Editing VirtualDub

{{Short description|Video capture software for Windows}}
{{Infobox software
| name                   = VirtualDub
| logo                   = VirtualDub Logo.svg
| screenshot             = VirtualDub 1.10.4 20210103.png
| developer              = Avery Lee
| released               = {{Start date and age|2000|08|16}}<ref>{{cite web| url=https://sourceforge.net/projects/virtualdub/files/virtualdub-win/| title=virtualdub-win| access-date=2019-05-25}}</ref>
| latest release version = {{wikidata|property|preferred|references|edit|Q960874|P348|P548=Q2804309}}
| latest release date    = {{wikidata|qualifier|preferred|single|Q960874|P348|P548=Q2804309|P577}}
| latest preview version = {{wikidata|property|preferred|references|edit|Q960874|P348|P548=Q51930650}}
| latest preview date    = {{wikidata|qualifier|preferred|single|Q960874|P348|P548=Q51930650|P577}}
| discontinued           = yes
| operating_system       = [[Microsoft Windows]]
| programming language   = [[Assembly language]], [[C++]]
| genre                  = [[Video editing software]]
| license                = [[GNU General Public License|GPL-2.0-or-later]]
| website                = {{official URL}}
}}

'''VirtualDub''' is a [[free and open-source]] [[video capture]] and [[video processing]] utility for [[Microsoft Windows]] written by Avery Lee. It is designed to process linear video streams, including filtering and recompression. It uses [[Audio Video Interleave|AVI]] [[Container format (digital)|container format]] to store captured video.<ref>{{ cite web | title = VirtualDub features | url = http://www.virtualdub.org/features.html }}</ref> The first version of VirtualDub, written for [[Windows 95]], to be released on [[SourceForge]] was uploaded on August 20, 2000.<ref>[https://sourceforge.net/u/virtualdub/profile/ VirtualDub] on SourceForge</ref>

In 2009, the third-party software print guide ''Learning VirtualDub'' referred to VirtualDub as "the leading free Open Source video capture and processing tool".<ref>Georgios Diamantopoulos, Sohail Salehi, John Buechler (2009). [https://books.google.com/books?id=apiArMc8t9MC&q=VirtualDub ''Learning VirtualDub: The Complete Guide to Capturing, Processing, and Encoding Digital Video''], Packt Publishing Ltd, 197 pages (quote taken from back cover blurb)</ref> Due to its "powerful"<ref name="SDA" /> versatility and usefulness especially in the field of video processing (see below), ''[[PC World]]'' has referred to VirtualDub as "something of a '[[Adobe Photoshop|Photoshop]]' for video files",<ref name="PCWorld" /> ''PC Perspective'' recommends it for its low [[overhead (computing)|overhead]],<ref name="PCPersp" /> and [[nextmedia]]'s ''PC & Tech Authority'' particularly praises it for its ''Direct stream copy'' feature to avoid generational degradation of video quality when performing simple editing and trimming tasks and the fact that VirtualDub "offers several valuable features that other packages lack, and helps you get quick results without any fuss or patronising wizards".<ref name="PCTech" />

VirtualDub is recommended for use by professional computer and tech magazines, guides, and reviewers such as ''PC World'',<ref name="PCWorld">Gralla, Preston (2009). [http://www.pcworld.com/article/231863/virtualdub_32bit_version.html ''Capsule review: VirtualDub (32-bit version)''], ''PC World'', Mar 13, 2009</ref> ''PC & Tech Authority'',<ref name="PCTech">Fearon, David (2011). [http://www.pcauthority.com.au/Feature/248587,how-to-convert-video-footage-with-virtualdub.aspx ''How to: convert video footage with VirtualDub''], ''PC & Tech Authority'', 18 February 2011</ref> ''PC Perspective'',<ref name="PCPersp">Shrout, Ryan (2017). [https://www.pcper.com/reviews/Graphics-Cards/NVIDIA-FCAT-VR-Preview-New-Performance-Tool ''NVIDIA FCAT VR - Preview of a New Performance Tool''], ''PC Perspective'', March 1, 2017</ref> technologies guide website ''MakeTechEasier'',<ref>Sharninder (2009). [https://www.maketecheasier.com/how-to-compress-a-video-file-with-virtualdub/ ''How To Compress A Video File with Virtualdub''], MakeTechEasier.com, 31st May 2009</ref> freeware and open source software review site [[Ghacks]],<ref>Brinkmann, Martin (2011). [http://www.ghacks.net/2011/06/26/how-to-change-a-videos-speed-with-virtualdub/ ''How To Change A Video's Speed With VirtualDub''], ghacks.net, June 26, 2011</ref> [[Speed Demos Archive]],<ref name="SDA">Entry [https://kb.speeddemosarchive.com/VirtualDub ''VirtualDub''] on Speed Demos Archive</ref> as well as third-party professional video production companies,<ref>[http://www.viscoda.com/en/support/faqs/88-splitting-a-video-file-into-a-sequence-of-images-virtualdub ''Splitting a Video File into a Sequence of Images (virtualdub)''] on the website of Viscoda, a developer of professional video and digital cinematography software solutions</ref> and the creators of [[Wine (software)|Wine]].<ref>Entry [https://appdb.winehq.org/objectManager.php?sClass=application&iId=438 ''VirtualDub''] on winehq.org</ref>

