A few free tools for audio and video stuff
Once in a while I have to work with video or audio recordings. Or sometimes I need to convert file formats. And sometimes when I do media critique I have to do a little creative, fair use, editing. Here are three tools that I’ve found useful.
VLC, Handbrake, Audacity
Many years ago my good friend Hugh suggested I use VLC to watch video, listen to podcasts, and enjoy music. Like other humans, I too enjoy to listen to music sounds.1 I still use VLC, although mostly to transcode file formats. VLC is awesome.
Recently, I couldn’t figure out why VLC was making me an .m4v format instead of an .mp4 (something to do with Mac proprietary formatting), and I worked it for a bit and then just decided to download Handbrake. It worked like a charm. Handbrake is awesome.
Also, from time to time I edit audio recordings. To do this, my good friend Soumya recommended that I try using Audacity. I did, and I enjoy using it! It’s not always the most intuitive but there’s heaps of Youtube instructional videos, and I now I love it. Audacity is awesome.
- Many years later I would figure out what podcasts are. ↩