4 format - but this can take time!
to the Internet are you totally confused by the jargon?DivX: developed by DivXNetworks, is a file format that
Do you know your DVD from your P2P? Do youenables movies to be downloaded much faster
confuse your Divx and MPEG4? Have you got yourwithout losing any picture quality - and DivX is based
MP3s, codecs and plug-ins. What does it all mean andon the MPEG-4 technology that we mentioned above.
does it matter?Codec: although it sounds mystical it is quite simply a
The acronyms get longer, the speed of change faster,piece of software that enables file compression and
the confusion greater. I am one day watching a moviedecompression to transfer it across the internet.
on my laptop - and another day I am teaching myMP3: short for "MPEG Audio Layer 3" - from our
uncle to program his old VHS recorder!MPEG friends again. This file format is for digital audio
The speed of change has opened up a huge gaponly, it uses a compression method that means smaller
between different users and this gap seems tofile sizes.
continue to grow.You do lose some information but most people can't
It is now very easy to download movies to watchnotice the reduction in quality. So it's great for
when you want, with perfect digital reproduction anddownloading music and playing on an MP3 player. But
you can even watch them where you want - perhapsthis is just for music, not for movies.
on a laptop on the commuter train or on the TV asP2P: short for peer-to-peer. This is not a file format but
normal.one popular method of sharing these files. Peer to
But to do so it helps to learn the new language and ifpeer is a form of computer network that does not rely
you are interested in joining in the movie downloadon a client and server, but each computer is a peer or
revolution then some basic grounding in the essentialequal - great for sharing and downloading audio and
terminology will help.home video content.
So where to start? Let's start with something we thinkEven with compressed files it can take some time and
we know:sharing the load amongst several computers is a
DVD: "Digital Versatile Disc" or "Digital Video Disc" -clever way to harness the power of the internet.
these are discs that look like compact discs (CDs) butSo you've downloaded the files - how do you play
hold much more data and are used now for storingthem?
movies.On Windows PCs these files will usually play without a
Rewriteable DVDs can be used for storing your musicproblem on the standard Windows Media Player
and computer files. Sorry there is no space here to goparticularly if you have the latest version.
into the difference between the different permutationsFor Apple Macs, QuickTime is both a file format and a
- DVD-R, DVD-RW, DVD+R and the rest - that wouldplayer. Designed by Apple Computers QuickTime has
be a separate article in itself!been around a while. You can download the player
Clearly when you download a movie you are notfrom the Apple website and you can run it on a
downloading a DVD! So when you download a moviewindows PC.
what do you actually download?Having mentioned Apple it would be difficult not to
It is quite simply a computer file - but of course theymention the iPod. But playing movies on iPods and
come in many flavors! Here are the highlights of the fileother portable players is another topic entirely!
jargon you may come across.© 2006 WhatMovieDownload.