GUIDE: Downloading MMS/RTSP/HTTP/etc streams with VLC

We all know that if you use YouTube, you can download the video from Keepvid or something. But what if your content provider uses some crazy streaming system? For example, one website (which shall remain nameless) that I use uses MMS to serve videos.

Disclaimer

Doing this may be a violation of the Terms of Service of your content provider. Check first, or risk the consequences!

The Steps

1. Download and install VLC media player from the VideoLAN webpage, or through your distribution's software channels.
2. Open VLC media player.
3. From the Media menu, select Open Network Stream.
   
4. Enter the URL of the stream you want to download and click the arrow next to the Play button. From the menu that appears, select Convert.
   
5. Press the Browse button.
   
6. Choose where you want to save the video and click Save.
   
7. Unless you have a good reason not to, click the Dump raw input button.
   
8. Click Start.

That's it! Hopefully, VLC will return you to the player window and the play button should turn into a pause button. This means that VLC has started saving the stream. When the pause button turns back into a play button, that means that VLC has finished.

Note: The player window will remain black while VLC is downloading the video. Don't panic! So long as the play button has turned into a pause button, the video is downloading.

If you want to watch the video while it downloads, open the video file in a separate window of VLC.