Quote Cyberlink video production

Students have set the aspect ratio 16:9

But when producing a WMV file they are offered 10 or more profile types

What is the easiest way to confirm which one is 16:9 ratio??? (without just memorising the correct width/length)

I'm afraid there will either be math or memorization involved, so have them pick their poison

To see whether a profile is 16:9 or 4:3 (the most common ratios), maybe the quickest test is to multiply the second (lowest number) by 1.5. If that equals the first (highest) number, then that's a 4:3 aspect ratio and they would want to skip that option. If the first number is higher than 1.5x the lower number, it's 16:9 since that has a multiplier of 1.7777.

If they don't want to use any math, they should remember that all WMV profiles with a first number above 1000 are 16:9 (starting with 1280 x 720) and they can use any of those. Only the lowest resolutions (below 720 x 480) are 4:3, since they're from the analog TV days.