Several hundred third-party plug-ins for VirtualDub exist,<ref>[http://www.infognition.com/VirtualDubFilters/ ''VirtualDub filters index''] on ''infognition.com''</ref><ref>[http://www.hlinke.de/tinc?key=U4rlLOrY&session_currentpage=index&session_mode=guest&formname=VirtualDub_Filter&showentries=true&sortby=field_2&session_sortby=field_2&userid=1488346248;447547;615&session_nextpage=data&offset=20&session_offset=20&start=1&session_start=1 ''VirtualDub-Filter Archive''] on ''hlinke.de''</ref><ref>[http://www.techspot.com/downloads/6587-virtualdub-filter-pack.html ''VirtualDub Filter Pack 2014''] on ''techspot.com''</ref><ref>Donald Graft (formerly ''Neuron2.net''): [http://rationalqm.us/mine.html#virtualdub ''VirtualDub Filters''] and [http://rationalqm.us/hosted.html ''Hosted Filters and Tools'']</ref><ref>[http://www.compression.ru/video/public_filters.htm ''Video filtering and compression by MSU Video Group''], [https://web.archive.org/web/20150710004842/http://graphics.cs.msu.su/ CS MSU Graphics & Media Lab]</ref><ref>Andreas Dittrich: [http://www.cithraidt.de/filter/index.html ''VirtualDub Filters''] and [http://www.cithraidt.de/sync/index.html ''Modified VirtualDub Capture Routine with High Quality Realtime Sample Rate Conversion and Phase Servo Loop''] (formerly a project at the [[Kaiserslautern University of Technology]] where these VDub plug-ins were originally hosted)</ref> including by professional software companies.<ref>[http://www.nchsoftware.com/videopad/free-plugins.html ''VideoPad Video Plugin Effects''], NCH Software</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.neatvideo.com/download|title=Download Demo &#124; Neat Video|website=www.neatvideo.com|date=21 November 2024 }}</ref> Furthermore, [[Debugmode Wax]] allows use of VirtualDub plug-ins in professional video editing software such as [[Adobe Premiere Pro]] and [[Vegas Pro]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.debugmode.com/wax/|title=Wax - [ Homepage ]|website=www.debugmode.com}}</ref>

==Features==
VirtualDub is designed for [[Microsoft Windows]] but may run on [[Linux]] and [[macOS|Mac OS X]] using [[Wine (software)|Wine]] (for example, to use it with the popular Deshaker plugin).<ref>{{cite web |url=http://forums.opensuse.org/new-user-how-faq-read-only/unreviewed-how-faq/429428-howto-install-virtualdub-under-wine-deshaker-plugin.html|title=HowTo install VirtualDub under wine with deshaker plugin|author=oldcpu|access-date=2010-01-13}}</ref> However, native support for these systems is not available.

VirtualDub was made to operate exclusively on [[Audio Video Interleave|AVI]] files; however, a plugin API was added from version 1.7.2 which allows the import of other formats.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://virtualdub.org/blog2/entry_152.html|title=VirtualDub 1.6.18 and 1.7.2 released - virtualdub.org|website=virtualdub.org}}</ref> Appropriate video and audio [[codec]]s need to be installed.

===Video capture===
VirtualDub supports both [[DirectShow]] and [[Video for Windows]] for video capture. Capture features include capture to any AVI variant, audio [[VU meter]]s, [[Video overlay|overlay]] and preview modes, [[histogram]], selectable [[Cropping (image)|crop]] area, video [[noise reduction]], auto stop settings (based on capture time, file size, free space, and/or dropped frames), and designate alternate drive(s) for capture overflow.

