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vlc conversions

Dec 27, 20244 min read

VLC is a fantastic video player. The list of formats it supports is huge, and it seems to do a great job playing everything I’ve thrown at it. It’s free. It’s open source. It’s cross platform (including mobile). It has no ads and no tracking.

https://www.videolan.org/vlc/

VLC will also do video conversions. For example, when I shoot video on my phone I often get a file that’s far too big to be practical as media for twoprops.net, and would be jittery over most connections even if the size was otherwise tolerable.

The interface for conversions is arcane. I suppose with so many supported CODECs and features, it has to be.

What I’ve found works best for videos on twoprops.net is to convert to webm format. Here’s how it’s done:

Convert

  1. Click on the Media menu.
  2. Click on Convert / Save....
  3. On the resulting Open Media dialog, click the + Add... button.
  4. From the resulting Select one or multiple files box, choose the video(s) you want to convert and click ✓ Open. The file(s) of interest should appear in the File Selection list.
  5. Click on the Convert / Save button.
  6. On the resulting Convert window, under Profile, choose the profile you want. I use Video - VP80 + Vorbis (Webm) for videos on twoprops.net. There are many possible profiles, plus you can create your own, but such things are beyond the scope of my brain, let alone this little tutorial.
  7. On the Destination pane, click Browse.
  8. On the resulting Save file... window, choose a name and location for your converted file. Click Save.
  9. Click Start.

Wow, nine clicks to start the conversion. BUT WAIT… I’ve found that many times the resulting video is rotated. First try playing the resulting video in VLC, then double-check by dragging the file into a blank Firefox window. If it’s rotated, and you try searching on “rotated video”, you’ll end up falling down a deep rabbit hole. So first go back to VLC and…

Convert and Rotate

  1. Click on the Tools menu.
  2. Choose Effects and filters.
  3. In the resulting Adjustments and Effects window, click the Video Effects tab.
  4. Under Video Effects, choose the Geometry sub-tab.
  5. Check the box in the Transform pane.
  6. Using the menu under Transform, choose the rotation or flip you would like. (90° rotates a quarter-turn clockwise, 270° rotates a quarter-turn counterclockwise.)
  7. Click Save.
  8. Click Close.
  9. Click on the Media menu.
  10. Click on Convert / Save.... (The video you picked before should still be selected. If not, repeat steps 3 and 4 from the Convert sequence above.)
  11. Click on the Convert / Save button.
  12. On the resulting Convert window, under Profile, choose the profile you want.
  13. To the right of the profile menu, click the button with the tiny wrench icon (🔧) in it.
  14. In the resulting Profile edition window, click the Video codec tab.
  15. Under Video codec, click the Filters tab.
  16. Scroll down to Video transformation filter and make sure it’s checked (and that all the other filters are unchecked).
  17. Click Save
  18. You’re back on the Convert window. On the Destination pane, click Browse
  19. On the resulting Save file... window, choose a name and location for your converted file. Click Save.
  20. Click Start.

Wow, twenty more clicks. Be aware, too, that the changes you made are persistent, but hidden. You might want to turn off Tools>Effects and filters>Video Effects>Geometry>Transform and Media>Convert/Save>🔧>Video codec>Filters>Video transformation filter or you’ll get a weird rotation next time you do a VLC conversion and not remember why.

Did I say “arcane”? Happy converting!

Oh, this tutorial was done using VLC version “3.0.21 Vetinari” running under Linux Fedora 41.

—2p

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