Comments on: Release 0.1.2: Meep meep! http://elan.plexapp.com/2008/02/17/releae-012-meep-meep/ The Plex blog Thu, 12 Jan 2012 01:09:35 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: Jeroen http://elan.plexapp.com/2008/02/17/releae-012-meep-meep/#comment-670 Jeroen Sat, 23 Feb 2008 16:32:16 +0000 http://elan.plexapp.com/2008/02/17/releae-012-meep-meep/#comment-670 Pretty cool, this project. I'm considering a Mac Mini as a HTPC for my living room, and I know XBMC from a friend of mine happily running it on his Xbox. So this combo makes me very happy! Keep up the good work! Pretty cool, this project. I’m considering a Mac Mini as a HTPC for my living room, and I know XBMC from a friend of mine happily running it on his Xbox. So this combo makes me very happy!

Keep up the good work!

]]> By: eduo http://elan.plexapp.com/2008/02/17/releae-012-meep-meep/#comment-642 eduo Thu, 21 Feb 2008 21:35:58 +0000 http://elan.plexapp.com/2008/02/17/releae-012-meep-meep/#comment-642 Jarkko: If XBMC gives the option, in the future, to use the native's video subsystem (WM in Win, QT in Mac) then this would help both in places where the drivers take advantage of hardware acceleration and with highly-optimized platform-specific codecs like the one you mentioned. In the same vein, being able to plug into quicktime might mean being able to play DRM'd files (I'm not sure about that, I assume it does). Jarkko: If XBMC gives the option, in the future, to use the native’s video subsystem (WM in Win, QT in Mac) then this would help both in places where the drivers take advantage of hardware acceleration and with highly-optimized platform-specific codecs like the one you mentioned.

In the same vein, being able to plug into quicktime might mean being able to play DRM’d files (I’m not sure about that, I assume it does).

]]> By: Jarkko Laiho http://elan.plexapp.com/2008/02/17/releae-012-meep-meep/#comment-640 Jarkko Laiho Thu, 21 Feb 2008 20:22:53 +0000 http://elan.plexapp.com/2008/02/17/releae-012-meep-meep/#comment-640 The FAQ says this about the "fast video, no audio" problem: "If you have a video (such as an MKV) with AC3 or DTS audio, you must use passthrough mode and connect the digital output to a surround receiver. In Setings -> System -> Audio Hardware, make sure Audio Output is set to Digital, and enabled both passthrough options." I've done that on 0.1.2 (it was the default), and still the problem persists. I didn't actually connect the machine to a surround receiver yet, but that shouldn't matter as far as the fast video is concerned? The file in question is a 1-minute sample of a Ratatouille 1080p Blu-Ray rip, x264/LPCM-FLAC. Any idea about this? Otherwise, looking pretty sweet even on a 2GHz C2D Mac Mini, which I hope will suffice for 1080p video some day... Also, the fans are oddly louder than normal when idling in the menus, even though the CPU usage is below 10%. Someone else seemed to have this problem, too. BTW, some japanese guy has written a wickedly fast avc/h.264 decoder for Quicktime: http://www003.upp.so-net.ne.jp/mycometg3/ It's open source, so while XBMC doesn't rely on QT, maybe it could be of some help to people trying to tweak ffmpeg? The FAQ says this about the “fast video, no audio” problem:

“If you have a video (such as an MKV) with AC3 or DTS audio, you must use passthrough mode and connect the digital output to a surround receiver. In Setings -> System -> Audio Hardware, make sure Audio Output is set to Digital, and enabled both passthrough options.”

I’ve done that on 0.1.2 (it was the default), and still the problem persists. I didn’t actually connect the machine to a surround receiver yet, but that shouldn’t matter as far as the fast video is concerned? The file in question is a 1-minute sample of a Ratatouille 1080p Blu-Ray rip, x264/LPCM-FLAC.

Any idea about this? Otherwise, looking pretty sweet even on a 2GHz C2D Mac Mini, which I hope will suffice for 1080p video some day…

Also, the fans are oddly louder than normal when idling in the menus, even though the CPU usage is below 10%. Someone else seemed to have this problem, too.

BTW, some japanese guy has written a wickedly fast avc/h.264 decoder for Quicktime: http://www003.upp.so-net.ne.jp/mycometg3/ It’s open source, so while XBMC doesn’t rely on QT, maybe it could be of some help to people trying to tweak ffmpeg?

]]> By: Johan http://elan.plexapp.com/2008/02/17/releae-012-meep-meep/#comment-639 Johan Thu, 21 Feb 2008 11:33:41 +0000 http://elan.plexapp.com/2008/02/17/releae-012-meep-meep/#comment-639 This is a pretty cool app for Iphone which might help with the remote issue :) http://www.engadget.com/2008/02/21/touchpad-turns-your-iphone-into-a-remote-trackpad/ This is a pretty cool app for Iphone which might help with the remote issue :)

http://www.engadget.com/2008/02/21/touchpad-turns-your-iphone-into-a-remote-trackpad/

]]> By: Mr T http://elan.plexapp.com/2008/02/17/releae-012-meep-meep/#comment-638 Mr T Thu, 21 Feb 2008 11:29:22 +0000 http://elan.plexapp.com/2008/02/17/releae-012-meep-meep/#comment-638 Thats it. Its probably releated to Aeon theme. Thats what Im using. Ill try with a different theme. Thanks for pointing that out. Thats it. Its probably releated to Aeon theme. Thats what Im using. Ill try with a different theme. Thanks for pointing that out.

