VLC media player

[Andrew B.]

VLC media player is the media player I usually see recommended in forum discussions. It supports many file formats and runs on multiple platforms. On the surface is looks a bit clunky, but maybe a skin would fix that. Also, it's amazing how many features are not apparent. But while searching for media players with variable speed I stumbled onto a thread the covers this for VLC. And I also learned that I don't need to drill down through VLC's extensive menus to do this. All I have to do is hit right-bracket or left-bracket on my keyboard. And to get back to normal speed I press the equal-sign key.

So now reading more I realized I can add buttons to do this, and much more. Just go to Tools|Customize Interface. Or to see a list of hotkeys, go to Tools|Preferences|Hot Keys. And, of course, I could have discovered all this without searching the web, but what can I say. I'm no longer a power user with a gold star.

Now, what about zoom, which is a feature I want and I'm not sure why. There seems to be two ideas about what zoom is. Some software implements it by enlarging the video to fit more of the screen. Or, if it is already fitting the screen, it does nothing. What I want is something that will zoom within the frame of whatever is showing on the screen.

VLC can do both. But to get the kind I want I have to click Tools|Effects and Filters|Video Effects|Geometry|Interactive Zoom. And there appears to be no hot key. Also, I would prefer to have a zoom that doesn't have a navigation window. Instead I would just use the mouse and drag on the screen to navigate. So if any of you know of a viewer that can do this, please let me know.