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Dear PC Doctor,
My friend sent me a short video in an email but my computer cannot play it. I downloaded the file to my desktop but when I try to open it a window pops up saying that Windows cannot open this file. Is there a way to play the video file? I usually do not have a problem with video files but this one says it is an .mkv instead of the usual .wmv.
Ron
Dear Ron,
Yes, .mkv files are not a native file to Windows so it does not know how to play them. However, it is easy enough to download the right software so you will be able to play the video file. One of my favorite (and free!) video players, VLC will play most any kind of video file you throw at it. Visit www.videolan.org/vlc to download it! If the movie does not start playing in VLC after you install it, right-click the file and choose to play with VLC.
Tip: It will also play DVDs! One of the nicest features on it is to click on the Video menu button and select “Always on top”. By doing this, I can still do things on my computer while watching my movies because the window for my movie always stays on top of everything else! Enjoy!
PC Doctor
Until next time… happy computing!
Posted: to Athol Library News on Thu, Sep 27, 2012
Updated: Thu, Sep 27, 2012