Make Your Windows Media Player All In One Multimedia Player

For people who always prioritise simplicity in their mind, they always try to have only one tool with many functions (and if can, it should performs all functions). If you are one of them, you may like my idea of having only one media player but can play all types of multimedia files!

Yup, you already have one media player (which is supplied by default by Windows, except for some european countries though), which called Windows Media Player (WMP for short). However, it can only play limited multimedia filetypes. In the case you want to play an MP4 file, AAC file or QuickTime MOV file, you have to install other media players like QuickTime, Nero ShowTime or even WinAMP. This is unacceptable for people like me, since that means wasting your system resources and the most important is that it diminishes the simplicity itself!!

Thanks to great architecture of WMP, it adopts DirectShow technology which allow you to add more codecs for playing specific multimedia filetypes. Basically, to play a multimedia filetype in WMP, you just need the right DirectShow filter. The other advantage of having DirectShow filters that all the codecs won't conflict to each other (So, don't blame about codecs conflict if your video/audio file won't play).

After trying many codec packs, I found that K-Lite codec pack is the best. It has many codecs and DirectShow filters which allow your WMP to play most multimedia files available in the market, from MP4 to QuickTime, from AAC to OGG. I would recommend the Standard pack as it is enough to play most multimedia files without having confused with too many codecs installed.

You can download K-Lite Codec Pack here (current version is 3.8.0): http://www.free-codecs.com/download/K_Lite_Codec_Pack.htm

Additionally, if you want to play QuickTime files from your favourite browser without installing QuickTime / iTunes, you should download QuickTime Alternative or QT Lite (v2.4.0) here: http://www.free-codecs.com/download/QuickTime_Alternative.htm

Your codec pack won't be complete if you still cannot play Real media files, to do that, you can also download Real Alternative (v1.7.5) here:
http://www.free-codecs.com/download/Real_Alternative.htm

With these three codec packs, you are ready to play most of multimedia files in the market without any more hassles.
Please note that in order to play multimedia files using WMP, you shouldn't install Media Player Classic! In addition, you should associate the filetypes to your WMP (you can do it easily at the installation of K-Lite codec pack).

Another codec pack which is also good (because it is fast, even for slow computers), which is recommended for people who only want to watch DivX / Xvid movies and have some OGG music files support for their WMP, you should try this Codec Pack All in 1 (v6.0.3.0) here: http://www.free-codecs.com/download/Codec_Pack_All_in_1.htm