make viewer for linux

[Reddwarf]

Well, it doesn't really matter if the computer or the electric heater uses the power

[kruglovus]

I have been wishing for a thin linux client a lot lately.

I have both MediaMVP and Popcorn Hour A-110. MVP gives me more headache than anything; it's slow, often looses connection, cannot play ISO, and most importantly it's limited to 640p. Popcorn Hour can play 1080p, but it cannot be configured. For example, I don't like that it cannot skip forward or backward while playing MKV format, remote has very small buttons, which are almost invisible in the dark, etc.

I simply want more functionality and configurability. So, PC is the answer. I can build a client PC powerful enough to play 1080p for under $200, but shelling out another $150 for WinXP Pro, or even $90 for XP Home, doesn't make sense. Linux is free. So is GBPVR. I would rather pay this money to sub for this cool program. If Popcorn Hour is powered by linux, why can't there be a linux PC client?

[SIZE="1"]As a side note, I compared playing a 1080p video in Windows Vista (using ffmpeg) and Ubuntu 9.04 with all standard codecs. Vista had my CPU loaded at 95% average, Ubuntu at 65%. Also, it's pretty hard to protect a Windows HTPC from someone accidentally (or not) altering configuration or simply deleting all program files. And the list goes on...[/SIZE]

[martint123]

If Popcorn Hour is powered by linux, why can't there be a linux PC client?

It requires someone to write it.

If it is to be free then there has to be an incentive to write it.

Just because the PCH runs linux does not mean it is not a Herculean task to port it from NMT to PC hardware - linux is just a very tiny part of the equation.

Even with all your perceived downsides to Windows, and they are valid, the audience is vastly biased to the Windows environment. Many on here arrived after being frustrated and insulted when trying to get a linux PVR system running.

[Reddwarf]

To be a bit serious: What about a small pc that boots Linux from a memorystick or a cd/dvd and has network connection. With a small adaption to Mplayer I'm sure it could interact with the gbpvr-database, and Mplayer source is free?

Sounds like a challange, what?

[mvallevand]

Popcorn Hour can play 1080p, but it cannot be configured. For example, I don't like that it cannot skip forward or backward while playing MKV format, remote has very small buttons, which are almost invisible in the dark, etc.

And this is exactly why I would never consider a linux version. First time posters come in, complain and offer zero back. and of course propose that playback on a $180 PC is perfect. I'm sorry that the NMT functionality is not up to your standards, mkv playback wan't even considered in my terms of reference for mvpmcx2, it is about mpeg playback of recorded live tv and I consider it success. The fact that it can play many other formats using the NMT player is gravy.

As for the remote's mvpmcx2 supports the MCE which is pretty much the standard for linux.

The source code to mvpmc's emulation mode is available and it does compile on linux. If anyone is so inclined feel free modify it and then support it, that's another challenge. I would have like some help.

Also Reddwarf mplayer is not a panacea for playback and it certainly doesn't support hardware acceleration or flawless 1080p on all the machines that people will try it on. However geexbox would definitely be a good starting point for you and kruglov assuming you guys want to build a linux client. I'd wait until the geexbox team integrate a VDPAU version of mplayer before you start to get into that part of it.

Martin

[Reddwarf]

From me it was just a suggestion. Maybe it would be easyer to implement it on a PS3?

[reven]

you know it would probably be easier just using boxee and writing a plugin to manage your reocordings from there. theres a webservice for gbpvr, boxee is all about the web. that would probably be the easiest solution, and that would then work on mac, win and linux.

[kruglovus]

And this is exactly why I would never consider a linux version. First time posters come in, complain and offer zero back...

First time poster, yes. But long time user. Never bugged anyone with cries for help, always searched the forum for the answer or figured it on my own. Because never had to offer anything back. I probably shouldn't even have opened my mouth in the first place. I just expressed my frustration about Microsoft's pricing policy, that's all.
As for the mkv playback on NMT, I use Handbrake to compress recorded TV mpeg into H.264 mkv. It leaves only about 25-30% of the the original mpeg file size, without any visible loss of quality. I did not configure GBPVR to auto schedule encoding yet, still do it manually. Once I finish it, I will share it here. I believe noone posted about it yet. As for now, I can only offer zero back, so I'll just shut up.

[mvallevand]

Actually I don't want people to shut up, I want the feedback much earlier so I don't waste my time You are the second person writing this month complaining about the NMT player's because you like to archive to non-mpeg before viewing knowing that in doing this you will lose most of the GBPVR functionality that sub and I added. I hope you are in the minority but with recent interest on compression on the main board, if this is the trend, then I am definitely going in the wrong direction with both GBPVR as a server and any client I can envision for it.

Martin

[martint123]

with recent interest on compression on the main board, if this is the trend, then I am definitely going in the wrong direction with both GBPVR as a server and any client I can envision for it.

I can't be arsed with compression. The price of large drives is tumbling - well I guess not, but you get much more for your cash.
Our HD broadcasts seem to be well compressed h.264avc and recorded as .ts work well with gbpvr/mvpmcx2. The only compression that I have even thought about would be if my 100's of mpg from STB+PVR150 could be changed into something like our HD .ts files - but that would only really be out of curiosity rather than need.