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Help & Info about VLC media player for Mac

  • What is VLC Media Player?

    VLC Media Player is a program developed by the VideoLAN project, designed to serve as a quick and accessible way to play a wide range of different media types. Its versatility and straightforward interface has led to it being widely used around the world.

  • Is VLC Media Player free to use?

    Yes. the software is free and open source, a key contributing factor to its worldwide success. The official website of the program offers a free and safe download to all users.

  • What kind of media does VLC Media Player play?

    The software is designed to play as much media as possible, be it a digital file, a DVD video, webcam footage or online stream. It plays most codecs without the need of downloading an additional codec pack. It is compatible with all widely-used media filetypes, along with more obscure and specialised formats.

  • What platforms does VLC Media Player run on?

    The software runs across Windows, Mac OS X, iOS, Linux, Unix and Android, with a Windows Phone version currently in the works. It is designed to be a versatile program catering to the needs of as many different users as possible, no matter what their preferred platform.

  • Is VLC Media Player safe to download and use?

    If the copy is downloaded from the official website, then yes, it will be safe. The program has no spyware or trackers; in fact, it does not even have adverts. It is a free and accessible piece of software with no hidden drawbacks.

  • Can VLC Media Player play DVDs from all regions?

    Not necessarily: like all software capable of playing DVDs, whether or not it can handle multiple regions depends primarily on the user's DVD drive. If the DVD drive is region-locked, then VLC Media Player will not be able to play DVDs from foreign regions.

  • Does VLC Media Player have a config file?

    The program generates a specific config file for each user, rather than offering a global configuration file. When a user modifies and saves VLC's configuration, this results in a new config file being created in the relevant user directory. The exact location of this file depends on the user's operating system, as Windows, Mac OS and Linux/Unix versions store the file in different places.

  • Is it possible to take screenshots of media in VLC Media Player?

    Yes. Doing so is a simple process of using the relevant screenshot hotkey, which is ctrl + alt + S in Windows, Linux and Unix; command + alt + S in Mac OS X (the program allows the user to customise this hotkey). Once that is done, the screenshot will be saved in a specific folder, which can be customised by the user.

  • Can VLC Media Player be used while browsing the Internet?

    Yes, it is possible to use VLC while viewing online videos by using a special plugin. This plugin is available for multiple browsers, and will allow compatible video types to be played through VLC inside the browser.

  • Can VLC Media Player display subtitles?

    VLC is capable of reading subtitles stored on DVD, SVCD, OGM and MKV files. They are enabled by default, although it is possible to disable them from the program's menu if necessary. VLC is also capable of reading separate subtitle files.

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Laws concerning the use of this software vary from country to country. We do not encourage or condone the use of this program if it is in violation of these laws.
Softonic

In Softonic we scan all the files hosted on our platform to assess and avoid any potential harm for your device. Our team performs checks each time a new file is uploaded and periodically reviews files to confirm or update their status. This comprehensive process allows us to set a status for any downloadable file as follows:

Clean

It’s extremely likely that this software program is clean.

What does this mean?

We have scanned the file and URLs associated with this software program in more than 50 of the world's leading antivirus services; no possible threat has been detected.

Warning

This software program is potentially malicious or may contain unwanted bundled software.

Why is the software program still available?

Based on our scan system, we have determined that these flags are possibly false positives.

What is a false positive?

It means a benign program is wrongfully flagged as malicious due to an overly broad detection signature or algorithm used in an antivirus program.

We’d like to highlight that from time to time, we may miss a potentially malicious software program. To continue promising you a malware-free catalog of programs and apps, our team has integrated a Report Software feature in every catalog page that loops your feedback back to us.

Flag any particular issues you may encounter and Softonic will address those concerns as soon as possible.