Get the Good Old Movie Maker 2.6 in Windows Vista and Later

The new Windows Live pack includes “Windows Live Movie Maker” which provides the new ribbon interface but many advanced users are not happy with this new version. Lots of essential features like timelines, adding text on videos, audio edits, etc have been removed from this new version to make the application simple and easy to use.

But IMO these removed features were the most important and essential features in Movie Maker and now the stripped beta version is a bit useless for lots of people.

If you also feel the same and want to get the good old Movie Maker with all the required features, then here is a good news for you. Microsoft has released Movie Maker 2.6 for Windows Vista which also works in later Windows versions.

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Movie_Maker.png

So download it from following link and install in your Windows if you miss the old Movie Maker:

Download Movie Maker 2.6

Also check:

Ultimate Collection of Best Free Video Editors and Alternatives to Windows Movie Maker

Published in: Windows 7, Windows Vista

About the author: Vishal Gupta (also known as VG) has been awarded with Microsoft MVP (Most Valuable Professional) award. He holds Masters degree in Computer Applications (MCA). He has written several tech articles for popular newspapers and magazines and has also appeared in tech shows on various TV channels.

Comments

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  1. Just thought I’d let you know that I downloaded this program for windows 7 hoping to get rid of the “Live” version…and it did NOT work. All I got was a shortcut that does not work, because it is a lnk file. When I click on it, it does the whole thing where it tells me to look online for something to open it…and I think we all know where that leads…nowhere! So, thanks for getting my hopes up. I loved this version of movie maker, its too bad they dont really have a version of it for Windows 7.

    But yea, it just shows a link to it(blank white paper icon) that doesn’t do anything. Let me know if im an idiot, or if they actually come out with a version for Windows 7…it would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

  2. Ug, this is the worst. I was using the older version and about 8 hours into a project I wanted to use a feature the old one didn’t have. So I upgraded.
    Not only did the new version render all of my 8 hours of work unusable (won’t even open it) but it won’t even create a new project without crashing. an hour and a half later (restore point didn’t work), I’m trying to find the original version I saved over in hopes that instead of wasting 10 hours of my time, it only wastes 2 hours. Unbelievable crap.

  3. I hate this 2012 version of Windows Movie Maker! It’s completely incompetently designed! Over the past four years, I’ve barely gone a day without making a YouTube video and the older versions of WMM were able to allow me to do that just fine. Now it’s been over a month and a half since I’ve been able to make a video. Sure, I could make an unedited video in the new version of WMM, but it would be pointless since advanced editing is half the fun (the other half being coming up with and recording the material itself). If I made a living making YT videos, this would have interfered with my ability to do that. Since I have a regular job, that’s not an issue, but what if I might some day want to make YT vids for a living? I’d have to buy a whole new editing program, most likely Sony Vegas (and even the cheapest version of that is too expensive to justify since I have two editing programs* already).

    The main problems are the following:
    1: Can’t cut or splice video clips.
    Note: This alone renders a video “editing” program useless.
    2: Can’t cut or splice audio clips.
    Note: This means it’s impossible to ensure that the audio is the same length (or intended length) as the video. Also, I’m not seeing any fade-out options.
    3: No split-second precision editing options due to lack of zoom.
    Note: If there’s a zoom tool, I’m not seeing it. In older versions, it was always in the same place on the “film ribbon,” allowing the user to zoom in and out as needed. This was a necessary function to allow split-second editing.
    4: Redesigned format is incomprehensible.
    Note: Users who’ve been accustomed to the film ribbon format for years find the new format completely alien. It simply isn’t user-friendly.

    *I also have Adobe Premiere Pro which is even more worthless and just as incomprehensible. At least I can import video into WMM. Can’t actually “edit” anything but at least I can import stuff. Premiere Pro doesn’t even let me import video files of any kind (FRAPS or otherwise), thus rendering it less than useless.

    Please make things work the way they did before. Either that or make them better instead of worse. Give users more options instead of less. “User-friendly” means letting the user do what they want. It does NOT mean restricting the user’s ability to do things their own way. That is NOT what “streamlining” means. To make a program more “user-friendly,” more “streamlined,” means making it easier and/or quicker for a user to do what they want. Please give us that ability again.

  4. thank you so much!!!! i hate the newer version and to have the old one back on my laptop is a godsend 🙂

  5. Fantastic thank you. Installed it on win 7 x64 works great. the 2.6 ver is much better than the newer one. Thank you
    Cheers
    Minaz

  6. I have windows xp service pk 3 2002 installed I was using movie maker had several items in the collections, A never version of movie maker was installed 6 I have lost all the files in the collections. How can I revert back to older version to get those files back?????

  7. This is NOT at all like the old version. There is no story board or timeline where I can rearrange photos and and fade and re-size the timeline of the photos to match the audio. I want the old version back, the one that came with Windows XP PLEASE!

  8. Thanks a lot, this was a great find for me, have been searching for a similar version of Movie Maker for Windows 8 for a while, and this one works well on my PC. Greatly appreciated.

    Justin

  9. Thank you to whoever it was that posted the article “Get the Good Old Movie Maker 2.6 in Windows Vista and 7.” I just downloaded it to my new Windows 8 OS, and it seems to work fine. I have not used it too much yet, but, I will in the coming weeks. I will post a more complete analysis after I use it. But, hopefully, it will perform as the earlier versions.

