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QuickTime To Move To MPEG-4

Posted by timothy on from the quicktime-is-polymorphously-perverse dept.

spav writes: "Looks like Apple will be embracing MPEG-4 for its new versions of QuickTime according to C|Net News.com. That could mean quicktime for Linux, but would we need it?" This sounds like a start toward OS-neutral video, but until companies decide not to add proprietary layers making otherwise widely-available formats unavailable, it won't be the end. The first half of this article dwells on QuickTime's 10th birthday, but then gives slightly more detail on the MPEG4 transition.

2 of 173 comments (clear)

  1. Completely ignorant article, as usual by lordpixel · · Score: 5, Informative

    As pointed out ad nauseum by people on the last story, QUICKTIME IS A CONTAINER FORMAT. It WRAPS different streams of audio and video.

    The supported audio formats include WAV, AIFF, AU, mp3 and half a dozen others.

    The video standards used have included CinePack, 3 different versions of Sorenson and even Intel's Indeo video (used for years in Microsoft AVIs).

    The container format is supported on Linux Open Quicktime

    The problem is Sorenson is exclusively licensed to Apple and they do not release it for Unix/Linux.

    The other layer of ignorance is that MPEG-4 is also a container method for compressed audio and video streams. In fact its very similar to Quicktime (the packaging standard) indeed because it is actually _based on_ Quicktime!

    That's not going to help Linux if they keep using Sorenson. It might help Mac users watch 3ivx, Divx and whatever other encoding formats are sometimes refered to as MPEG-4. You're not going to find this out from the CNET article though. Actually, since Quicktime is a container format, it supports pluggable codecs, so I watch MPEG4/{X}ivx video in Quicktime already - but it sure would be nice if Apple shipped those codecs out of the box.

    The article is BS on many other points in any case - I would estimate over 50% of the streaming video I see out there is available in Quicktime format (though often alongside one of the other two). I mean, its very much the right tool for the right job at present... have you ever seen a good looking movie trailer in Real Video? I've seen a couple of OK ones, but the filesizes were similar to better looking Quicktime packaged (ie, Sorenson encoded) trailers. On the other hand I might use Real where image quality is less important. Oh, and of course, Quicktime includes mp3 support - its not competing with it!

    So what does all this mean? Obviously Apple adopting MPEG4 could mean one of two things:

    • Since the MPEG 4 packaging standard is based on QuickTime, perhaps they are just updating it so the next Quicktime is 100% compatible with the official standard. This would certainly help the Open Quicktime people, as they can then just write to the MPEG-4 standard
    • It may mean Apple are going to ship the codecs commonly used with MPEG-4 (ie, the {X}ivx variants, FivX, 3ivx etc). That would help Linux because it would mean more Quicktime movies would exist compressed in formats which are available on Linux.

    If Apple stick with pushing Sorenson as the primary codex (and hey, it is *really* nice looking) and don't ship any of the typical MPEG4 codecs, well that's not much news. If they ship {X}ivx alongside Sorenson, that's great because it allows content producers to choose, and Linux users can ask them to choose the more widely available {X}ivx compressors.

    If I was more naive I'd say I can't believe CNET were presenting the "move" to MPEG4 as a retreat for Quicktime. MPEG 4 is the standardization of Quicktime and a vindication of its owenership of the professional market! Are they stupid or deliberately spinning it - you decide!

    So all in all the CNET article is biased, tells you very little about what's actually been announced (is it new codecs? is it more standards compliance?) and tries to spin a victory as a defeat. Oh yeah, and Timothy's comments show he has no clue in this area either...

    --

    Lord Pixel - The cat who walks through walls
    A little bigger on the inside than out

  2. rid yourself of the "Why upgrade?" � slightly OT by slurry47 · · Score: 5, Informative

    QuickTime asks you to upgrade on the first application start of each day it's used.

    BEFORE starting QuickTime change your date to a MUCH higher year e.g. 2020.

    Then start QuickTime.

    When asked to "Why upgrade?" click "Later." NOTE: giggle to your self at this point.

    QuickTime won't ask you to upgrade again til the first time you use it in 2020.

    Oh yeah ... change your date back at this point.

    --


    Dirt doesn't need luck.