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Apple dropping codec support…repercussions
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[Oliver Peters] “Get a professional player tool if needed, like Switch. Don’t rely on QT.”
It’s not a player that’s needed. The Animation codec and others that had support dropped will play in VLC player. It’s being able to WORK with these formats. So either some way to re-wrap them in a supported container, or a converter that can read them and convert them.
Shane
Little Frog Post
Read my blog, Little Frog in High Def -
[Shane Ross] “It’s being able to WORK with these formats. “
I presume these were wrapped as .mov and not .avi (since it was a Windows user). I’d bet .mov. Have you or this person tried to bringing the files into Media Composer or any Adobe application? Going forward, that’s where the support will come from.
– Oliver
Oliver Peters – oliverpeters.com
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[Oliver Peters] “I presume these were wrapped as .mov and not .avi (since it was a Windows user). I’d bet .mov.”
Yes, MOV files in the ANIMATION codec. But when he got info for it, it said QUICKTIME RLE format…which googling got me to ANIMATION.
[Oliver Peters] “Have you or this person tried to bringing the files into Media Composer or any Adobe application?”
That’s why he posted (on a facebook group). He couldn’t import the files into Avid…nor open them in QT. VLC played them, but Avid wouldn’t import…nor link. And it happened after an update on the WIndows 10 system. It worked before, then didn’t.
Shane
Little Frog Post
Read my blog, Little Frog in High Def -
[Shane Ross] “it said QUICKTIME RLE format…which googling got me to ANIMATION.”
AFAIK, that’s not Animation codec. It’s a much older format. So it’s doesn’t surprise me that it isn’t supported. I believe Animation .mov is still supported in Windows, since that’s an old version of QT anyway on PCs. Is he sure that the Windows update didn’t actually wipe out QT or the older libraries?
– Oliver
Oliver Peters – oliverpeters.com
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[Oliver Peters] “AFAIK, that’s not Animation codec”
Sorry. I was wrong. Yes, it is Animation. The Adobe issue gets back to Adobe dropping support for QT7. So it was probably a CC update and not a Win10 update that did it. I’ve found a few forums that suggest rolling back to a slightly earlier version of the CC app to get through this.
– Oliver
Oliver Peters – oliverpeters.com
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First, Apple is removing the codec software from the OS itself. That doesn’t mean the codecs don’t still exist, nor that they cannot exist on modern Macs. The codecs still exist as math. If you have the math, you have the codec, and you can write an application to apply the codec. Apple has simply decided they don’t want to do this work anymore, but they are not stopping others from doing it. Avid, Adobe, Blackmagic, Sorenson, VLC, FFMPEG can all continue to support any codec worth their time, assuming the codec math is available.
Shane is right that a codec is not like a physical tape format, but the analogy works. Apple has stopped building the machines, but they are not stopping anyone else from building codec machines, and codec machines are relatively easy to build. Lot’s of people build codec machines. As software machines go, codec translators are fairly easy once the codec has been defined.
Remember that codecs were not historically part of any OS. Apple was the pioneer in including video codecs and a codec infrastructure (Quicktime) directly in the OS itself. Even then, there are many codecs Apple has never supported (WMV anyone?) or dropped long ago. Writing codec software represented a significant effort on Apple’s part and it is the central reason Macs became the system of choice for video professionals. Windows has never incorporated broad codec support in the OS. They rely on third parties, one of whom was Apple.
By the way, if VLC can play a codec, it can transcode it. Playing IS transcoding.
Cheers,
todTod Hopkins
Hillmann & Carr Inc.
Washington, DC -
[Tod Hopkins] ” Windows has never incorporated broad codec support in the OS. They rely on third parties, one of whom was Apple.”
What do you mean? Are you saying that MS doesn’t develop it’s own codecs, or that they don’t include third party codecs with Windows?
Shawn
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Interesting you say it’s an OS thing, but seem to completely ignore the fact that Apple develops and maintains the OS. They make the decisions that the OS pushes on its users.
Windows has a legacy DirectShow framework for CODECs, but since they didn’t let it languish as a 32-Bit component, they won’t have to worry about breaking every DirectShow Encoder/Decoder – or software program that depends on them to access certain formats – should they decide to drop support for 32-Bit applications in Windows.
This is just poor product planning on Apple’s part, IMO.
But people should be used to them not caring about what they don’t own, at this point.
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[Shawn Miller] “What do you mean? Are you saying that MS doesn’t develop it’s own codecs, or that they don’t include third party codecs with Windows?”
Neither, really. I’m saying that Microsoft has not considered extensive video codec support a significant feature of Windows until very recently. Microsoft does write some codecs and does support some in the base OS, but this support has never been extensive. If you want broad codec support in Windows you add third party codecs, often bundled into collections. Also true of Linux distros for what it’s worth.
The point I was trying to make is simply that we Mac users have come to expect “broad” video codec support built into the OS, but Apple OS is the exception, not the rule. I’m not apologizing for Apple’s choice. I don’t like it. I’m merely making the case that it is not a crises. Third party codecs are routine everywhere else.
Cheers,
todTod Hopkins
Hillmann & Carr Inc.
Washington, DC -
[Lee Doucet] “Windows has a legacy DirectShow framework for CODECs, but since they didn’t let it languish as a 32-Bit component, they won’t have to worry about breaking every DirectShow Encoder/Decoder”
A couple of points. Microsoft’s entire business model is different. MS can’t take features away. They are all about conservative stability. The two models are antithetical. MS will always chose the conservative path and Apple will always choose to be more progressive.
DirectShow is significantly newer than Quicktime.
Windows (as you pointed out) will not stop running 32-bit code any time soon.
Apple OS still has a powerful video framework. They replaced the framework. They didn’t remove it.
DirectShow relies heavily on third-party codecs.
Cheers,
todTod Hopkins
Hillmann & Carr Inc.
Washington, DC
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