Difference Between FFMpeg and Xvid

FFmpeg vs Xvid
FFmpeg is one of the more popular video encoders that is being used by most people nowadays while Xvid is a lossy video codec that become a popular option to DivX which was the standard. These two are often used in tandem to create lossy high quality videos that don’t take up a lot of space.

FFmpeg and Xvid are two open source projects that are available on multiple platforms, but their beginnings are quite different. Xvid became the end result of the DivX open source project. When the community felt the lack of support from DivX, they took all the code that was open source and created Xvid. It later became a direct competitor to DivX. FFmpeg was developed from scratch on the Linux operating system as an open source video encoder. Even though FFmpeg started out and is still being actively developed on Linux, the source code can be compiled for any operating system possible.

FFmpeg can encode videos using the Xvid codec but it can also utilize other codecs depending on the preference of the user. It can use Xvid’s competitor, DivX, to produce videos that are of almost identical quality and size. It can also use lossless codecs to create bigger videos that doesn’t compromise the quality of the images. FFmpeg isn’t limited to using codecs made by other people or companies as it also has its own codecs to encode lossy or lossless videos. These codecs are named ‘Snow Codec’ and ‘FFV1’ respectively. Xvid is also used widely on other video encoders. Because Xvid is a free codec, there is really no tangible barrier that prevents software makers in including it in their libraries.

The most common use of FFmpeg nowadays is to encode videos using the Xvid codec to produce videos that can be played on set-top DVD players that can also play DivX videos. FFmpeg also provides the options necessary to make Xvid encoded videos compatible with DivX since there is no Xvid compatible set-top players.

Summary:
1. FFmpeg is a video recording and encoding tool while Xvid is a video codec
2. Both are open source software under the GNU GPL
3. FFmpeg can encode videos using the Xvid codec or other lossy and lossless formats
4. FFmpeg also has its own codecs
5. Xvid is also used by other video encoders
6. FFmpeg can be used to make Xvid videos that are compatible with DivX players

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