]]> By: Amir http://elan.plexapp.com/2008/02/17/releae-012-meep-meep/#comment-637 Amir Thu, 21 Feb 2008 09:33:04 +0000 http://elan.plexapp.com/2008/02/17/releae-012-meep-meep/#comment-637 @ Mr T i get the same problem sometimes. It will always happen though if i switch to Aeon theme and want to switch back to any other screen. It will Black Sceen of Death requiring a reboot. @ Mr T

i get the same problem sometimes. It will always happen though if i switch to Aeon theme and want to switch back to any other screen. It will Black Sceen of Death requiring a reboot.

]]> By: Mr T http://elan.plexapp.com/2008/02/17/releae-012-meep-meep/#comment-636 Mr T Thu, 21 Feb 2008 08:23:52 +0000 http://elan.plexapp.com/2008/02/17/releae-012-meep-meep/#comment-636 Got a nasty defect. Everytime I exit XBMC on my C2D Mac Mini I get a black screen and nothing more. I have to reboot the mini everytime. Anyone else have the same problem? Got a nasty defect. Everytime I exit XBMC on my C2D Mac Mini I get a black screen and nothing more. I have to reboot the mini everytime. Anyone else have the same problem?

]]> By: Tufty http://elan.plexapp.com/2008/02/17/releae-012-meep-meep/#comment-634 Tufty Thu, 21 Feb 2008 01:41:31 +0000 http://elan.plexapp.com/2008/02/17/releae-012-meep-meep/#comment-634 @elan Thanks for your reply. Your project is truly awesome and girlfriend friendly! :) I can't wait for osxmbc to be 100% solid. Any testing you want, let me know. @elan Thanks for your reply. Your project is truly awesome and girlfriend friendly! :)
I can’t wait for osxmbc to be 100% solid. Any testing you want, let me know.

]]> By: Anonymous Coward http://elan.plexapp.com/2008/02/17/releae-012-meep-meep/#comment-633 Anonymous Coward Wed, 20 Feb 2008 16:31:07 +0000 http://elan.plexapp.com/2008/02/17/releae-012-meep-meep/#comment-633 XBMC on OS X does not use MPlayer, it uses FFmpeg, but MPlayer also uses ffmpeg, so does Perian and VLC. So all their range codec support should be similar, however performance might be slightly difference depending on which FFmpeg tweaks are enabled inside each of those softwares. Meaning it is really FFmpeg that is the swiss-army knife of the free codec world :) Project using FFmpeg: http://ffmpeg.mplayerhq.hu/projects.html XBMC on OS X does not use MPlayer, it uses FFmpeg, but MPlayer also uses ffmpeg, so does Perian and VLC. So all their range codec support should be similar, however performance might be slightly difference depending on which FFmpeg tweaks are enabled inside each of those softwares. Meaning it is really FFmpeg that is the swiss-army knife of the free codec world :)

Project using FFmpeg: http://ffmpeg.mplayerhq.hu/projects.html

]]> By: jms_uk http://elan.plexapp.com/2008/02/17/releae-012-meep-meep/#comment-632 jms_uk Wed, 20 Feb 2008 16:23:25 +0000 http://elan.plexapp.com/2008/02/17/releae-012-meep-meep/#comment-632 @Krux Mplayer *seems* to offer a good solution on the surface, but when you start throwing more and more .mkv content at it, it simply isn't upto scratch (DTS passthru is one area I know its still weak in) - if it worked as well playing .mkv as people are expecting there certainly wouldn't be continued interest in XBMC, Perian 1.1, the latest VLCs or Coreplayer.. Truth is, at this time, and from first hand experience XBMC and VLC are really the most mature options out there at this time (CorePlayer Pro *could* change all that but no one knows yet) :) FWIW, Perian 1.1 doesn't quite fulfil on its promises either (check out forum posts on other websites to see what I mean) Nope, the action's here with XBMC at the moment.. a LOT of fingers are crossed that Elan and his team can continue to deliver on the excellent promise show so far :) @Krux

Mplayer *seems* to offer a good solution on the surface, but when you start throwing more and more .mkv content at it, it simply isn’t upto scratch (DTS passthru is one area I know its still weak in) – if it worked as well playing .mkv as people are expecting there certainly wouldn’t be continued interest in XBMC, Perian 1.1, the latest VLCs or Coreplayer..

Truth is, at this time, and from first hand experience XBMC and VLC are really the most mature options out there at this time (CorePlayer Pro *could* change all that but no one knows yet) :)

FWIW, Perian 1.1 doesn’t quite fulfil on its promises either (check out forum posts on other websites to see what I mean)

Nope, the action’s here with XBMC at the moment.. a LOT of fingers are crossed that Elan and his team can continue to deliver on the excellent promise show so far :)

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