UPDATE 2: “If you’re using iOS, grab the app ‘Infuse’ — it handles the files without issue.”
OR
“I have the VLC mobile app installed and use that to watch them when using phone/tablet. It’s slightly inconvenient because VLC opens to play the file and then you have to exit it to get back to the browser but it works (i.e. it doesn’t just play in the browser like with desktop).”
OR
“I always just choose to ‘show desktop version’ in the android Chrome app, and they work.”
(Thanks for the tips, everyone!)
UPDATE: Other Solution. I’ll just use both the direct link and the container file when I can find it.
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Original post:
I wasn’t aware that gfycat was using a format incompatible with mobile. Thanks for telling me. I won’t link to any more of those .webm files unless I also offer an alternate.
(Too bad, because they look great on a computer, and – because it is a direct link to a media file – they contain no bullshit links or pop-ups.)
To anyone who gets them downloaded, can’t play them, and knows how to rename files: they are just simple .mpg files. There is no trick to them. You can rename them .mpg or .mp4 and they should play fine.
On my desktop computer: (1) they play automatically on the internet in Chrome with no special plug-ins; (2) when I play them from a file on my hard drive, I just set Media Player Classic or VLC as the default “open with” and they will play without being renamed; (3) when I load one to the Fun House, which is extremely rare because there is usually a better version available with sound, I rename them .mpg so that they should work universally.
As far as mobile goes: Weird!
I normally use an emulator to simulate Android phones as well as two common iPhones, and these links play fine on all three. Just now I switched to a different emulator, and again everything worked fine.
They are just .mpg files with a proprietary extension, so you’d think they would be playable by anything that can play .mp4s. You can probably set your mobile device to interpret them properly. One viewer offered: If you’re using iOS, grab the app “Infuse” — it handles the files without issue.
I always just choose to “show desktop version” in the android Chrome app, and they work.
Same as the other poster above, VLC handles them with no problem. Click the link and they pop,open right in VLC. Works great on my ipad.
If you’re using iOS, grab the app “Infuse” — it handles the files without issue.
Many thanks to Kevin for this suggestion. the free version of Infuse for iOS handles the files just fine.
I think they work fine unless you use apple, android seems to play them just fine
Thanks very much for looking into this, Scoopy. Curious that some people didn’t have the problem but it’s much appreciated that you addressed it for us.
Keep posting them. No, they don’t work on my phone, but they play fine on my Fire tablet. It’s not that big of a deal.
I can’t even DL them on my iPad regardless of the format because I don’t have a Dropbox.
I have the VLC mobile app installed and use that to watch them when using phone/tablet. It’s slightly inconvenient because VLC opens to play the file and then you have to exit it to get back to the browser but it works (i.e. it doesn’t just play in the browser like with desktop).
Hmm… I never had problems on mobile.
I think you should link to them . . people can check them later on laptops if they want too . . you are right they are too good to waste!!