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| 4 | <META HTTP-EQUIV="content-type" CONTENT="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1">
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| 5 | <title>SMPlayer FAQ</title>
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| 6 | </head>
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| 7 |
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| 8 | <body>
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| 9 | <h1>SMPlayer - Frequently Asked Questions</h1>
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| 10 |
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| 11 | <ol>
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| 12 | <li><a href="#smplayer_mplayer">Sometimes I read SMPlayer, others MPlayer, what are
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| 13 | they? are they the same?</a></li>
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| 14 | <li><a href="#dvd_menus">DVD menus, where are they?</a></li>
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| 15 | <li><a href="#output_drivers">Output drivers (directx, xv, x11, gl, alsa, oss...)
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| 16 | what are they? Which one is the best?</a></li>
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| 17 | <li><a href="#screenshot">I try to make a screenshot but the option
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| 18 | is disabled, why?</a></li>
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| 19 | <li><a href="#audio_track">I try to change the audio track but it doesn't work,
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| 20 | the audio remains the same. I have to stop the video and play it again to
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| 21 | actually change audio. Why?</a></li>
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| 22 | <li><a href="#shortcuts">How can I change the key shortcuts?</a></li>
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| 23 | <li><a href="#qt">I've read something about Qt, what's that?</a></li>
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| 24 | <li><a href="#codecs">With some video formats I only get audio, but not
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| 25 | video. Why? Do I need some codecs?</a></li>
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| 26 | <li><a href="#open_quit">What's the difference between Open -> Close and
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| 27 | Open -> Quit? Do they do the same?</a></li>
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| 28 | <li><a href="#audio_cd">How can I play an audio CD?</a></li>
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| 29 | <li><a href="#bookmark">Where is the bookmark?</a></li>
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| 30 | <li><a href="#mplayer_errors">I try to play a file but nothing happens.
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| 31 | Why?</a></li>
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| 32 | <!--
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| 33 | <li><a href="#preferences_delay">When I open the preferences dialog for first
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| 34 | time it takes some secs to show, why?</a></li>
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| 35 | -->
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| 36 | <li><a href="#tv">Are you going to add support for TV?</a></li>
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| 37 | <li><a href="#mplayer_restart">A lot of menu options make the video to go blank
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| 38 | for a moment. Why?</a></li>
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| 39 | <li><a href="#crash">SMPlayer crashed, but the audio didn't stop, why?</a></li>
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| 40 | <li><a href="#playlist_problem">When I'm playing a playlist, when a file ends
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| 41 | SMPlayer doesn't play the next file automatically, why?</a></li>
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| 42 | <li><a href="#mplayer_recommended">What version of MPlayer is recommended?</a></li>
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| 43 | <li><a href="#subtitles_border">I want the subtitles to be displayed on the black
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| 44 | border instead of the image, how can I do it?</a></li>
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| 45 | <li><a href="#expand_filter">I want the subtitles to be displayed on the black
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| 46 | border for ALL videos, is it possible?</a></li>
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| 47 | <li><a href="#monitors">(Windows) The video is displayed only in the 1st
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| 48 | monitor but not in the 2nd, why?</a></li>
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| 49 | <li><a href="#screensaver1">The screensaver doesn't turn off, why?</a></li>
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| 50 | <li><a href="#volume_loud">The volume is too loud at the beginning of the
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| 51 | videos, how can this be fixed?</a></li>
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| 52 | <li><a href="#vista">(Windows) I'm using Windows Vista and every time
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| 53 | I play a video Aero is disabled, why?</a></li>
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| 54 | <li><a href="#config_file">Where is the configuration file?</a></li>
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| 55 | </ol>
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| 56 |
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| 57 | <hr>
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| 58 |
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| 59 | <ol>
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| 60 | <li><a name="smplayer_mplayer"></a>
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| 61 | <b>Sometimes I read SMPlayer, others MPlayer, what are they? are they
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| 62 | the same?</b>
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| 63 | <p>
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| 64 | No, they are two different applications. MPlayer is a multimedia player
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| 65 | developed initially for linux and then ported to other OS. It's very
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| 66 | good, it plays almost every everything, and it has for instance a lot of
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| 67 | filters and so on. But most users may find it hard to use it.
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| 68 | <p>
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| 69 | Fortunately MPlayer can work together with another application (the
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| 70 | video window can be embedded in the other application GUI, it obeys
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| 71 | commands sent by the application).
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| 72 | So SMPlayer is just a front-end which uses MPlayer to actually play the
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| 73 | videos.
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| 74 | <p>
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| 75 | SMPlayer is the window you see, the menus, the preferences dialog...
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| 76 | (along with other things you don't see, like functions to control
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| 77 | MPlayer). But SMPlayer knows nothing about playing files. It doesn't
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| 78 | even know what a codec is.
