Convert flv video to 3gp video

http://how-ubuntu.blogspot.co.uk/2009/05/tips-how-to-convert-flv-to-3gp-in.html

andrew:
Apparently, those packages shown on the url mentioned are not on the repos, as it appears on the following:

williepabon@WP-WrkStation:~$ sudo aptitude install libavcodec-unstripped-51
[sudo] password for williepabon:
Reading package lists... Done
Building dependency tree
Reading state information... Done
Initializing package states... Done
Writing extended state information... Done
Couldn't find any package whose name or description matched "libavcodec-unstripped-51"
Couldn't find any package whose name or description matched "libavcodec-unstripped-51"
No packages will be installed, upgraded, or removed.
0 packages upgraded, 0 newly installed, 0 to remove and 1 not upgraded.
Need to get 0B of archives. After unpacking 0B will be used.
Writing extended state information... Done
Reading package lists... Done
Building dependency tree
Reading state information... Done
Reading extended state information
Initializing package states... Done

Probably I have to install other software sources. Please, advice.
wp

The packages in the guide are all you need, you can then use the command:

ffmpeg -i fileInput.flv -s 176×144 -vcodec h263 -r 25 -b 200 -ab 64 -acodec mp3 -ac 1 -ar 8000 fileOutput.3gp

from the bottom of the page.

Andrew:
This is what I get when runing the command above:

williepabon@williepabon-VGN-N130G:~$ ffmpeg -i fileInput.flv -s 176×144 -vcodec h263 -r 25 -b 200 -ab 64 -acodec mp3 -ac 1 -ar 8000 fileOutput.3gp
ffmpeg version 0.8.3-4:0.8.3-0ubuntu0.12.04.1, Copyright (c) 2000-2012 the Libav developers
  built on Jun 12 2012 16:37:58 with gcc 4.6.3
*** THIS PROGRAM IS DEPRECATED ***
This program is only provided for compatibility and will be removed in a future release. Please use avconv instead.
fileInput.flv: No such file or directory

Hi ,

see the 3rd answer here : http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1988610

Thanks

Yes, did you eve READ the command, at all??? You need to change 'fileInput.flv' to the actual file you want to convert. Wasn't that massively obvious?

Andrew:
If ffmpeg includes all the file formats for conversion, why it doesn't appear in winff, the GUI for ffmpeg? That was what i expected.
It is absurd to have a GUI for the app and then find that I have to use terminal commands to perform a specific conversion.
wp

why is it absurd. I have given you something know to achieve what you want. Why is that such a bad thing?

Andrew:
If you have an application with a graphical interface that is supposed to do the intended work of conversion, it doesn't make any sense that for some instances I need to go to command mode. You ask yourself, in how many other instances will I have to do this thing again? This defeats the purpose of the GUI. The GUI is intended to make things easier and to make possible the use of this otherwise powerful application for non-technical people like me. If it doesn't work always, something is wrong. Well, I was expecting a solution that didn't require Linux command knowledge, but I couldn't find it here.

Yes but why slog your guts out just for the sake of using the GUI, when there is a tried and tested command given? It makes no sense. Maybe other can advise how to do it with some GUI thing, but if you just use the command I gave you will get the file you want to play on your device. Why is that so bad?

Incidentally. I am not conversant with ffmpeg. I found the command online and it works well.

Solved my problem installing Mobile Media Converter app, which uses ffmpeg and mencoder to do conversions. And it has a nice GUI.

Although I think the discussion has passed, I still do want to add a comment from the winff point of view.

Winff is indeed a GUI for ffmpeg (or in Ubuntu that has been replaced by avconv). Winff comes with so called presets, which lets you do all kind of convertions based on manually pre-determined settings depending on what you want as output. You can easily create a NEW preset that does what you want, so you can easily reuse the command in the GUI. As video conversion changes so rapidly, and depends so much on the codec used, it is not possible to provide the GUI you were thinking of, that magically shows up all the possibiliities in ffmpeg/avconv.

Paul:
Thanks for your comment. I'm sure, as you said, that it is possible to create presets for any conversion you may want or need, but I suspect you have to have technical knowledge of ffmpeg to do such a thing. That is way beyond the expertise of a user like me, or the expertise of any user who wants to do conversions without the need of intimate knowledge of the application. I suppose, the ffmpeg developers created presets in the GUI for the most popular conversions at one time, and I tried to use the app for a conversion that they didn't create a preset for. My bad luck! Well, I solved my problem installing an app that had the conversion I wanted. You mention, that ffmpeg will be replaced by avconv. Are they building a GUI for it?

On 15-10-12 03:45, William Pabon wrote:
> That is way beyond the expertise of a user like me, or the expertise
> of any user who wants to do conversions without the need of intimate
> knowledge of the application.

It is actually not as hard, but if it is too much, you can easily
request for help, such as on this forum.

> I suppose, the ffmpeg developers created presets in the GUI for the
> most popular conversions at one time, and I tried to use the app for
> a conversion that they didn't create a preset for.

Well actually, Winff is not created by the ffmpeg developers, nor is it
especially endorsed.

> You mention, that ffmpeg will be replaced by avconv. Are they
> building a GUI for it?

Winff can be used with avconv without any problem. You just need to
update the "path to ffmpeg executable" in "Edit" -> "Preferences" ->
Linux. And as mentioned before, "they" are not building any GUI for it.

Paul