Downloaded movies are becoming easier and easier to find and download. Fortunately there are a number of media players that you can take advantage of.

Windows Media Player is the default player, and comes with of Windows. Although it can be somewhat inflexible (not all formats work with it, so you should test new files before counting on it), that everyone has access to it ensures that it will be used for a long time.

The other default player, QuickTime sees a lot of use, as it was the first player for Macintosh computers, which is where a lot of media is created. As such, the QuickTime player also sees a lot of use. Although somewhat limited to one format (avi files), that file format is used widely enough that movies cater to it, thus making the QuickTime useful for more than just movie trailers and shorts.

On of the better movie players, most people know of WinAmp (www.winamp.com) because of its wide use in music downloads and customizable interface. With a wide variety of codecs available, WinAmp can handle most of your needs, but may have some problems.

Fast becoming the leading player, DivX (www.divx.com) is able to handle most formats and has a customizable interface, making it a popular choice for those that watch a lot of movies.

No discussion of media players would be complete without discussing the codec. Short for “coder-decoder”, the codec converts analog video and audio signals into a digital format for transmission, and then converts received digital signals back into analog format. Each specific type of format (.mpeg, .avi, and .wmp) has a required codec that must be downloaded before it will play on your chosen media player. Just make sure that your player has the current codecs when you play (check your media player’s update page every few months to make sure you have the current version!).