14 DAY TRIAL // VLC for Windows 8.1 is an eagerly-awaited application that was supposed to go live earlier this year, but due to a number of issues with the port, the developing team has postponed the launch.
New screenshots showing the application in action have been published by Neowin, with VideoLAN president Jean-Baptiste Kempf also adding that the official release of the application is expected to take place very soon.
No specifics have been provided, so it’s not yet clear whether the launch could take place before the end of the year or in early 2014.
“We have video (correct one), audio, support for all files formats without our old trick (sending it on a local network), network streaming playback, and subtitles. All that with passing the WACK (technical certification). We have submitted it already (and got rejected, because of a crash). We will try to get around this nasty bug (race condition) and resubmit (this week? the next?),” he was quoted as saying by Neowin.
Even though VLC was also supposed to work on Windows RT, it turns out that the initial port to go live “soon” will actually be compatible with the x86 and x64 builds of Windows 8 and 8.1, as the developing team still works on this particular build.
It won’t take long, however, until the RT and the Windows Phone 8 will arrive, as changes will basically come down to the size of the UI.
As far as changes go, VLC for Windows 8.1 will rely on a rather simple UI, Kempf explained, but it’ll be completely optimized for the touch, which makes it the right choice for many tablet users.
“The UI is very simple, since we focused on managing to port VLC to the platform, which has proven hard and tedious. As soon as the first version is out, we'll welcome help from other developers on those parts,” VideoLAN’s president said.
