Why is it so difficult for me to render or convert any kind video file in Linux to anything that will play correctly in Windows? Even the basic mpeg1 file that I make plays corrupted, either the video, or the audio, or both. What's the secret? I'm pretty sure I've tried just about everything, ffmpeg, avidemux, a couple other command line options I've read on the net. It's almost enough to force me to torrent a cracked Adobe Premier and work in Windows. Help!

Whoops, double post, sorry...

Hmm you are not specifying how you get the file or from where you want to convert it.

I use the MPlayer package, it has a very powerful encoder that comes along with it called mencoder.

I would suggest you download this, compile and install it, and try it out... just google "mplayer". Or check you favourite pacakage manager (though I always would suggest you compile it from source yourself - you have more control that way)

I have successfully created Windows playable files with mencoder (in the DivX4 codec standard) using the following command line. It takes all .jpg files in the directory, and outputs a 25fps DivX4 / 5 compliant MPEG:

This file can then be played in Windows if you have the DivX codec / player installed there.

Additionally, I have used mencoder to make DVD rips into .avi files that are fully playable in Windows it you have DivX4 / 5 codec and / or player installed.

This makes a medium quality DivX 4 / 5 compatible .avi from the Title 1 of the DVD in the DVD drive when this is executed on the BASH commandline in a terminal. Rips title 1 off the DVD to the file bob_part_a.avi, taking the English language track for the audio, with mencoder:

This, for example, "transcodes" an XViD encoded avi file (not playable on my Windows XP install) with relatively little loss of quality to a Windows playable DivX4 / 5 coded .avi with mencoder (that DOES play on my Windows XP install):

For very high quality transcodes or encodes, also try

i. e. instead of

this results in better quality, but longer encode time:

Also bringing the bitrate down will result in a smaller file with progressively more loss of quality the lower you set the vbitrate mencoder option.

Hope this helps... the application you are looking for is definitely mencoder IMO.

Thank you so much for you detailed reply-- it sure helped. It seems I basically have 2 problems:
1) that all the GUI tools I use for video work don't work too well for some reason. But the command line ones do. mencoder does work like a charm, (so did ffmpeg) once you know what you need to convert to, and
2) it seems MSWindows only plays certain types of encodings, but doesn't really tell you which ones. For instance, it'll play one type of .mpg but not another type, or an .avi that is a wrapper for one type of encoded file, but not another type of encoded file. And finding out exactly what types will play on MSWindows, and what those types really are (because Linux tools seem to call things by their real names), takes quite a bit of Googling and experimentation.

So I'm off to brush up on the subject, but at least I now know that it can be done.