GSpot

GSpot is able to identify what codecs are needed for playing a certain media file, spearing you the time-consuming labor of researching it yourself. It tells you what codecs are already installed on your machine.

Viewing a particular video file is not always possible, and that's probably due to the fact that you don't have the codecs it requires. Dismissing the chance to watch a movie because it requires a codec that you just can’t put your finger on is not the solution. GSpot can help you in that matter.

G-Spot is a nifty application that you can use to identify the shortcomings of a video format. In other words, if a movie needs a certain codec, then G-Spot will tell you what it is, and maybe even guide you to a possible solution.

The application doesn't need to be installed; you can just keep it on a Flash drive and run it without leaving a footprint on the computer’s registry.

The whole program consists of a single window, that you might find plain at first, but it offers all the information you need about a video file. Simply browse for a clip and G-Spot will instantly load additional information.

It is divided into several portions - File, Container, User Data/Metadata, Audio, Video, and Proposed Codec Solutions. The part you are mostly interested in is the status for video and audio. It should read "Codec(s) are Installed", else start looking for them (begin with G-Spot's proposed solutions, if any).

In conclusion, GSpot offers you full reports on video codecs. It reduces the time you would normally spend searching for codec information to just a few seconds.