Haali

[Robert the Bruce]

I've just discovered in my Program Files a folder entitled 'Free Codec Pack' and when I open this folder I see two other folders and a file. See screenshot.
Thing is, I don't have a clue what it is, how it got there or what it's associated with.
Help please.

 

[DaveBurnett]

Codec packs are used in things like VLC and Music/sound/video programs.
Media streams tend to get compressed to save bandwith (understatement) and many different schemes are used so you need these packs.
It won't hurt to delete them and download the latest if you play a lot of media.

 

[Robert the Bruce]

Codec packs are used in things like VLC and Music/sound/video programs.
Media streams tend to get compressed to save bandwith (understatement) and many different schemes are used so you need these packs.
It won't hurt to delete them and download the latest if you play a lot of media.

What is VLC ?
If I need these packs then why won't it hurt to delete them ???
Do you mean media such as YouTube ?

 

[DaveBurnett]

http://www.videolan.org/vlc/

I said delete and download latest

Media in this context means all forms of video and sound recordings.

 

[Robert the Bruce]

So is it safe to delete this folder ? I mean, I don't need it for YouTube or such like ?

 

[plodr]

Never just delete a folder!

Sometime you must have downloaded the Haali media splitter
http://www.free-codecs.com/download/Haali_Matroska_Splitter.htm
that's where you got it.
Look at the properties and you should see the date it was created on your computer.
If you use the program, do not remove the free codecs.

If you do not use the program, use something like Revo Uninstaller to remove all the bits and pieces of it.

 

[valis]

What plodr said, but if I may add something; IMO there are farbetter codecs out there than Haali. As DaveBurnett suggested, I use vlc for all movies; its small, lightweight, and very robust.

 

[Robert the Bruce]

Please excuse my ignorance but I can't get my head round whether I need this folder or not. I use Nero Vision or Windows Media Player for playback.
So is it OK to delete this folder.
I don't use any other programs aside from Nero Vision and Windows Media Player for viewing video's on my PC.

 

[Phantom010]

Please download MiniToolBox to your desktop and run it.

Select List Installed Programs only.

Click Go.

A list of your installed programs will open into Notepad. Copy/paste the content into your next reply.

 

[Triple6]

VLC uses it's own internal CODEC packs so this folder has nothing to do with VLC. Windows Media Player on the other requires CODECS from third party sources to play certain media files. Haali may have been or is required by any program that handles media files such as players, converters, or DVD software like what you are running in your screen shot.

Regardless you should not delete the folder, if you don't want it then uninstall it properly through Programs & Features. Randomly deleting folders is a sure way to mess up your system.

If you have already uninstalled the Free Codec Pack and Haali and this is a left over folder then you can delete it, but realistically if it's just a left over folder then its not doing any harm or it may be still being used by something.

 

[DaveBurnett]

VLC does have its own built in codecs for most things, but if it is asked to play something it doesn't know about it will look externally for one.

 

[TonyB25]

Maybe it was downloaded with a torrent. Or maybe playing a video you downloaded with a torrent prompted you to download it. VLC plays all legitimate video types without additional downloads. I haven't run into anything yet that requires a codec pack.

 

[Phantom010]

If you downloaded the K-Lite Codec Pack, Haali is included in the Full version. You most probably only need the Basic version though. That's the one I use. But, you need to always install the latest versions. If you're only using Windows Media Player, you'll definitely need a codec pack. K-Lite is one of the most popular ones, one I've used for many years.

 

[DaveBurnett]

VLC plays all legitimate video types without additional downloads.

That is not entirely true.
VLC does miss some of the more exotic but legitimate combinations. And, by the way stop accusing people of doing illegal things when you have no evidence.
Also, although they are not supported on this forum, using torrents can be an entirely valid and extremely efficient way of distributing files. I know of several large companies that use torrent internally to roll out software updates, and Linux distributions of use it globally.

 

[Robert the Bruce]

MiniToolBox by Farbar Version: 30-11-2014
Ran by Rowe (administrator) on 28-01-2015 at 19:06:42
Running from "C:\Documents and Settings\Rowe\My Documents\Downloads"
Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition Service Pack 3 (X86)
Boot Mode: Normal
***************************************************************************


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