How to Fix - AVI Codecs in Windows Movie Maker Ver. 6.0 (Build 6000)?

AVI Codecs in Windows Movie Maker Ver. 6.0 (Build 6000)

Windows Vista Home Premium
I've been working on music videos in WMM6.0 for awhile now.  When I first started out a year ago, I could import AVI formats with no problem whatsoever.  Then one day, without any changes being made to the program or the video itself, my imported videos turned
from thumbnails to "AVI" boxes and were erased from my timeline.  I tried to play them back, but all that worked was the audio.  The video had been erased.  They had worked before though.
Now, when I try to open the AVI's I either get the dreaded "AVI" audio box, or an error message saying that I should download the appropriate codec.  I've scoured the internet looking for the codec I need, but to no avail.  On many sites I've been told to have
the "download codecs automatically" box in the Tools --> Options --> General tab checked.  But I don't even have a check box with that title in ANY of the Options tabs.
I tried downloading the newest version of WMM, as was suggested to me, but instead of downloading the AVI's, it ended up deleting the other clips (.wmv's) that had managed to survive from the other version, saying they were not compatible either.
I removed that version of WMM and went back to WMM6.0, and dowloaded the Windows Media Encoder (which was supposed to convert the AVI into WMV, which works on this version) but apparently to convert a file you still need the codec for the AVI's!  I even tried
importing the AVI, then placing it in the timeline and trying to save it as a .wmv, because a friend with the same problem said that had worked.  But, like I said, when these clips were placed in the timeline, the register only as "audio" any more.  The video
doesn't even import.
Oh, and I also tried to download a codec pack from microsoft.com, but they only had them for Windows XP and Windows 2003, and they would not install on Windows Vista.
I'm getting desperate here!  I've been fighting with this for almost a year, and I really can't function properly at work or at school without being able to use my WMM correctly.  PLEASE HELP!!

Anwsers to the Problem AVI Codecs in Windows Movie Maker Ver. 6.0 (Build 6000)

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Bttrflymagic,
Thank you for visiting the Microsoft Answers forum.

I am sorry to hear you are having so much difficulty with your movie making.  It definitely sounds like you need to download and install a codec pack for the file types that you are using.  There are plenty of third party sites out there that offer them, some
are free and some are for purchase.  Usually the best place to find this information is on forums frequented by others who are really into movie making.  They can tell you the best sites to get the codecs and the best codecs to get.  That being said, here
are some sites that I have heard are safe and offer a good variety of codecs, as well as a forum that has some very knowledgeable movie making gurus.
http://www.moviecodec.com/ - good forum for movie making enthusiasts
http://www.free-codecs.com

http://www.majorgeeks.com/Vista_Codec_Package_d5326.html
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Recommended Method to Fix the Problem: AVI Codecs in Windows Movie Maker Ver. 6.0 (Build 6000):

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