KMPlayer is one of the most popular Windows media players out there and for good reason. It supports plenty of audio and video codecs like all the other media players out there but what does KMPlayer do to seprate itself from the rest of the pack like VLC Media player, UMPlayer, and GOM Player? In its latest iteration, KMPlayer introduced 3D features. Not only can you stream 3D content but you can turn your 2D content into 3D. Here's how:

KMPlayer is one of the most powerful video players for Windows. The multimedia application has a huge range of settings that help you customize your entertainment experience.

One neat trick with KMPlayer is to watch multiple videos at the same time with picture-in-picture viewing. Rather than just having different player windows open, this feature embeds smaller videos over the top of a large one.

So if you don’t have time to watch four movies in one night, just watch them all at the same time using KMPlayer!

Watch the video tutorial or follow the steps below to enable picture-in-picture viewing in KMPlayer.

1. Download KMPlayer from Softonic and install it on your PC. Open the player and right click on the main window. Choose Options, then Preferences.

2. In the General Settings section of the Preferences menus, deselect Disallow Multiple Instances.

3. Load up your first video. This will become the one that appears in the background.

4. Pause the movie and right click on it. Go the Screen Controls option, choose On Top, then Never.

5. Open another video in a new window. Right click on this one and go to Screen Controls. Choose On Top, then Always.

6. Right-click on the video window and choose Skins, then Default Control (Auto Hide).

7. Repeat steps 5 and 6 for all of the videos you want to load.

8. Now maximize the first video to full screen and position all the other videos in front of it, resizing the windows as necessary.

9. You’re now ready to start enjoying the benefits of picture-in-picture viewing with KMPlayer!

You've probably noticed by now the large number of good, free video players available. We've decided to compare contenders KMPlayer and VLC Media Player and see how they fare.

First off, let's look at the interface. KMPLayer is fully customizable and, like Winamp, allows you to open multiple windows for controls, playlist or equalizer. You can move these around and adjust them to your liking. VLC has a very basic and intuitive interface, but also supports a number of skins. Each program offers a basic menu and hotkeys, giving you quick access to the playback functions.

Compatibility with a great deal of video formats is what makes both of these video players extremely popular. However VLC Media Player probably has the edge here, because, Real video being an exception, it seems to cover all existing video files. It can also play incomplete videos and will try to play an unknown format in its raw form. Each player has a large array of audio and video filters to process and enhance your videos. However, KMPlayer adds a feature for effects like aspect ratio or colors, to improve playback quality, not available in VLC.

There's a lot to like about multi-format multimedia player Windows Media Player. With a sleek and stylish interface, and the ability to integrate your media for easy browsing, it's not difficult to see why it's a staple on most peoples' PCs.

There are other multimedia players out there that really give Windows Media Player a run for its money though. Whether WMP isn't cutting it for you or you're simply looking to explore other options, you've got a lot of great players to choose from. There are a variety of different players out there to suit your own personal interests and needs.

Here are five alternatives to Windows Media Player that are free and support multiple file formats.

After almost two-and-a-half years in the making, Videolan has finally released version 2.0 of VLC Player for Windows and Mac. Codenamed "Twoflower", there have been some major improvements including faster decoding, support for more formats and the ability to play HD and BluRay videos.

VLC media player now supports an even wider ranger of formats including support for 10-bit codes plus multi-threaded decoding for H.264, MPEG-4/Xvid and WebM. There are also fixes for several different bugs with input from over 160 volunteers, according to Videolan.

A few days ago reader Michael contacted us with the following question:

I have Windows 7 and want to make my KMP Player my default media player, but when I go to assign a default player, Windows doesn't show any of the media players I have purchased or downloaded.

Actually, there are several ways to change the default media player (or other program) that Windows 7 uses to open specific file types. Let's take a look at them, one by one:

The first one, and most obvious, is changing file association within the program you want to use as default. Most programs include an option in their configuration settings that allows you to select the file types you want to open by default.

Read more »

Today I've read about this lovely granny in Pontevedra (Spain), who received a Blogger account as a 95th birthday present from her grandson. Maria Amelia writes about her memories and her daily life, and she's become famous for being the oldest blogger in the world. This geeky grandmother has made me think about the kind of software apps that older users may find more useful or interesting. My own grandma would surely ask me for advice if she got herself a PC, so I've decided to create a grandparent-friendly basic software list for all our elderly users.

The first thing I would install on my grandma's brand new PC is Firefox. I don't think I'd install any extensions, though. I find them too advanced for a newcomer, so we'll leave them aside for now. I'd also install a VoIP client, probably GTalk, which looks simple and it's really easy to use. Then my grandma could call me any time and tell me her old stories without spending any money.

Regarding security, I would install an easy antivirus tool like AVG or Kaspersky: something that protects my granny's computer without nagging her with messages and warnings. Another good security tool would be Cobian Backup, which can be scheduled to create backup copies automatically. She would probably need some maintenance tools as well: CCleaner is an excellent choice due to its ease of use and the wide range of elements it cleans. But I would also consider Tune Up Utilities, mainly for that great "1-Click Maintenance" that my grandma would be able to run by herself without any help. And in case she needs assistance, I can always use a remote desktop app like CrossLoop to access her computer.

As for multimedia, I guess she could just use Picasa to review photos, although there are other interesting alternatives like Windows Live Photo Gallery and Pictomio. Anything that's simple to use and lets my grandma see photos in full size (she's started to lose sight) would do. She likes listening to the radio, so I would add Last.fm here and then KMPlayer for her to enjoy old hits (once I've converted them from vinyl to MP3).

I think that's pretty much everything the elders like my granny need to start using a computer. Don't forget to teach them the basics of netiquette and the wonders of Google. Once they get the knack of it, you can start talking about tools to manage recipes, follow soccer results, organize trips, play cards or dominoes… you know, the kind of stuff grandparents love to do!

Let’s begin with a very simple question: why should we surrender to the most downloaded software when there are good but not so popular alternatives? Robert Frost said: “Two roads diverged in a wood, and I took the one less travelled by” which, applied to software, may be translated as “take a risk and use new apps... even if they’re not that famous”. So, if you’re looking for a free, fast, simple MP3 player, and don’t feel like bowing down to Winamp the Almighty, just give XMplay a chance.