WMV format - problem
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A LONG time ago, hard drives cost quite a bit more.. and internet speeds were quite a bit slower. Back then, it made sense to compress videos into either the WMV or RM format. They are extremely similar. The problem with both of them is that unless the proper encoding settings are chosen, the results of compressing to those formats are awful. I once spent months finding the best settings, and I tried to get other people to use the best settings. I got nothing buy fights from people resisting the RM format. Because of the cost and speed improvements, the RM format is virtually dead (other than for LIVE streaming).
I wonder why the WMV format has not died also. It does almost exactly the same thing to a video as RM does, resulting in the same degree and method of compression. These WMV videos require several seconds of playing before they become viewable. That is quite annoying. WMV format is also dangerous because it allows nasty things like passwords, advertising, and malware to be inserted into it. We have the MP4, AVI, MPG, MOV, FLV, and raw VOB formats. I think the posting of WMV movies should be discouraged. In fact, if you find a WMV movie, it is a red flag to indicate that the movie sucks.
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I have to say I always found RM movies to be awful to watch, bad quality. People have wmv files because at one time it was that or nothing (well, almost nothing).
I have many wmv files and some are good, both in viewing quality and content. I usually post torrents in the same format I got them, figuring if people want to try and enhance them, they should make that decision.
I doubt that you will find many recent wmvs but to dismiss them altogether means we cut out a great many older movies.
And I have never come across any movies in any format that have introduced spyware or malware