MediaPortal - HTPC software for Windows computers (ported/forked from XBMC in 2004) [Archive] - Page 2

MrMario64

2004-04-18, 21:51

heh, you go away 2 days and it's filled with questions :)

ok here we go :)

@bigben > nice you have these hires pics. but grabbing imdb info from the internet by stanbding on the movie and pressing f3 wiull have more advantages then just the picture. you will have the movie plot, actor list genre tagline year director etc etc.
you will be able to sort on this info, search etc. browse your movie catalog by genre.
say you wanna see a comedy, just sort on genre comedy and you will get a list of all yor comedies. when the dvd# is also entered by you, it will even tell you what dvd to insert in the drive.

@gori > yes you can use any resolution you want.

@usbrits > just do alt+enter like any other app to switch between full screen and windowed mode. in windowed mode you can disable the startup again in the setup menu.

now lets meet frodo to see what has changed :)

(hmm.. that weren't that many questions. damn xbmc-pc must be soo easy :) )

Sparcky

2004-04-18, 22:06

hi,

short and sweet feature request :

switching resolutions when you startup xbmc pc !
(example from 1400x1050 to 800x600, i work on my laptop on the native resolution of 1400 but when watching a dvd 800 is better, but manually switching is a bitch... "are you sure ?" "press 5 times ok to continue etc ..." ;-)

if somebody knows a workaround with a freeware, also good :-))

keep on the good work !!!
sparcky

Gori

2004-04-18, 22:14

mario, it seems 480 is not enough height for xbmc, or am i doing something wrong?

MrMario64

2004-04-18, 23:20

it has been decided in the irc channel

the ones that were there could have voted against it :)
the new name is...

mediaportal

come to #mediaportal on efnet

thanx for all ideas. ther r still noted for future use :)

MrMario64

2004-04-19, 00:20

ok,
new version.

changelog inside...
most notably the name.

mediaportal is born.......

sorry, from me only a donkey link now.
hope the rest will follow on the link site.

ed2k://|file|mediaportal_18042004.rar|6676898|b8d20f24d41 ad3b1d41a3197a34ae9b6|

Mr.X

2004-04-19, 01:56

switching resolutions when you startup xbmc pc !
(example from 1400x1050 to 800x600, i work on my laptop on the native resolution of 1400 but when watching a dvd 800 is better, but manually switching is a bitch... "are you sure ?" "press 5 times ok to continue etc ..." ;-) *

if somebody knows a workaround with a freeware, also good :-))

you can do this with application profiles in powerstrip. not sure if it's still freeware or not, though...

Mr.X

2004-04-19, 02:06

hi - i'm new to xbmc, and have only tried the windows port, as i'm looking for a good media organizer/viewer. seems this one has the potential for doing everything i want, and being very good too!

i have a problem, though. it has to do with my videos and imdb. i let xbmc scan the folders to find my videos. some are dvd rips, some are avis, etc. etc. the problem is that imdb got every one of them wrong. not surprising since there was no information in any of the folders indicating what the name of the movies were. my problem is that i can't figure out how to change the imdb code for any of these movie. i can set the view to "movie", select the movie i want and click on "imdb" and manually enter the name of the movie. it finds the correct imdb entry, but just shows the info. how do i assign that to the particular movie? i have checked through the forums and it said in one message to press black (f1) while in "title" view and that deletes the imdb entry, and then you can do a manual scan to replace the entry. however, that doesn't seem to work. nothing happens when i press f1.

also, for movies that don't have an imdb entry, how do i enter the correct title and info?

thanks for any and all help!

-andy.

Zerocool13

2004-04-19, 03:08

i keep getting a german epg in 1804 release. manual update of xmltv (the .bat file) does not work, windows asks me to open the delphi file?

usbrits

2004-04-19, 04:32

newbie to the group, quick question. i have enabled full screen start, but now can't figure out how to disable it!
thanks
usbrits
open xbmc.xml and change <entry name="startfullscreen">yes</entry> in the <section name="general"> to no
or just alt+enter *:d
thanks, i figured it was easy.
usbrits

gizmomel

2004-04-19, 05:27

bug report for mediaportal 180404 (running on e: partition):

my weather:
1. *delete existing three cities (london, oslo and madrid)
add a new city (melbourne, australia), going to my weather will get the weather report for london.

work around - add the same city to the city list (so there are two entries for melbourne, australia) and then the correct weather report will display. *bug is reproducible every time when mediaportal frst installed. *weather channel code for melbourne, australia is asxx0075 (displays weather for london, united kingdom ukxx0085).

