With Windows 8.1, content should play out of the box, provided that the necessary updates are slipstreamed into the OS install. With Windows 7, I have to plan to install VLC or K-Lite. The reason I’m glad to see Windows 8 add this use-case is simple: it means Windows 8.1 now has an edge over Windows 7 when it comes to installing the OS and firing up media content. VLC’s much-ballyhooed launch for Windows 8 occurred earlier this year. Most of the players aren’t rated very well, though VLC for iOS does claim MKV capability (it’s not mentioned on the Android version). The downside to MKV is that it typically isn’t well supported in mobile players, though there are some exceptions. Previous attempts to bring MKV support to Windows 8 did not go well, as we covered in our Surface review If you have a multimedia library that you’ve built from ripped discs over a period of years, with multiple format shifts over time, MKV is a simple way to preserve or standardize it. On the plus side, it’s one of the most flexible container formats in existence, with support for multiple audio and video streams that some other formats, like MP4, don’t support or only support in restricted fashion. There are technical advantages and disadvantages to MKV. Many companies now use peer-to-peer networking to distribute files to large user bases without crushing their own infrastructure. Linking MKV and piracy, however, is a lot like linking RAR file compression or BitTorrent activity with piracy, or claiming that because programs like TrueCrypt can be abused, they automatically will be abused. Visit popular torrent sites, and MKV files abound. The cynical might say it’s typically favored by pirates, and to be honest, that’s where the format is most popular. Depending on who you ask, MKV is prized for two reasons.

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