I got things back to normal by adding VLC to the "Startup Applications" menu. Specified the command /usr/bin/qvlc and locked the app once seen in the launcher. The remote iphone app also works.
Not sure what got things out of whack though.
I can no longer launch the VLC gui after getting the VLC iphone app following the linux setup for such. It was working fine but now nothing happens. Tried rebooting PC, reinstalling VLC, etc. Now it even ignores the VLC entry in the Dash home. Strangely enough I can run VLC from the command line and...
I concur with others that I cannot use VLC audio any longer. The sound is much better using Gnome media player or Rythmnbox. I suspect that some of the many adjustable variables need to be adjusted but this is beyond my expertise.