(just noticed in the mediaportal.xml file that location is set to london (ukxx0085).. so that explains that). *adding/deleting a city from the city list within mediaportal does not change the default location.

my movies:
1. *using the internal player, i could not stop the video / return to the main menu without hitting all keys and quitting the application.

2. *don't know is this is a bug or a calibration error - osd when running in a window is in the right position, but if i go full screen, the osd 'moves up' and then obstructs the bottom of the video that is playing (instead of being below it).

my music:
could be the format i have the music in, but - directory name is "gatecrasher - blue", then sub-directories of cd1 and cd2 with the mp3s in the sub-directories. *press f3 to find album cover and couldn't find anything close to resembling the album name or title.

my tv:
i cannot work out how to change the channel listing/epg for my country (australia).

general bugs:
left mouse click (primary mouse button) would not always select the option that was highlighted on screen.

questions:
does the my tv only support wdm analogue tv tuners, or will you be adding support for dvb-t / atsc digital tv tuners?

is it possible to add in lan multicast support, so that while viewing a show you are doing a multicast so other pcs/xboxes can simultaneously view the same show?

any chance of having on-screen user configurable command keys, or at least an on-screen visual of which keys do what? *how about default remapping of keys to the numeric keypad?

regards,

gizmomel

MrMario64

2004-04-19, 11:21

@ gizomel:

my weather
1 > i'll try this

my movies:
1 > b should stop movie, a pause it, x switch to gui, y show osd.
is this always a problem?
2 > calibration can be done for all resolutions, in windowed mode you r using a diff resolution then in full screen. so when in full screen go to calibration and set everything as you would like.

my music
1 > it looks for the album tag in the .mp3 file. so check if thats correct. it does not look at the foldername

my tv
> this is done by using xmltv, check this site.
http://membled.com/work/apps/xmltv/

general
> weird, i have not seen this behaviour.

questions >
about the tv cards. we currently only have a hauppauge tv card. this will work. however, since we do not have other cards it can not be guarenteed yet that this will work at first try of my tv.
however, since this project is open source it is very likely programmers with other tv cards will help out and get things to work.

lan multicast > sounds nice, but i do not think that current development time will be put in this. maybe someone else wants to>? (you ?? )

about the keylayout.
open keymap.xml.
you can change everything you want in here.
maybe it will get a gui but for now change everything to your likings in here.
still needs some work.

@mr.x
imdb and database functions r not completed yet.

Gamester17

2004-04-19, 15:12

it has been decided in the irc channel

the ones that were there could have voted against it :)
the new name is...

mediaportal

come to #mediaportal on efnet
just my opinion but i think/feel this was handled the wrong way, ...there should have been a forum vote and a mail notifying about it

kanga202

2004-04-19, 15:16

few things to report, as of the latest version, the internal movie player is really laggy, i am playing things over the network but it used to play fine, and the dvd player dosent work @ all, i put a dvd in, click play dvd and nothing happens, every thing else is all good though, keep up the good work ;)

MrMario64

2004-04-19, 15:47

kanga, ytou sure it's not your network lagging you?
or some other nice proggy acting up ?

loonytunes

2004-04-19, 17:05

@larrygb, thanks for the piccies, good idea about leaving the agp backplane off....many thanks..

oh dear, all the releases up to now have worked ok for me, just rebuilt the os on my main test machine and it bugs out when starting up!! got the .net 1.1 and latest dx9

process id=0x750(1872), thread id=0xebc(3772)

MrMario64

2004-04-19, 17:35

you reaaaaally have downloaded the latest dx9??

you have it installed on a mapped drive??

loonytunes

2004-04-19, 18:51

hi mrmario, its on c: and reinstalled dx9a this morning just in case, as my daughters machine had a similar issue when her drivers were not dx9 compatible.
i will change my graphics drivers, just in case

