Compressing huge AVI files into smaller ones

Like a 2GB or 4GB file into 300MB-500MB file with little quality loss. Now of course I played with Virtual Dub and did a step by step tutorial but an error always pops up when it’s time to save as AVI. Any other programs that can do similiar compression?
Answer #1
Use MeGUI or Handbrake to encode the video file to MKV format and you can lock the video size to how many MB or GB
Answer #2
Thanks…I’m gonna play around with it. Been needing to mess with different encoders anyway for VOB files.
Answer #3
U can also try a program called AutoGK
Answer #4
but an error always pops up when it's time to save as AVI.
if your using xvid check the location of the “stats” file
AVIdemux is a lot like Vdub but better, give that a try
Answer #5
If you compress a big AVI file into a smaller one, the quality is going to be awful, horrible, you’ll see for yourself. I recommend MKV files. Scene guys compress a Blu-ray which is 25 GB (single-layer) to a [720p] 7 GB MKV file or a 50 GB (dual-layer) to a [720p] 14 GB MKV file and the quality is awesome. You can hardly tell the difference between the Blu-ray and the MKV. MKV is definitely the way to go. I got so spoiled I will only download MKV 720p or 1080p. I will only download AVI for movies that aren’t available in MKV, like “The Bronx Is Burning” TV series which I love, about the 1977 New York Yankees with Reggie Jackson (hit 3 home runs in one world series game) and manager Billy Martin (hard drinking rowdy, and always fighting with everyone, players, management, he didn’t give a damn).
Tip: BTW, put your money with your bookie on the Yankees this year and get rich. They’re gonna win the ALCS and the World Series again this year, mark my words. Game 1 of the ALCS will begin Friday at 8 p.m. ET on TV on TBS.
Answer #6
hit 3 home runs in one world series game
that wasn’t Reggie Jackson, it was ——- Mr. OCTOBER !
Answer #7
hit 3 home runs in one world series game
that wasn't Reggie Jackson, it was ------- Mr. OCTOBER !
YEAH!!!!

Answer #8
U can also try a program called AutoGK
I’ve been using that for two years but there have been claims that Handbrake and the Megui are very good encoders as well. Just never been tutored on how to use them correctly and I’m a little too busy to just be experimenting and ending up with bad results.
Answer #9
Handbrake 0.9.4 doesn’t support AVI anymore, only MKV or MP4.
Answer #10
Handbrake 0.9.4 doesn't support AVI anymore, only MKV or MP4.
Yeah I know but isn’t that kind of hard to use? And Handbrake can turn VOB DVD files into a MKV file by itself with no other software?