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| 79 | MPlayer on the other hand, opens the files, decodes them, displays the
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| 80 | video and plays the audio. Subtitles are also read, parsed and displayed
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| 81 | on screen by MPlayer.
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| 82 | </li>
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| 83 |
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| 84 | <li><a name="dvd_menus"></a>
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| 85 | <b>DVD menus, where are they?</b>
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| 86 | <p>
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| 87 | Currently SMPlayer doesn't support DVD menus... but it's under development.
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| 88 |
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| 89 | Anyway, even there are no DVD menus, you can still select your desired
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| 90 | title, chapter, audio track, subtitles... in the SMPlayer menus.
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| 91 | </li>
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| 92 |
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| 93 | <li><a name="output_drivers"></a>
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| 94 | <b>Output drivers (directx, xv, x11, gl, alsa, oss...) what are they?
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| 95 | Which one is the best?</b>
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| 96 | <p>
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| 97 | MPlayer has several output drivers, for video and sound. SMPlayer allows
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| 98 | you to select the one you want among all of them (<i>Preferences -> General
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| 99 | -> Video/Audio</i>).
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| 100 | <p>
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| 101 | For video it's recommended that you use xv (linux) or directx (windows).
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| 102 | They use hardware acceleration and give the best performance.
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| 103 |
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| 104 | The inconvenience about directx for Windows Vista users is that it
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| 105 | disables Aero.
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| 106 | <p>
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| 107 | x11 and directx:noaccel are drivers without hardware acceleration. They
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| 108 | give the worst performance. Moreover directx:noaccel gives a bad quality
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| 109 | in fullscreen mode.
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| 110 | <p>
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| 111 | gl and gl2 will use 3D acceleration from the graphic card. They will
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| 112 | give better performance than directx:noaccel and x11 but no so much as
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| 113 | directx or xv. gl/gl2 can be useful for Windows Vista users.
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| 114 | <p>
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| 115 | For sound, you should usually use oss or alsa in linux. I don't like esd
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| 116 | or arts, they use to use more CPU.
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| 117 | <p>
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| 118 | In windows the sound drivers are dsound and win32. I read that dsound
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| 119 | can cause sometimes audio-video sync problems. If you notice that
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| 120 | problem try win32 instead.
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| 121 | <p>
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| 122 | Other drivers allows you to save the video as image files or write the
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| 123 | sound to the disk. These drivers are not officially supported by
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| 124 | SMPlayer. Use them only if you know what you're doing.
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| 125 | </li>
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| 126 |
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| 127 | <li><a name="screenshot"></a>
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| 128 | <b>I try to make a screenshot but the option is disabled, why?</b>
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| 129 | <p>
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| 130 | You didn't choose a folder for storing the screenshots. Do it in
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| 131 | <i>Preferences -> General</i>, and the screenshot option will be enabled.
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| 132 | </li>
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| 133 |
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| 134 | <li><a name="audio_track"></a>
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| 135 | <b>I try to change the audio track but it doesn't work, the audio
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| 136 | remains the same. I have to stop the video and play it again to actually
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| 137 | change audio. Why?</b>
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| 138 | <p>
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| 139 | With some formats (ike mp4 or ogm), MPlayer can't change the audio track
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| 140 | at runtime. By unchecking the option "Fast audio track switching"
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| 141 | (<i>Preferences -> Performance</i>) you'll be able to change the audio in
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| 142 | those formats.
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| 143 | </li>
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| 144 |
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| 145 | <li><a name="shortcuts"></a>
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| 146 | <b>How can I change the key shortcuts?</b>
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| 147 | <p>
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| 148 | <i>Preferences -> Keyboard and mouse</i>. You'll be able to change most key
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| 149 | shortcuts.
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| 150 | </li>
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| 151 |
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| 152 | <li><a name="qt"></a>
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| 153 | <b>I've read something about Qt, what's that?</b>
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| 154 | <p>
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| 155 | SMPlayer is being developed by using Qt, which is a C++ library that
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| 156 | allows cross-platform development. The same source code can be compiled
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| 157 | on Windows, Linux and Mac OS.
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| 158 | More info:
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| 159 | <a href="http://trolltech.com/products/qt">http://trolltech.com/products/qt</a>
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| 160 | </li>
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| 161 |
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| 162 | <li><a name="codecs"></a>
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| 163 | <b>With some video formats I only get audio, but not video. Why? Do
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| 164 | I need some codecs?</b>
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| 165 | <p>
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| 166 | MPlayer can player most common formats "out of the box". But for codecs
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| 167 | that haven't been yet implemented natively, it's necessary to install a
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| 168 | package with binary codecs. You can get it from the
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| 169 | <a href="http://www.mplayerhq.hu/design7/dload.html">MPlayer download
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| 170 | page</a>.
