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How to Loop Videos With VLC: A Handy Playback Feature

VLC media player is a popular, free, and open-source cross-platform media player that allows you to play most audio and video files. One handy playback feature in VLC is the ability to loop or repeat videos. This can be useful for a variety of situations:

Why You Might Want to Loop a Video

There are several reasons why you might want to loop a video when playing it in VLC:

  • Watching training or tutorial videos: If you are following along to a workout routine, tutorial, or training video, being able to loop it allows you to repeat sections as needed until you have mastered the content.
  • DJ or background video: When playing music at an event or gathering, having a looped background visual can add to the atmosphere.
  • Testing and monitoring: Looping a security camera feed or other monitoring video can allow you to spot inconsistencies or test configurations over longer periods of time.
  • Soothing visuals: Some nature scenes, animations, or artistic videos can be soothing or entertaining to play on loop in the background of a room.
  • Analyzing video: Looping a short clip can allow closer analysis of details that are easy to miss in a single viewing. Scientists, coaches, investigators and others can benefit from this feature.

So whether you need to practice and memorize content, liven up a party, keep an eye out for irregularities, create ambiance, or study details, VLC’s looping makes repeat viewing easy.

How to Loop Videos in VLC

Looping a video is very simple in VLC. Just follow these steps:

1. Open VLC and Play Your Video

Launch VLC and open the video file you want to loop. Use the playback controls to start the video.

2. Click the View Menu and Select Playlist

This will open the playlist panel so you can see the current playlist queue. By default, it should just contain your open video file.

3. Right-click on the File and Choose Loop

In the playlist, right-click on the video file you want to loop. A context menu will appear. Choose “Loop” from the options.

4. Set the Number of Times to Loop

A dialog box will open allowing you to set the number loop iterations. Leave it blank to loop infinitely. Or enter a number to control how many times you want it to repeat.

That’s all there is to it! The video will now repeat the set number of times or indefinitely if left blank.

Additional Tips

Here are some additional tips for looping videos with VLC:

  • You can toggle looping on and off by right clicking the file again and choosing Loop multiple times.
  • If you want audio or subtitles to also loop, make sure they are checked in the box with the video file in the playlist.
  • Remember to save your playlist if you want VLC to remember your looping settings next time you open the files.
  • You can control looping segments to repeat just portions of a video by setting loop points.
  • Use the playlist controls to jump to or pause the video during looping playback.

So with just a couple clicks, VLC makes it easy to repeat all or part of a video as many times as you need!

Troubleshooting Guide

Sometimes looping videos doesn’t work correctly in VLC. Here are some troubleshooting tips:

Problem: The video isn’t actually looping continuously.

Solutions:

  • Make sure playlist repeat is enabled by clicking the repeat icon (a looping arrow) at the top of the playlist panel.
  • Check that the video file itself has the loop option set by right-clicking on it in the playlist.

Problem: Only the video is looping, not the audio or subtitles.

Solution: If you want all elements to loop, make sure audio tracks and subtitle files are also checked along with the video file in the playlist.

Problem: Loop points to repeat a segment aren’t working correctly.

Solutions:

  • Double check that you have properly set the loop points in and out markers under Playback > Loop Points in the menu.
  • Some formats like MP4 may not always support accurate loop points. Try using a different file format.

Problem: Playback problems or crashing while looping.

Solutions:

  • Turn off hardware decoding under Tools > Preferences > Input/Codecs.
  • Update your graphics drivers if using GPU decoding.
  • Convert to a natively supported video format.

Following these troubleshooting tips should help resolve any issues you encounter with looping videos in VLC.

Frequently Asked Questions

Here are answers to some common questions about VLC’s video looping feature:

Can I loop audio files too?

Yes, the same looping process works for audio files. Just add the audio file to the playlist and use the right-click menu to toggle looping on.

What formats can I loop?

VLC supports looping for just about any media format it can play. This includes MP4, AVI, MKV, MP3, FLAC, MOV, and many more.

Does looping work for online streams?

Unfortunately no. The loop setting only works for local media files in your playlist. Streaming video and audio cannot be looped.

Can I loop a DVD or BluRay disc?

VLC can’t directly loop normal DVD or BluRay movie playback. But you can use a tool to convert the disc contents to a digital video file format, then play and loop that file in VLC.

What is the maximum file size I can loop?

There are no file size limits. VLC can handle looping even the largest 4K and 8K ultra high definition video files without any problems.

Conclusion

The ability to easily loop videos is a handy VLC feature for repeating clips as many times as needed. Whether you are trying to master a skill, liven up a party, monitor a feed, create ambiance, or analyze details, video looping has many uses.

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