Play your multimedia files with Windows Media Player and the Combined Community Codec Pack (CCCP). Tutorial 1 - Installing the CCCP

The Combined Community Codec Pack is a popular and well maintained codec pack for Windows XP and Windows Vista. This tutorial will show you how to install the CCCP on your Windows machine. Before you go ahead and do this, please read our understanding and obtaining codecs to troubleshoot media playback help guide.

Ready to install the CCCP? The first step is to obtain the latest version of the pack. You can obtain it from the Combined Community Codec Pack homepage. Download the latest stable version to your desktop or somewhere where you can find it easily. When the download is complete, double click on the file to start the installation process. Windows Vista users should grant permission for the installation to start if they are prompted. Once the installation has started, you will see the following window:-

Click on "Next >" to move to the window shown below:-

Here you can choose an installation directory for the files. The default option is right for most users, so simply click on "Next >". The following window will then be displayed:-

Here you can choose which components to install. You should install all the codecs in the pack unless you are an expert user and know exactly which codecs you do not require.

The installer will also optionally install two media players. Scroll down to the bottom of the list (using the scroll-bar on the right of the window) to see which players are installed. We recommend installing Media Player Classic as it is free and does not conflict with Media Player 11. However, if you wish to try Zoom Player, we recommend downloading the latest stable version from the official Zoom Player homepage. Un-tick the box next to "Zoom Player 5.50 Beta 1 Standard" and leave all the other options ticked/checked. Once you have done this, click "Next >" to move to the window shown below:-

On this window, you can choose where to create shortcuts for the Combined Community Codec Pack software, or you can opt not to create any shortcuts at all. The default location is perfectly fine, so simply click on "Next >" to move to the window shown below:-

There are a few extra tasks the installer can carry out for you here. We recommend leaving all options as the defaults, except one. If you are planning to use Windows Media Player to playback your multimedia content, then tick the box that says "Register Extensions in Windows Media Player" (it is circled in red in the picture above). This will allow you to double click media files and have them open automatically in Windows Media Player. If you primarily use another media player, leave this option unselected.

When you have configured these options, click on "Next >" to move to the window shown below:-

Here the installer gives you a chance to review all your decisions. Click on "Install" to start copying the files to your computer.

There will be a short pause while the files are copied and configured. When the process is complete, the following window will be displayed:-

Installation of the Combined Community Codec Pack is now complete. Leave the two tick boxes selected and click on "Finish". The configuration wizard for the CCCP will now start. This is covered in our next tutorial.

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