What is the FLV File Extension?
FLV is a common file extension for videos created and distributed using the Flash Video Player. FLV videos are often found through the Internet, as they are easily compressed and are easily embedded in SWF files. The FLV file container is open, but the technology used to create it is proprietary, making the format hard to develop for on an open-source basis.
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Flash Video Basics
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Flash video is a highly movie video format that is based on the flash animation standard. It can be created by Adobe Flash. As of 2009, it has gone through nine iterations, each of which have added faster frame rates and higher quality audio. The latest flash release even added support for MP3-quality audio, which has made FLV video perfect for performance or music videos.
Use in Web Streaming
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The main area where FLV videos are used is in web streaming. Because of their high quality and fast frame rate, sites like YouTube, Google Video and Yahoo Video have been using the FLV format almost since their inception and with much success. The FLV format is very nicely compressed, so it does not take as much of a toll on bandwith as other formats.
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Compatibility with Media Players
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The FLV format is natively compatible with Adobe Media Player, RealPlayer and Wimpy FLV Player. Since most people view FLV streamed online, all modern Internet browsers, including Firefox, Internet Explorer and Safari, are all compatible with FLV content.
Associated Codecs
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Although FLV-formatted videos are compatible with a lot of programs out of the box, you can make them compatible with even more programs, including the ubiquitous Windows Media Player, by downloading a codec known as "ffdshow." See the Resource section for more on downloading and installing this codec.
Conversion
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If you find that the FLV format is not compatible with your favorite media player or video player, it can be easily converted into other formats, such as AVI and MPEG-4. In order to convert FLV files, you will need a specialty program. One such program is the free AVS Video Converter. See the Resources section for a link to more information on this program.
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References
Resources
- Photo Credit Speedy2, via sxc.hu
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Comments
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dnatureluvr
Sep 21, 2009
5* great help in understanding the difference
