How to Change an AVI Codec
Choosing the proper codec (COmpressor - DECompressor) for your AVI video can make all the difference when distributing your file. AVI (Audio Video Interleaved) files have the advantage of high-quality video and audio, with the only real disadvantage being that the large file size limits the potential for distribution. Proper codecs can reduce the size while maintaining overall quality of the file. Changing a codec requires the use of a media conversion program. A wide variety of these programs are available both on the Internet and in stores. Links to such programs can be found in Resources. While there are slight differences depending on what codec you're changing to, the process is quite similar for most.
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Instructions
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Open the video conversion program.
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Import the AVI video into the program. This can most often be done by choosing the "Import Video" option or "Open" option.
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Select the file output format (in this case, still AVI) and select a codec from the list supplied with the program (examples: DivX, Xvid, 3vix, cinepack, and H.264).
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Select the output location and file name.
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Click the button designated to begin the re-encoding process. This button is usually labelled with a title such as "GO", "Start", "Begin Conversion" or "Convert". Once the conversion process is complete, you will now have a new AVI file with the new changed codec.
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Tips & Warnings
Always make sure you have the necessary hard drive space for the conversion of the file. The average movie-length AVI file runs between 650-750 MB. The conversion process will create a copy of the source file, and depending on the codec chosen, the copy may be larger than the source file.
