permanent "open with"

[narreth]

how do i permanently set a file type to open with a particular program? right now quicktime is set to open my .avi's but it doesn't have the codec so i want all my video files to open with VLC by default. i'm tired of right clicking the "open with...." option.

Also, why doesnt quicktime just ship with the codecs that VLC has so it can play most videos out of the box?

 

[TheStu]

Perian will let Quicktime playback most anything.

However, if you prefer VLC, then you will want to select the file and hit CMD+I. Then select 'Open With' and choose from teh list, you can then tell it to always open all files of that type with that program.

 

[narreth]

ah nice thanks alot.
i downloaded perian and i think im gonna go with quicktime now because it seems to be more efficient (uses 30-40%CPU as opposed to 60ish in VLC)

 

[Nothinman]

Also, why doesnt quicktime just ship with the codecs that VLC has so it can play most videos out of the box?

Some of the codecs that VLC ships with require licensing. For example, if you look in the VLC FAQ they tell you that it's up to you to make sure you have the appropriate licensing to legally use those functions of VLC.

And I'm sure it's also because Apple doesn't care, they'd rather push you towards using QuickTime.

 

[fatpat268]

If you right click a file and click "Get info" there'll be a dialog option where you can select every file of that type to "open with" a certain program.

Or something like that. I'm basing that off of memory (I'm on windows right now).

 

[sourceninja]

Perian can cause some issues with iMovie, just an FYI.

 

[rdp6]

I think that in Leopard that the option to "change all of this type" was available if you pressed "option" key with the file information displayed.