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| 171 | <p>
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| 172 | On Windows, install the codecs in the mplayer/codecs subdirectory.
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| 173 | On linux distros the package may be available as a regular package,
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| 174 | maybe with the name of w32codecs or something like that.
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| 175 | </li>
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| 176 |
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| 177 | <li><a name="open_quit"></a>
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| 178 | <b>What's the difference between <i>Open -> Close</i> and <i>Open -> Quit</i>?
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| 179 | Do they do the same?</b>
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| 180 | <p>
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| 181 | If the option "Show icon in system tray" (in menu Options) is not
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| 182 | checked, then yes, the two options do the same: quit the application.
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| 183 | <p>
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| 184 | But if that option is enabled, then <i>Open -> Close</i> will just hide the
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| 185 | application (and stop the current file), but SMPlayer is still running.
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| 186 | <i>Open -> Quit</i> really quits the application, no matter if the system tray
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| 187 | icon is enabled or not.
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| 188 | </li>
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| 189 |
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| 190 | <li><a name="audio_cd"></a>
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| 191 | <b>How can I play an audio CD?</b>
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| 192 | <p>
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| 193 | Support for audio CDs was added in version 0.5.18.
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| 194 | <p>
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| 195 | Under Windows it's not possible to play audio CDs yet.
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| 196 | </li>
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| 197 |
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| 198 | <li><a name="bookmark"></a>
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| 199 | <b>Where is the bookmark?</b>
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| 200 | <p>
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| 201 | Not implemented yet.
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| 202 | </li>
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| 203 |
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| 204 | <li><a name="mplayer_errors"></a>
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| 205 | <b>I try to play a file but nothing happens. Why?</b>
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| 206 | <p>
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| 207 | Probably MPlayer couldn't play the file. Open the mplayer log
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| 208 | (<i>Options -> View logs -> MPlayer</i>), you'll probably find an error message
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| 209 | in the latest lines.
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| 210 | <p>
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| 211 | On Windows is quite common that some MPlayer builds fail because they
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| 212 | have been compiled with no support for some feature that SMPlayer tries
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| 213 | to use. The error message could give you a clue. If it complains about
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| 214 | cache, try disabling the cache in <i>Preferences -> Performance</i>. If it
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| 215 | complains about fontconfig try to use a ttf font instead of a system
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| 216 | font.
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| 217 | </li>
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| 218 |
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| 219 | <!--
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| 220 | <li><a name="preferences_delay"></a>
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| 221 | <b>When I open the preferences dialog for first time it takes some
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| 222 | secs to show, why?</b>
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| 223 | <p>
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| 224 | In that moment SMPlayer calls MPlayer to get some info from it (the
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| 225 | output drivers, for instance). It happens the same with <i>Options -> View
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| 226 | info and properties</i>.
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| 227 | </li>
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| 228 | -->
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| 229 |
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| 230 | <li><a name="tv"></a>
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| 231 | <b>Are you going to add support for TV?</b>
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| 232 | <p>
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| 233 | That would be nice, but TV support is not planned for now. Currently
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| 234 | I don't have a TV card, so I can't implement it.
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| 235 | </li>
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| 236 |
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| 237 | <li><a name="mplayer_restart"></a>
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| 238 | <b>A lot of menu options make the video to go blank for a moment.
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| 239 | Why?</b>
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| 240 | <p>
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| 241 | Some options require to stop the MPlayer process and start it again with
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| 242 | new parameters. That's why playing interrupts for a moment.
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| 243 | </li>
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| 244 |
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| 245 | <li><a name="crash"></a>
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| 246 | <b>SMPlayer crashed, but the audio didn't stop, why?</b>
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| 247 | <p>
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| 248 | SMPlayer crashed, but MPlayer is still running. Kill the MPlayer process
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| 249 | in the task manager.
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| 250 | <p>
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| 251 | Anyway if SMPlayer crashes, it's a serious bug that should be fixed.
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| 252 | Report it.
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| 253 | </li>
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| 254 |
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| 255 | <li><a name="playlist_problem"></a>
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| 256 | <b>When I'm playing a playlist, when a file ends SMPlayer doesn't
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| 257 | play the next file automatically, why?</b>
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| 258 | <p>
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| 259 | Be sure you're using at least SMPlayer 0.6.5 and MPlayer SVN r28066.
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| 260 | </li>
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| 261 |
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| 262 | <li><a name="mplayer_recommended"></a>
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| 263 | <b>What version of MPlayer is recommended?</b>
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| 264 | <p>
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| 265 | I recommend to use at least MPlayer SVN r25843 (from 2008-01-23), although
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| 266 | a recent version from SVN would be better.
