[Feature Request] Enable playback of WebM VP8

[palikacska]

Hi,

I have recently switched to SlimJet because of Windows XP support ending in Chrome.

I noticed that most of the YouTube videos are played by Flash Player instead of HTML5, then went to the https://www.youtube.com/html5 page and noticed that neither WebM VP8 nor H.264 are supported.

I read that H.264 is not included because of extra license fees. But how could I enable VP8?

I don't want Flash Player for video playback, at all. It takes almost 2 times more CPU than HTML5 playback. On computers I use, performance is a matter. This is why I stick to XP instead of upgrading to Windows 7.

I think SlimJet could be a great, fast and secure alternative for older netbooks.

[dev]

they are but slimjet enables them through your OS (saves license fees.) I suggest install a codec pack like shark's http://shark007.net/vistacodecpackage.html (the main windows 7 one will probably work too)

[palikacska]

So you mean, if I install FFDShow that registers every format SlimJet supports, SJ will use these directshow codecs for decoding both VP8 and H.264?

[oftentired]

So you mean, if I install FFDShow that registers every format SlimJet supports, SJ will use these directshow codecs for decoding both VP8 and H.264?

Slimjet developer has commented in another post that H.264 is called by Slimjet if the Codec is present. I cannot say with as much certainty about VP8, but I think it will as well.

[palikacska]

I think a howto / checklist would be useful regarding this topic. Even some notice into the installer because Flash Player wastes a lot of resources and the overall experience can give the impression that SlimJet is slow and has a hard time playing video (while it's a bit faster than Chrome and can give better experience).

I have installed ffdshow that supports H.264 decoding.

ffds.png

Still the H.264 playback is marked as unavailable ...

eight.jpg

... and YouTube videos are played by Flash Player.

Same happens with VP8 if I enable it in ffdshow.

[dev]

no ffdshow installed just shark's codec pack and everything plays fine in my slimjet and everything is enabled to play apart from mpeg 4 asp https://html5test.com/s/6df6012e6821c0c4.html

[palikacska]

Although Shark007 codecs work with other applications, it doesn't have a codec pack dedicated for Windows XP.

I tried to install Shark007's Vista Codec pack to my XP system but still the same. I also tried installing SlimJet (I used it in portable mode). Nothing changed. Could someone help me debug this issue?

Nevertheless, soon SlimJet will be the only secure browser option for those who still use XP which mean low-end machines with low resources. HTML5 playback is more important than anything else on these systems, because the slowness of Flash Player is simply not an option. I think it would be a great marketing opportunity for SlimJet that developers continue to build for XP. This still means at least a hundred million users worldwide.

I think this video playback under XP should be taken more seriously. I'm not just here to complain, but I'm offering my help to debug this problem and write down my conclusions, even in a form of a Howto. However I'm going to need some help to get started. How exactly SlimJet selects the codecs it will use for decoding videos?

[dev]

link i provided in my first reply is xp specific it's title page says Codecs for Windows XP and Vista but never mind try installing http://shark007.net/win7codecs.html as this will provide the cover for h.264. barring that try klite codec pack or cccp pack. A sidenote If you're worried about OS and performance try a Linux distro but i would just go for windows 7 tbh you're not going to see much difference in performance from xp even on a older version just needs some of the "pretty" switching off.

[palikacska]

What I still don't understand why I have to install a bloated codec pack while 90% of its codecs are useless for me. Just tell me the name of the single codec that will make SlimJet H.264 or VP8 work. Why isn't there a step-by-step howto about this or some disclaimer that will clarify how SlimJet uses installed codecs under Windows?

[TryKindness]

no ffdshow installed just shark's codec pack and everything plays fine in my slimjet and everything is enabled to play apart from mpeg 4 asp https://html5test.com/s/6df6012e6821c0c4.html

So that nobody else wastes a bunch of their time, I tried this and it didn't work. I tried several other popular codec packs as well and they too didn't work.
Hopefully dev will reply with specific instructions.