VirtualDub can help overcome problems with [[digital camera]]s that also record video. Many models,{{weasel inline|date=September 2014}} especially Canon,{{which|date=September 2014}} record in an [[M-JPEG]] format incompatible with [[Sony Vegas]] 6.0 and 7.0. Saving AVI files as "old-style AVI" files allows them to appear in Vegas.

VirtualDub supports [[DV (video format)|DV]] capture from Type 2 (VfW) [[FireWire]] controllers only (It cannot work with Type 1). There is no DV batch capture, still image capture, or DV device control capability.

===Video assembly===
VirtualDub can create a video file from a series of image files in [[Truevision TGA]] or [[BMP file format|Windows Bitmap]] file formats. Individual frames must be given file names numbered in sequential order without any gaps (e.g. 001.bmp, 002.bmp, 003.bmp..). From those, the frame rate can be adjusted, and other modifications such as the addition of a [[soundtrack]] can be made.

VirtualDub can also disassemble a video by extracting its soundtracks saving its frames into Truevision TGA or Windows Bitmap files.

===Editing===
VirtualDub can delete segments of a video file, append new segments, or reorder existing segments. Appended segments must have similar audio and [[video format]]s, dimensions, number of [[audio channel]]s, [[frame rate]]s and [[sampling rate]]s. Otherwise, VirtualDub is incapable of mixing dissimilar video files or adding [[film transition|transition effect]]s between segments.

===Video processing===
VirtualDub comes with a number of video editing components known as "filters". They can perform basic tasks as arbitrary resize, converting the video to [[grayscale]], arbitrary rotation, crop, or changing simple values like brightness and contrast. Filters may be used during the video assembly as well. Filter plug-ins further extend VirtualDub's capabilities. A plug-in [[Software development kit|SDK]] is available for developers to create their own video and audio filters.<ref name=sdk>{{Cite web|url=https://www.virtualdub.org/filtersdk.html|title=Plugin SDK - virtualdub.org|website=www.virtualdub.org}}</ref>

Besides those basic features, its many third-party plug-ins make VirtualDub a "powerful"<ref name="SDA" /> open-source tool when it comes to linear video processing, and in fact most of the hundreds of third-party plug-ins available for VirtualDub are filters related to either aesthetic effects or cleaning, fixing, and restoring image quality, such as various denoising and sharpening methods targeted especially at analogue and digital video signal and film defects (be they related to [[VHS]], faulty cables, a distorted analogue [[terrestrial television|terrestrial]] or [[satellite television|satellite]] TV reception, or [[compression artifact|digital compression]]), [[deinterlacing]] and [[field (video)|fields]] manipulation, [[color space|colorspace]] conversion and manipulation, [[telecine#Reverse telecine (a.k.a. inverse telecine (IVTC), reverse pulldown)|reverse telecine]] aka IVTC, deflickering, deshaking, adding and removing logos and subtitles, analysis of video content, etc.

All of these processing features are fully [[Batch processing|batchable]] to apply the same effects on a large number of files.

==Development==
VirtualDub is [[free software]], released under the [[GNU General Public License|GNU GPL-2.0-or-later]] and hosted on [[SourceForge.net]].

[[File:VirtualDub2-screen-filter1.jpg|right|thumb|VirtualDub2 screenshot]]

VirtualDub was originally created by the author, then a college student, for the purpose of compressing [[anime]] videos of ''[[Sailor Moon]]''.<ref name="alee">{{Cite web|url=https://www.virtualdub.org/virtualdub_history.html|title=VirtualDub history - virtualdub.org|website=www.virtualdub.org}}</ref>  It was written to read and write [[Audio Video Interleave|AVI]] videos, but support for input plug-ins was added, enabling it to read additional formats including [[MPEG-2]], [[Matroska]], [[Flash Video]], [[Windows Media]], [[QuickTime]], [[MP4]] and others. Development stopped as of 2013 <ref name="last_release">{{ cite web | title = VirtualDub Stable Versions at SourceForge.net | url = https://sourceforge.net/projects/virtualdub/files/virtualdub-win/ | access-date = October 27, 2013 }}</ref> and the site's forums closed down in 2015.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://forums.virtualdub.org| title=Not found - VirtualDub forums| date=2015-10-12| access-date=2015-12-12| quote=Sorry, the VirtualDub forums have been closed, and as of this date (22 Oct 2015), it's now down}}</ref>