  10. The WMM 2.6 version which used to be on my Windows XP, yes, I have downloaded this on my Windows 8.1, but it does not work right anymore. I even have it on Windows 7, but there are many video effects missing now. The most common Video Effects are no longer available. Also, you cannot import any audio files, it drives you c.zy. The wma and wav files for example, you cannot import them into your project. You contantly get messages like “audio file cannot be imported, because it is corrupted”. I feel like throwing Windows out of my life. I truly hope someone can tell the Microsoft windows people that they won’t last long, many of us won’ be buying their products anymore. I especially bought a new laptop which came with Windws 8.1, thinking I could make great movies for family and friends in retirement, all I get now is frustration. I am about to throw this computer with Windows 8.1 in the garbage, because that is where it belongs. I hate Microsoft for messing up a good Movie Maker.

  11. I have windows 8. I do not like the new version of windows movie maker. I wish I could get the old one to download on my new windows 8 computer. I really don’t think anyone likes the new version! What can we do to get the old version back!!!

  12. Same problem. Loved movie maker in XP, hate it in 8.1. Microsoft does not care what we want, they simply want to make money. However I think they shot themselves in the foot because they are pissing everyone off. I’m afraid to download 2.6 anyway for fear it will mess up my computer.

  13. Dude, I dont know when you posted this but this helped me a lot today! You even added links of video editors. I wanna hug you right now lol.

  14. I downloaded this and it worked but where does it store it after you save it to the computer. I used to go to the start button and then to videos, but Win7 only has pictures folder(I guess you would call it)
    Thanks Linda

  15. very correct sir. new windows movie makers dont have many options like win movie maker 2.6. im gonna delete win movie maker 7.0 and download this. thankyou!

  16. Thanks. I agree that the new version of movie maker (live) is terrible. It is so basic and stupid that i can’t make any type of advance videos. I’m not expecting something like sony vegas, but just something i can actually work with. The live version is really just for finishing touches on your movie, not the actual creating of it. Thanks again

  17. I spent days researching and trying to resolve the problems with Windows Movie Maker.
    I have Windows 7 Ultimate 32 bit with a KBworld USB 2800D attached to a VCR to capture VHS tapes. It worked great with Windows XP. I must have been using Movie Maker 2.6

    Now I have a newer computer with Windows 7 and Movie Maker 2012 does not work with it – it does not even recognize the device. It’s not showing under “import from device” so there is no way to capture. Yes, drivers (USB 2820 Device) are up to date and everything is attached correctly.

    I then downloaded and installed “Movie Maker 6” for Windows 7. Similar problem – no way to capture as it does not even list the device. I can hear the audio but I found you don’t need Movie Maker running to hear the audio.

    I tried to install a “Portable Movie Maker” that’s supposed to look like 2.6 and work with all Windows versions but it didn’t install correctly. I didn’t like the other add-ins it tried to install.

    I downloaded and installed Movie Maker 2.6 for Vista and it works on Windows 7 and I really like the layout much better, except it also does not recognize my device. All it has listed under Capture Video is: Import video, import pictures, and import audio or music. There is no place to capture video.

    I tried what I found on other forums – find an old XP machine with Movie Maker 2.6 installed and copy the moviemk.exe from the XP version over the one in the new Windows Vista 2.6 folder. The other forums indicate that this is supposed to work. Unfortunately, all our XP machines except one laptop are dismantled, but one laptop had Movie Maker 5.1 on it. So I thought I’d give it a try and copied the 5.1 executable. This gave me “Capture from Video device” under the Capture Video section but it still did not recognize my device and I could not see the video – it’s a black screen. I finally found an old version of moviemk.exe dated 2004 on an old hard drive. I copied that into the Vista Movie Maker 2.6 folder and guess what?! It works! It must be the XP version! I have a capture device; I have a video screen that works and I’m on my way! I also copied the MUI/0409 folder to the Movie Maker 2.6 folder and now the help files work with 2.6’s Movie Making Tips.

    Microsoft, please bring back Movie Maker 2.6 for newer Windows versions! It’s obvious that it’s not working.

  18. It would Appear that the link is dead. just redirects me to a microsoft page saying “We are Sorry, the page you requested cannot be found”

    so dissapointed…

  19. VG
    Download Movie Maker 2.6 link is not working “We are sorry, the page you requested cannot be found.” says on microsoft site cam you tell me where to get this file

  20. Link doesn’t work, but I remember I had downloaded it back when it was still available. Give me some days and I’ll supply a mirror link.

  21. Alright, here you go:

    web.archive.org/web/20110124230103/download.microsoft.com/download/f/8/6/f869f03b-c17a-4419-be47-bd08fff676fa/MM26_ENU.msi

  22. Much thanks ada. I really love the good old fashion Windows Movie Maker 2.6. Sure it is not perfect by any means, but for simple video creations, it is just extra fine. I just switched laptops after a few years and found it nearly IMPOSSIBLE to find a live link on where to get it again. Your mirror link worked out perfect. But of course, I too was concerned that it carried a virus on it. So far, so good. I have AVAST, and it was not alerted, but nothing is perfect, right? I would assume that you are an honest person and would make sure that your links are clean. Thank you very much ada.

  23. Glad I could be of help, AnthonyO ^^ I was hoping my comment would help someone in future, and it seems it did (^^;;; I can assure it doesn’t contain any stupid thing like virus, seeing that my comment is still here after I posted it. Also, web.archive.org is legit website, and original file was from download.microsoft.com , so it wouldn’t be a smart thing of MS to include virus in their software…

    I installed it recently on Windows 7, and it worked well. I was able to export a test project (some text at beginning, then a slideshow of images with an mp3 I had around as music) as .wmv file and the resulted video could be watched with a video player.

  24. @ada
    Great, thanks for that. – I am getting clued up on earlier Movie Maker just now so as to get a good version working on some older computers I have. (BTW. I am a computer layman, but find that web archive place very useful, but I can’t figure out how you got that download link. Was there a web archive link to somewhere which then got you that final link?
    Thanks Alan

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