Matroska

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What Does Matroska Mean?

Matroska (MKV) is a multimedia standard that holds an unlimited number of audio, video and subtitles files within one file format. MKV is different from other multimedia standards such as AVI and MP4 because it is completely open source and its can be customized by the user with the implementation of open-source software.

Techopedia Explains Matroska

Matroska is Russian name given to sets of hollow wooden dolls which are placed inside each other, opening one doll exposes the one inside it, and so on. MKV is a container format which is designed for storing common multimedia formats such as audio and video. Many people mistake MKV for a compression technique (codec) which is not true; MKV simply holds all different types of formats in one file. Beginning in 2002, Matroska has been developed in C++ and is open for editing and development.

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Margaret Rouse
Technology Expert
Margaret Rouse
Technology Expert

Margaret is an award-winning technical writer and teacher known for her ability to explain complex technical subjects to a non-technical business audience. Over the past twenty years, her IT definitions have been published by Que in an encyclopedia of technology terms and cited in articles by the New York Times, Time Magazine, USA Today, ZDNet, PC Magazine, and Discovery Magazine. She joined Techopedia in 2011. Margaret's idea of a fun day is helping IT and business professionals learn to speak each other’s highly specialized languages.