Projects with .MOD video files

Hello everyone,
I have a MacBookPro (13", end 2011, 2,4 GHz Intel Core i5, 4GB RAM, Intel HD Graphics 3000) with Yosemite 10.10.3.
I had VLC 2.1.5 and yesterday I updated to version 2.2.1.
Then I noticed a problem. I'm pretty sure that is due to this update.

I use Final Cut Pro X 10.1.3 to edit videos with .MOD extension, recorded with a JVC Everio.
I never had problems to directly input these videos natively into FCPX, without needing to convert them before.

Finder now tells me that .MOD "kind" is "MOD audio file", but a while ago it used to tell me something different: I found a footage showing that kind was something like "Docu...VLC". Consider that my OS is in Italian, and that unfortunately I didn't adjust the width of the column to show the full name (just because, at that time, I didn't know that column existed in the first place).
Even the icon changed, from the VLC one to a musical note.

The problem here is that I have plenty of Final Cut Pro X projects, with a lot of editing already completed, full of .MOD files, that now are shown like they were black, so the simple solution to "convert" .MOD files into .mp4 or similar with third party applications would be suitable only for future projects.

I searched in Google. I discovered that file "kind" and icon are related in someway, and they are managed by some info.plist file.
As far as I can understand, every program or app we use has its own info.plist files to manage many things including icons and kinds. That's why I think that the problem was generated by the update.

I decided to downgrade and revert to previous 2.1.5 version of VLC. But with no luck. I deleted the App, then I searched for hints and I redeleted with AppCleaner. But Finder keeps telling me that .MOD are just audio files, and FCPX keeps telling me that they are completely black. I also tried an older version (the first originally installed on my Mac: 2.0.3), with the same outcome.

I searched for ways to manually change the kind editing the info.plist, I opened the VLC.App with "show content".
I copied the info.plist file to my Desktop, then i converted it in xml with Terminal, using plutil -convert xml1 info.plist.

As far as I can understand, the info.plist is split in two main parts: the first part handles the extensions, the second part handles the conformities.
I searched the file for MOD and I found "MOD Audio File".
So, in the extension part, I changed the <string> and the <icon> copying the wording from mpeg.
In the conformities part, I changed from public.audio to public.video, keeping org.videolan.mod intact.

Then I rebooted, however my Mac keeps telling me that mod files are MOD Audio Files.
I also deleted the parts related to .MOD in the info.plist of VLC, but nothing happened: Finder keeps telling me "MOD Audio File".

I'm out of ideas now. Maybe I'm totally wrong about VLC's involvement. Or maybe there is some other App whose info.plist is in conflict with the VLC's one, and is higher in hierarchy.

I don't know what to do. I'm hopeful because that behavior changed suddenly and rapidly, so maybe it could be easy to revert. Maybe I'm just complicating something that's way simpler.

I apologize for the length and for my bad written English.
I hope you could find the time to help me.

Thank you in advance.

Dhk Dragon

.mod files are containers for MPEG2 video, FCPX can edit them directly. I just downloaded the latest VLC and my mod files are working fine. I even changed all the .mod files to open in VLC. However, I'm on FCPX 10.2.1.

Very puzzling. I would try repairing permissions in Disk Utility. See if that does anything.

Thank you very much tpayton.
I tried repairing permissions two times, but unfortunately that didn't solve the issue.
However, the icon of .mod files changed from the musical note to the VLC cone, with two expanding audio waves. Maybe is that a step ahead toward the solutíon?
Finder keeps telling "MOD Audio File" and FCPX keeps seeing the clips as they were black.
The strange thing is that the Inspector in FCPX shows MPEG-2 Video as Codec.

I think it's not VLC's "direct" fault, but it has something to do with my configuration as a whole.

I say that because, I'm not sure how, but I just made it! It took me three days though..
Now I try to explain for future reference, but first of all I thank you for your help once again.
That worked for me, but I used paths that I don't completely understand, so I take no responsibility for any damage: use it at your own risk.
Consider that I don't remember in which exact order I did the following steps, I only know that at the end the problem was solved.
I hereby present them in a rebuilded chronologic order based on the likelihood of each step.

Well, I think that the hint that the linkage between the "MOD Audio File" and the fact that FCPX could not see my videos was correct.

So I read this guide about editing of info.plist and linking of icons, file types and programs
superuser.com/questions/178316/how-to-se...r-a-file-type-on-mac

In particular, the interesting part was:
"Now, close TextMate if it's running, move the application TextMate.app to a different folder, and open it again. Close it, and move it back, then open it yet again. This is done so Launch Services picks up the changes to Info.plist we just performed."
I did that, but I think nothing happened yet.

I read this guide: apple.stackexchange.com/questions/125402...gram-for-opening-the
to go deeper with the hint to reset Launch Services. Here they use lsregister command in Terminal.
I wanted to know more about the command (e.g. that I was not going to format everything), so I checked also:
ss64.com/osx/lsregister.html
www.tekrevue.com/tip/rebuild-launchservi...ies-os-xs-open-menu/
I'm not very sure if that command has obscure collateral effects, but it seems simply something like cleaning a cache, so it should be safe.

I decided to use the command from the latter one:
/System/Library/Frameworks/CoreServices.framework/Frameworks/LaunchServices.framework/Support/lsregister -kill -r -domain local -domain system -domain user
Then I think I rebooted, but I think that the problem was still there.

I read again the first guide, because someone commented:
"Just one thing after changing an application's (or any bundle/package's) Info.plist: you will likely need to touch the root level of the bundle to update its modification date. Then in the Finder, de-select and re-select the application/bundle/package and when it notices the modification date is later than that of the cached information in the Launch Services database, it will re-register it, thereby recognizing any changes you've made"
Infact I noticed that even if I did modify the info.plist, Vlc.App was telling me that was last modified on april, 15th 2015. I didn't know what they meant by "touching the root", but I guess I figured out copying one small file into it and then moving it away. The date was updated.
However, this was not the only change: I did one last change to the info.plist file before "touching the root": in the conformations part I changed "org.videolan.mod" into "org.videolan.mpg".

Then I rebooted and then FCPX was back to normal. .mod icon is still the VLC cone with 2 audio waves, but Finder tells me that it's a Mpeg2 Video.

So, resuming, I did:
- reset Launch Services
- changed the info.plist
- moved the Vlc.App from Applications to Desktop and back to Applications, opening it after every move
- touched the root of Vlc.App to update the date

One, or two, or all of them together did the trick. But I don't know which.

Consider that in another guide I read that playing within the .app structure of an App could cause the lost of the signature. I don't know, but it sounds like a bad thing.
That pretty much end my workaround. I hope I made myself as clear as possible.

PS
Thank you again, tpayton, for your help.

One last thing: reviewing my notes about what happened, I discovered that I did something else, beyond just updating VLC to version 2.2.1.
Infact, I also tried the Streaming/Export Assistant (don't know whether with the previous or the last version of VLC) to convert an .avi to an .mpg.
The resulting .mpg was without audio. I just wanted to add this ending note: maybe it was this experiment, and not the update, that caused my problem.
However, I'm afraid to try again that feature, so I will not go further in my investigation.
Thank you again.