./xitherun.sh Wrote:I can't re-encode it; it fudgeing over heats my computer less than half way through re-encoding something.

Overclocking?  If your computer is overheating, you should check that fans/HSF are installed properly.  Or if it's built by someone else, complain to them.

But you can also blame whoever gave you the AVI.  Sound Forge seems to accept DivX/Xvid fine here, which is what most AVIs are.  Unless this is like a DV capture or something similar.