VirtualDub has spawned several [[fork (software development)|forks]], including [[VirtualDubMod]] and ''Nandub''.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://nickyguides.digital-digest.com/nandub.htm |title=Nandub / SBC Encoding |publisher=Nicky Pages' Digital Solutions |access-date=2009-11-18}}</ref>

===VirtualDub2===
The latest fork is called '''VirtualDub2''' (formerly VirtualDub FilterMod).<ref name="filtermod-commits">{{cite web |url=https://sourceforge.net/p/vdfiltermod/code/commit_browser |title=VirtualDub2 / Code / Browse Commits |author=Shekh |access-date=2019-05-25}}</ref> It has all the features of the original VirtualDub, plus support for high bit-depth (i.e., [[deep color]]). It is no longer limited to [[Video for Windows]] (Video Compression Manager) codecs, and AVI format limitations (such as limited VBR support, H.264/HEVC minor incompatibilities etc.).

VirtualDub2 has built-in encode/decode of any container and video and audio compression formats supported by [[FFmpeg]] ([[H.264]], HEVC, VP9, AAC, Opus and other formats) and can open and save [[QuickTime File Format]] (MOV), [[MPEG-4 Part 14|MP4]], [[Matroska]], [[WebM]], AVI based on FFmpeg or only the audio from a video in M4A, Opus in Matroska, Ogg Opus, Vorbis, AAC or MP3 formats.<ref name="filtermod-wiki">{{cite web |url=https://sourceforge.net/p/vdfiltermod/wiki/Home/ |title=VirtualDub2 / Wiki / Home |author=Shekh |access-date=2019-05-25}}</ref>{{Clarify|date=August 2023}}

It also has improved navigation, display and user interface (e.g. pan display when zoomed in, color format selection), improved performance, and support for high bit-depth color formats.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.videohelp.com/software/VirtualDub2|title=VirtualDub2 20 Update 19 Free Download - VideoHelp}}</ref>

===Past legal issues===
Early versions of VirtualDub supported importing of [[Microsoft]]'s [[Advanced Systems Format]], but this was removed in version 1.3d following an informal phone call from a Microsoft employee in 2000 claiming that it infringed one of Microsoft's [[patent]]s. Microsoft never identified any specific patent numbers that it believed to have been infringed, but speculation by others is that {{Cite patent|country=US|number=6041345}} (expired in 2017) might be relevant.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Microsoft patents ASF media file format, stops reverse engineering|url=https://www.advogato.org/article/101.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080704222646/http://www.advogato.org/article/101.html|archive-date=2008-07-04|access-date=2021-09-06|website=[[Advogato]]}}</ref>

In August 2006, VirtualDub's German users who hosted copies of VirtualDub, or even linked to them on their web pages, began receiving [[Abmahnung|cease and desist letters]] from a private individual that claimed to have German [[trademark|word mark]] on "VirtualDub".<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://forum.doom9.org/archive/index.php/t-114905.html|title=Illicit word mark registered on "VirtualDub" in Germany [Archive] - Doom9's Forum|website=forum.doom9.org}}</ref> However this issue has been resolved: the word mark in Germany has been deleted<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://register.dpma.de/DPMAregister/uebersicht|title=DPMAregister &#124; Registerauskunft des Deutschen Patent-und Markenamtes (DPMA)|website=register.dpma.de}}</ref> and an injunction has been granted against the former owner of said word mark.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.virtualdub.org/blog/pivot/entry.php?id=129|title="Preliminary injunction granted in regard to German word mark VIRTUALDUB"}}</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|Free and open-source software}}
* [[List of video editing software]]
* [[Comparison of screencasting software]]
* [[Comparison of video editing software]]
* [[Avidemux]]
* [[AviSynth]]
* [[MediaCoder]]
* [[VirtualDubMod]]

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==
* {{Official website}}
* {{sourceforge}}
* {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110109235522/http://www.v3.co.uk/vnunet/downloads/2233555/virtualdub-portable/| title=V3.co.uk Review}}
* [https://sourceforge.net/projects/vdfiltermod/ VirtualDub2] on SourceForge

{{Video editors}}

[[Category:Free and open-source video-editing software]]
[[Category:Free software primarily written in assembly language]]
[[Category:Free software programmed in C++]]
[[Category:Windows-only free software]]
[[Category:Portable software]]
[[Category:Software that uses FFmpeg]]
[[Category:Free screencasting software]]