VLC media player is terrific for playing all kinds of media files on your system but you may not care for the native look. We have a great collection of skins to help get you started on removing the "blah factor" and make VLC a lot more fun to look at.

Default Skins & Adding New Ones

When you install VLC Media Player it has a basic, native look to it. If you are just interested in functionality then it is not a problem, but if you like something with a bit more attitude then a few minutes work will terminate the problem.

The first step is to navigate to VLC's Program Files folder and access the skins subfolder. You will see the .vlt file for the default skin included with your VLC installation.

Note: Unless you changed the folder name for VLC when installed (as shown here), look for a folder named VideoLAN.

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Simply drag and drop the skins that you have downloaded into this folder. Now for the next step.

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Go to the Tools Menu and access Preferences.

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When the Preferences Window opens go to the Interface Settings section (it should display by default). Select the Use custom skin setting and click Save. You will need to restart VLC for the changes to take effect.

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As you can see the default skin has a nice, clean look to it but now you get to start having fun.

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Right click on the top bar, go to Interface, then Select skin, and choose the skin you would like to use. That is all there is to it.

Note: You will not need to manually restart VLC for the change to take effect.

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Note: Most of the download links open the VLC Skins Homepage but others are off-site.

Alienware Darkstar

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Download

TRANSFORMERS vlc skin

Note: The skin will need to be extracted from a .rar file.

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Download

SilentVLC

Note: The skin will need to be extracted from a .zip file.

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Download

VLC Darkness

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Download

Glow Part 2

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Download

Inspired

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Download

Blissta

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Download

ShiftieVLC

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Download

Crux

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Download

my_PSP-purple

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Download

VLC Website Download Details

The available skins will be laid out in a grid format. To see the details or download a skin click on the appropriate thumbnail. A popup window will open.

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The popup window will show an enlarged view of the skin, show the versions that it is compatible with, and let you rate it. The download links for the skins are in the lower left corner.

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If you are the adventurous type and just want to try them all at once there is a download link at the top of the page. Note that the mega pack is updated daily.

Note: If you do choose this option keep in mind that some of the skins may not be totally compatible (as experienced on our system).

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Download VLC media player

Browse the VLC Skins Homepage

More VLC Goodness

Here are some more great articles about VLC media player for you to look through.

Fix for VLC Skipping and Lagging Playing High-Def Video Files

Help Prevent Stutter in Video Streams in VLC & Windows Media Player

Take Snapshots of Your Favorite Movie Scenes in VLC

Set a Video as Your Desktop Wallpaper with VLC

Enable DreamScene in Any Version of Vista or Windows 7

Stupid Geek Tricks: Watch Movies in Your Linux Terminal Window

Stream Media from Windows 7 to XP with VLC Media Player

Rotate a Video 90 degrees with VLC or Windows Live Movie Maker