QuickTime Pro easily concatenates .m4v video files

& (verbiage overflow) ⋅ ⋅ Tue 24 January 2012 ⋅ RSS ⋅ Search ⋅ Subscribe

The only form of strenuous indoor exercise I really like is using an elliptical machine, which is ghastly boring compared to Gotham Breakneck outdoors. I can watch a movie or TV show on Netflix, but the kind I prefer for entertainment — at a thoughtful speed, usually — lose my interest when I'm exercising. Only dramas filled with action or, better still, fast-moving deceit and intrigue can hold my attention. And there are only so many of those that are good enough to watch.

So I've been watching math videos, some of which are really wonderful. I find they stimulate me to considerable exertion on the machine. The problem is that they're rarely as long as my 40-60 minute elliptical sessions. Some are as short as 10 minutes.

Using QuickTime Pro, I can combine any number of .m4v files into one and save the result with no loss of quality. This has completely solved the problem.

I have v. 7.7, which I am using on Mac OS 10.5.8, an installation two operating-system versions old but totally adequate to my needs.

All articles

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  371. View of the Mariana Trench
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  375. Inconsistent results of the same seed in random.seed() on different Python installations
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  383. Portmanteau characters in Chinese (abstract)
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  386. Longevity vs. versatility of code
  387. A new kind of noise in the subway
  388. Router VI is dead
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  390. Automated upward pricing spiral
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  392. Telephantasmia, one of the great gifts of Chinese culture
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  396. Continuing opportunity for techno-elitism
  397. A worry of Donald Knuth's
  398. An opinion of TeX
  399. Advice on teaching English in China if you lack a TEFL degree
  400. "The Highline" Park
  401. Plutarch on the sensitivity and versatility of the human mind
  402. Plutarch's praise of the "fox" temperament
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  414. Boris Veytsman's review of Kottwitz, LaTeX Beginner's Guide
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  421. Newton's own suffering at math
  422. Fresh turmeric-root tea
  423. Appreciation of awk
  424. "Computer Science, Modern Languages Most Gender-Polarized Majors"
  425. Food issues during the Siege of Leningrad
  426. Starting a blog