Using Visualizations in Windows Media Player
Learn to watch visualizations while playing your music in Windows Media Player.
Answers refer to Windows Media Player 10, unless otherwise noted.
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How do I watch visualizations while playing my music?
Visualizations play in the Video and Visualization pane of Windows Media Player, but may have a different appearance, depending on the display mode (full mode, mini Player mode, full-screen mode, or skin mode). When the Player is in skin mode, visualizations display only if the skin supports visualizations.
To view a visualization in full mode
1. | In Windows Media Player, begin playing a song. |
2. | Click the Now Playing tab. |
3. | On the View menu, click Visualizations, click a visualization collection, and then click the visualization that you want to view. — or — Click the Select Now Playing options button (the leftmost button above the Video and Visualization pane), point to Visualizations, click a visualization collection, and then click the visualization you want to view. |
The visualization you selected is displayed while your music plays.
To learn more about watching visualizations in Windows Media Player, including how to view them in different display modes, see Watch Visualizations While Playing Your Music.
How can I watch a visualization using the full screen?
See the previous question to display the visualization that you want in full mode while your music plays, and then do one of the following:
| • | In Windows Media Player, double-click the Video and Visualization pane. |
| • | In the Player, on the View menu, click Full Screen. |
| • | On the keyboard, press the ALT + ENTER keys. |
Note that some visualizations can't be played in full screen.
To return to full mode from the full screen, do one of the following:
| • | On the keyboard, press the ESC key. |
| • | On the keyboard, press the ALT + ENTER keys. |
| • | Click anywhere on the desktop with the left mouse button. |
How can I watch album art in visualizations?
Windows Media Player 10 contains an Album Art visualization that you can select to display the album cover for the currently playing track in the Video and Visualization and Media Information panes.
To watch the Album Art visualization
1. | In Windows Media Player, begin playing a song. |
2. | Click the Now Playing tab. |
3. | On the View menu, click Visualizations, and then click Album Art. — or — Click the Select Now Playing options button (the leftmost button above the Video and Visualization pane), point to Visualizations, and then click Album Art. |
The Energy Bliss visualization for Windows Media Player 10 is a more sophisticated album art visualization that displays the album artwork and track information within the visualization. Note that Energy Bliss requires a powerful graphics adaptor (video card). For more information, see The Energy Bliss Visualization FAQ.
NoteThe album art visualizations only display album art that the Player downloads from the Internet. To obtain album art and other media information, the Player sends the CD or DVD identifier to a database operated by your default online store. The online store then sends the information back to your computer, where the information is stored. If you have album art that you have manually added to a file by using the Advanced Tag Editor, it will not be displayed.
How can I watch my pictures in visualizations?
Picture Viz II for Windows XP is a visualization that displays pictures from a folder and its subfolders. It works best if you use the pictures that are stored in the My Pictures folder on your computer. You can download Picture Viz II from WMPlugins.com.
Picture Viz II and its predecessor, Picture Viz I, are also available for download from the Visualizations for Windows Media Player Web page.
How can I watch visualizations when I play music piped in through the Line In jack on my sound card?
WhiteCap is a real-time, wireframe-based visualization plug-in that "visualizes" audio received through the Auxiliary or Line In jacks on your sound card. You can download WhiteCap from WMPlugins.com.
How can I watch visualizations when I play a MIDI file?
It is not possible to watch visualizations while playing a Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI) file on your computer because the values in a MIDI audio file describe the sound and do not actually contain the sound, which a visualization requires. The values in the file are instructions for the MIDI synthesizer on your sound card. For more information, in the Microsoft Knowledge Base, see article 261862, "No Visualization for MIDI Files."
How can I watch visualizations when I play a radio station in Radio Tuner?
It is not possible to watch visualizations while playing a radio station in either Radio Tuner or in an online store.
How do I turn off visualizations?
To stop viewing visualizations
| • | Do one of the following:
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If you don't find the answer to your question in this column, be sure to check the Archive. Media Advice is not an official Microsoft Support channel. If you need immediate help for an urgent problem, we recommend that you visit Microsoft Help and Support.