Xvid

Xvid is a free, open-source video codec based on the Advanced Simple Profile implementation of MPEG-4 Part 2. It is relatively fast and can produce very good quality videos.

The switching of codecs

In the past, groups had almost exclusively used the DivX video codec. This changed once Xvid matured enough and proved to deliver better results relatively speedily, so most groups said goodbye to DivX. Currently, a new widespread codec change is in progress in the form of Xvid to H.264. This change is more complicated, however, due to the increased complexity of decoding H.264 and, to a lesser extent, encoding it. This will surely mean that Xvid will follow a similar fate to that of DivX, as will H.264 eventually, thus continuing in the seemingly infinite cycle.

External links

• Official website
• Koepi's Xvid builds Koepi does arguably the best publicly available binaries. Download here if you are using Windows and don't want to compile yourself.
• Xvid FAQ - a FAQ from a very reputable site
• VirtualDub Guide - a guide to configuring Xvid using VirtualDub
• Gordian Knot Guide - a guide to configuring Xvid using Gordian Knot