VLC
VLC is a free, open-source, cross-platform multimedia player and framework that plays most multimedia files, discs, devices, and network streams. It supports a wide range of audio and video formats without the need for additional codecs, making it highly versatile for media playback. Developed by the VideoLAN project, it is widely used for personal entertainment, streaming, and media conversion tasks.
Developers should learn or use VLC when building applications that require robust media playback capabilities, such as video players, streaming services, or media processing tools, due to its extensive format support and open-source nature. It is particularly useful for handling diverse media sources, including local files, network streams, and optical discs, and for tasks like transcoding or streaming media over networks. Its cross-platform compatibility (Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS) makes it ideal for projects targeting multiple operating systems.