Sonic-nkt

2004-04-19, 21:59

hi,
first thanks for this great port :)
after seeing it i just thought i will put this on my htpc...
but after some time, it noticed that movieplayback is really slow.. :( (internal player) i have a 950mhz in this computer, and i think that should be enough for dvd and divx, mplayer works perfect.
also the xbox has only 733mhz.. :)
are you going to optimize it?
what are other plans for the future

MrMario64

2004-04-19, 23:45

looney > you need dx9b not a!!!!

ok, new version.
a slow connection at first. but will speed up soon when more have it: ed2k://|file|mediaportal_19042004.rar|6679920|c5d0e7f48c7 e1abb8e1f5015cc18f932|

many fixes to tvguide, and also internal dvd player is working in full screen now.
if you calibrated your screen it will prolly look too small but we need think of a way to handle dvd and calibration on 16x9 tv's.

anyway, enjoy!!!

edit : whoops, posted old link by mistake

Peter Pan

2004-04-19, 23:48

is there a link where i can download the new version?

MrMario64

2004-04-19, 23:50

look 1 post back...

Peter Pan

2004-04-20, 00:12

i mean a public ftp server. i have not installed edonkey.

modplug

2004-04-20, 02:39

hmm... i was trying to make a norwegian strings.xml, but
it looks like media portal doesn't support norwegian characters
like; æ,ø,å - when the file included this characters mp didn't
show any text at all.
the [...] buttons next to the codec buttons in the video capture device config makes the program hang, or maybe i haven't been patient enough... :)

keep up the good work

kanga202

2004-04-20, 02:50

@ mario, its definatly mediaportal, i moved the vid file localy and tried it, still realy slow and jumpy, restarted the machine, then i checked task manager (which i should have done first lol) and it was 100% cpu constenly

gizmomel

2004-04-20, 06:31

is there a link where i can download the new version?
http://dott.lir.dk/mediaportal/

bedlam

2004-04-20, 10:41

kanga: mediaportal laggs a littlebit for me too, on my duron 1ghz, 256mb ram and a tnt2ultra. especially when i press y to show the osd. it is very demanding for some reason... but.. thats´s not a problem for me as i´m buying a new cpu any day now.. :)

wether it´s something wrong in mediaportal or we simply got to slow computers i dunno...havent tried the latest on my htpc though.. well.. good luck!
/bedlam

MrMario64

2004-04-20, 11:38

w haven't done any speedtweaking yet.
it can be that it's slow on "older" systems.

don't worry, when speed can be tweaked it will be done.

Dewmerz

2004-04-20, 19:04

i have seen the slowness in the dvd player as well. it runs at a decent speed until a subtitle is rendered which causes the hesitation but i have found no way to successfully shut off the subtitles. it is definately porting over well.

Oddish

2004-04-20, 20:23

wether it´s something wrong in mediaportal or we simply got to slow computers i dunno...
the application definately needs major speed tweaking. i'm on a 3 ghz p4 and it's very slow for me also. i'm sure it will be taken care of though. just look at the huge progress that has been made in just about a weeks time. major kudos to the devs on a superb initiative!

MrMario64

2004-04-20, 23:45

new version:
ed2k://|file|mediaportal_20042004.rar|5883096|ee248a6b071 a72a5cbfcc7c498098a10|

changelog:
-------
history: (dd-mm-yyyy)
20-04-2004: my tv : added : added support for <icon src> tag in tvguide.xml to automaticly download the channel icons
20-04-2004: video osd : added : subtitle / audio stream selection when playing dvd with internal dvd player
20-04-2004: video osd : added : turn dvd subtitles on off
20-04-2004: setup : added : file->setup->dvd player : default audio & subtitle language
20-04-2004: general : fixed : fixed: folder.jpg didnt work if folder contained a '.' character in the foldername
19-04-2004: my weather : fixed : delete existing three cities (london, oslo and madrid) add a new city (melbourne, australia), going to my weather will get the weather report for london.
-------

and...
check it out...
home sweet home....
http://sourceforge.net/projects/mediaportal/

Schrauber

2004-04-21, 00:27

hi,

i'm new to here. i'm german. so sorry for my bad english.

this is a great project, i think. maybe the best, i`ve seen on windows-platform.

i am currectly working on an german language file. maybe the next days it will be ready.

and i have a feature request:
it would be nice, to put out data to an lcd. such as the actual channel or the title of the currently playing dvd. something like that.
you could send out this information as windows messages.
so i can write a plugin for lcdhype to display the information on an lcd. alternativly you could write the data to an shared memory segment. maybe the better way.
i think, this is the simplest way to get data out to an lcd.

i hope, you understand what i mean!?

