[vorbis] Why the commotion about file extensions?

[Beni Cherniavsky]

Tom Felker wrote on 2003-07-15:

> I'm still trying to figure this out myself.  Now I'm thinking that the best
> way is to make anything using the Ogg container .ogg.  This means if you
> associate your app to .ogg, it better know how to handle anything.  But Ogg
> streams that contain a single specific codec could be named after that codec
> (.vorbis, .flac, .speex, .theora).  This way, when in doubt, you can call it
> .ogg, but when you know what it is, you can call it by the specific name.
>
> In practice, this means Winamp associates with .ogg, .vorbis, and .flac.  CDex
> would write .vorbis or .flac by default.  So .vorbis means lossless music,
> and .ogg can be anything, but usually audio.
>
Idea for the switcher app: it will be associated to .ogg and look up
the application to launch for specific types back through the
extension handling registry.  E.g. if `.theora` is decided as the
normal extension for those who do [want to] know that it's a theora
file, any application that can handle Theora should register itself
with `.theora` and then the switcher app will find it for `.ogg` files
that contain Theora.  This way both approaches can be used
side-by-side and user convenience will judge what's better eventually.


-- 
Beni Cherniavsky <cben at tx.technion.ac.il>

If I don't hack on it, who will?  And if I don't GPL it, what am I?
And if it itches, why not now?  [With apologies to Hilel ;]
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