Problem Playing DVDs on laptops

jizba

When I attempt to play DVD movies on my laptop the following error message appears:

Windows Media Player cannot play the DVD because a compatible DVD decoder is not installed on your computer.

What do I need to do in order to resolve this issue?

Thanks

d123

you need to download a codec pack, google for "codecs" or try and find "klmcodec350" which is the one I used, it actually comes with a DVD player built-in that works better than WMP.

Edit: here is a link to it http://www.codecpackguide.com/klmcodec.htm

Dave

Whits

Download and install VLC Media Player.

It's a very simple interface but it is rare for it to not be able to play a file.

HTH

BillScarab

I agree with Whits, VLC is excellent. Another good choice is Media Player Classic

jizba

Thanks for the responses.

I downloaded http://codecpack.nl/klmcodec345.exe and the DVD's are now playing although the quality is not great, is this a limitation of Windows media player and should I replace it with 'VLC media player'?

Thanks

ABH_3

jizba wrote: »

Thanks for the responses.

I downloaded http://codecpack.nl/klmcodec345.exe and the DVD's are now playing although the quality is not great, is this a limitation of Windows media player and should I replace it with 'VLC media player'?

Thanks

WMP isn't the best for playing such things, though you may just need to tweak the codec that's being used to play the file. I tend not to use codec packs as they install a whole lot of stuff that isn't really required, you only really need one codec to play dvd's and that's a mpeg codec.

As you've got the codec pack installed, you could try boosting the output quality by going to start\programs\codec pack name and there maybe a config tool in there. Alternatively you could uninstall it, then install VLCPlayer http://www.videolan.org/ and just use that, it works as it's got the necessary codecs included in the installation package.

HTH

Whits

TBH Jizba, although I use VLC mostly, there are occasions when I use Windows Media Player.

Unless you're pushed for space, it wouldn't be a problem to have both on your system.

jizba

Thanks again fr those responses.

I downloaded VLC, the picture quality is much better, not perfect but as good as I can probably get with a laptop. The sound is not quite right though because when scenes of dialogue arise some of the voices seem to screech so its impossible to make out what is being said, is there a way to correct this?

Incidentally how do I make VLC my default media player?

Thanks.

Whits

This is for Vista (as it's my operating system) - open control panel, under hardware and sound you will see a link that says - Play CD's and other media automatically, click on this link and it will bring up a page where you can set all your default actions.

As I say, this is for Vista. I can't remember how to set defaults in XP as I've been running Vista for ages.

ABH_3

jizba wrote: »

Thanks again fr those responses.

I downloaded VLC, the picture quality is much better, not perfect but as good as I can probably get with a laptop. The sound is not quite right though because when scenes of dialogue arise some of the voices seem to screech so its impossible to make out what is being said, is there a way to correct this?

Have you been into VLC\settings\preferences and looked at Input\Codecs? as there are a variety of options and settings to tweak in there. Otherwise you could try the nvidia video codec http://www.nvidia.com/object/dvd_decoder.html that most of us who have htpc's use.

Incidentally how do I make VLC my default media player?

Assuming you're using XP then you can open Windows Explorer, right click on a file and choose 'Open With' and it will associate that file with your chosen application. There's more here: http://www.smartcomputing.com/editorial/article.asp?article=articles%2F2006%2Fs1706%2F10s06%2F10s06.asp just in case the above doesn't work.

HTH

former_student

ABH wrote: »

Have you been into VLC\settings\preferences and looked at Input\Codecs? as there are a variety of options and settings to tweak in there. Otherwise you could try the nvidia video codec http://www.nvidia.com/object/dvd_decoder.html that most of us who have htpc's use.

I am in a similar position as the OP, when I play DVD's on VLC and the picture is ok and the sound isnt great. I dont know much about the settings of VLC, is there any free program that can be downloaded that can adjust the setting to suit my spec.