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| 267 | <p>
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| 268 | SMPlayer will try its best to work with older versions, but some options
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| 269 | may not work.
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| 270 | </li>
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| 271 |
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| 272 | <li><a name="subtitles_border"></a>
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| 273 | <b>I want the subtitles to be displayed on the black border instead
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| 274 | of the image, how can I do it?</b>
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| 275 | <p>
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| 276 | <i>Video filters -> Add black borders</i>
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| 277 | </li>
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| 278 |
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| 279 | <li><a name="expand_filter"></a>
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| 280 | <b>I want the subtitles to be displayed on the black border for ALL
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| 281 | videos, is it possible?</b>
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| 282 | <p>
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| 283 | You can add a video filter like
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| 284 | <b>expand=:::::4/3</b> in <i>Preferences -> Advanced -> Options for MPlayer</i>.
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| 285 | <p>Other possibilities:
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| 286 | <ul>
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| 287 | <li>check <b>Add black borders on fullscreen</b> in
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| 288 | <i>Preferences -> General -> Video</i></li>
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| 289 | <li>Add <b>add_letterbox true</b> in actions list field in
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| 290 | <i>Preferences -> Advanced</i></li>
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| 291 | </ul>
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| 292 | </li>
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| 293 |
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| 294 | <li><a name="monitors"></a>
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| 295 | <b>(Windows) The video is displayed only in the 1st monitor but not in the
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| 296 | 2nd, why?</b>
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| 297 | <p>
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| 298 | When you use <i>directx</i> as video driver
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| 299 | (<i>Preferences -> General -> Video</i>) the video can only be displayed on
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| 300 | one monitor. If you use instead <i>gl</i>, <i>gl2</i> or <i>direct3d</i>
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| 301 | the video will be displayed in any monitor.
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| 302 | <p>
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| 303 | Anyway if you prefer to use <i>directx</i> you can choose the screen which
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| 304 | will be display the video in the menu <i>Video -> Screen</i>.
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| 305 | </li>
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| 306 |
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| 307 | <li><a name="screensaver1"></a>
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| 308 | <b>The screensaver doesn't turn off, why?</b>
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| 309 | <p>
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| 310 | If you use a recent version of MPlayer you may need to add a line like this
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| 311 | in your ~/.mplayer/config:
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| 312 | <p>
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| 313 | (gnome)
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| 314 | <pre>heartbeat-cmd="gnome-screensaver-command -p &>/dev/null"</pre>
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| 315 | <p>
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| 316 | (kde)
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| 317 | <pre>heartbeat-cmd="dcop kdesktop KScreensaverIface enable false &>/dev/null && dcop kdesktop KScreensaverIface enable true &>/dev/null"</pre>
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| 318 |
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| 319 | <p>Please take a look at the MPlayer manpage for more info.
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| 320 | </li>
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| 321 |
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| 322 | <li><a name="volume_loud"></a>
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| 323 | <b>The volume is too loud at the beginning of the videos, how can this
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| 324 | be fixed?</b>
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| 325 | <p>
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| 326 | Check the option <i>Change volume just before playing</i> in
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| 327 | <i>Preferences -> General -> Audio</i>.
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| 328 | <p>
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| 329 | This option requires at least MPlayer SVN r27872.
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| 330 | </li>
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| 331 |
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| 332 | <li><a name="vista"></a>
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| 333 | <b>(Windows) I'm using Windows Vista and every time I play a video Aero
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| 334 | is disabled, why?</b>
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| 335 | <p>
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| 336 | This happens when you're using <i>directx</i> as video driver
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| 337 | (<i>Preferences -> General -> Video</i>). You can change it to <i>gl</i>,
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| 338 | <i>gl2</i> or <i>direct3d</i>.
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| 339 | </li>
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| 340 |
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| 341 | <li><a name="config_file"></a>
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| 342 | <b>Where is the configuration file?</b>
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| 343 | <p>
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| 344 | SMPlayer uses two <i>ini</i> files: smplayer.ini and smplayer_files.ini.
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| 345 | Both are stored by default in <i>$HOME/.config/smplayer</i> (Linux) or
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| 346 | <i>C:\Documents and Settings\your_username\.smplayer</i> (Windows XP).
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| 347 | <p>
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| 348 | You can also see it in the SMPlayer log (<i>Options -> View logs</i>), look
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| 349 | for a line like this:
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| 350 | <pre>
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| 351 | * ini path: '/home/ricardo/.config/smplayer'
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| 352 | </pre>
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| 353 | <i>smplayer.ini</i> stores the SMPlayer configuration while
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| 354 | <i>smplayer_files.ini</i> stores the settings of the files you have played.
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| 355 | </li>
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| 356 |
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| 357 | </ol>
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| 358 |
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| 359 | </body>
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| 360 | </html>
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