Vorbis Tutorial
This tutorial will help you understand what OGG music files are, how to play them, and why we use them.
Q: What are these OGG files?
A: OGG files are music files in a format called Vorbis which is similar to MP3, WMA, and AAC. However, unlike those formats, Vorbis isn't patented and doesn't support Digital Restriction Management. By using Vorbis files rather than the competition, you are allowed complete control of your music and it's 100% free. Google and Android like free formats, but Microsoft and Apple do not.
Q: How do I play OGG files?
A:Vorbis is supported natively by foobar2000, VLC, Winamp, XMMS, Audacity. Additional players can be found on the OGG page and at vorbis.org. There are also libraries to add Vorbis support to iTunes and Windows Media Player.
Q: How do I make OGG files to upload onto this Wiki?
A: Follow the Foobar2000 Conversion Setup guide.
Q: How do I play OGG files on my portable music player (iPod, Zune, etc.)?
A: Companies like Apple and Microsoft refuse to use free formats like Vorbis. Instead, they only play their own patented formats, forcing you to pay hidden fees. You can always write a letter asking your favorite company to start allowing Vorbis, but until that happens, there are a couple of ways to get around this. You can either convert the OGG files into MP3, switch to an Android platform, or replace your device's firmware with Rockbox.
Q: Can I convert OGG files into MP3?
A: Of course! Converting OGG to MP3 can be done easily. There are a list of converter programs on the OGG page, and also an Online converter.
Q: If the format is called "Vorbis," why does it have an extension of "OGG?"
A: Ogg is the name of the container. There are many different formats that can be included in the container including Theora for video, FLAC for lossless compressed audio, and SPEEX for speech. The "OGG" extension is used for Vorbis files because Vorbis was the first format used in the container.