Schrauber

2004-04-21, 01:03

i found a little problem:

german umlauts dont work.
i tried to type some into the language file. if there was one umlaut in the file, there was no more text in the application.

Dewmerz

2004-04-21, 05:00

i have the new version installed and still cannot disable the subtitles on the dvd's. i deleted the xml file, recreated it, and set up the dvd player options with the same results.

if you bring up the osd in the dvd player and then try to click on one of the buttons mediaportal loses focus causing the osd to not go away.

usbrits

2004-04-21, 05:06

i'm sure this is an easy one....how do i get tvguide to work?
i have use xmltv before, but do i have to install in a certain directory and configure to get the mediaportal guide to work?. i can't even get the dutch guide or bat file to do anything.
thanks for your help
usbrits

Dewmerz

2004-04-21, 07:41

i looked a little closer at the subtitles i am seeing in the dvd player. they do not seem to be attached to the sub on/off that has been added. when i turned them on i got 2 sets. the subtitles i am seeing are overlayed by something. the text is white in black boxes and i have seen this on 2 machines each running different versions of the windvd codecs.

MrMario64

2004-04-21, 09:44

@ all.

if you want to use special chars change the fonts.
you can do this in fonts.xml in the skin folder.

btw. source is online now, it's on cvs.
http://cvs.sourceforge.net/viewcvs.py/mediaportal/

installer is also on sf page in the files section
http://sourceforge.net/project/showfiles.php?group_id=107397

enjoy, and help us code!!!
you can upload the patches you make to the patches area.

MrMario64

2004-04-21, 09:45

dewmerz, r u using the internal or external player?

maybe you also have the .srt or .smi subs file?
or aren't you just watching a movie that has subtitles in the movie itself?
gna gna....

Dewmerz

2004-04-21, 18:48

i am using the internal player on both. set the language to english and the subtitles to english and then unchecked the box.

i can play the movie in windvd and wmp with no issues and all of the codec settings are correct. to make sure there were no files from before i uninstalled, manually deleted the directories under team xbmc, rebooted, and re-installed. i tried a couple different movies (fugitive, second hand lions).

i'll look for the two file types tonight. i guess i could always just rebuild again. :d

Dewmerz

2004-04-22, 06:43

i did not find any subtitle files on any of the 3 systems i am seeing this on. i tried switching to a old copy of powerdvd se which helped a little on cpu usage. i noticed the subtitles i am seeing are now on a transparent background where with the windvd codec the background was black for the subtitles.

warmachine

2004-04-22, 12:13

a bit off topic but,

some of you guys mentioned you had msi mega pcs.
i was wondering whether you actually have to put msi optical drives in it or can you put any drive? same question for the tv tuner card.

could you guys post the specs of your mega pcs?

cheers,
warm.

blather

2004-04-22, 12:36

for anybody having dvd speed problems,
i was having serious problems with dvd playback (very blocky, slow and some of the picture was missing).
i noticed that a software mpeg2 codec for media player had been installed (elcard) by a codecs package.
i removed this and playback is now perfect.

on a side note:-
maybe its time that a faq or some documentation was put together by the people who use this forum.

MrMario64

2004-04-22, 17:12

blather,
forums r being made,
programming is being done
sourceforge stuff is setup
initial homepage work is being done
irc room is being done
forums here r being looked at
manual is being worked on.

all will come, don't worry ;)

@warmachine, i myself use an msi drive, but others did work (nec 2500 works). there r some drives having issues yes.
as far as i know you can use any tvcard in the msimega. i myself will put in an hauppauge sat or cable pvr card.
still not sure wich one to get.

loonytunes

2004-04-22, 18:30

@warmachine
i have a hauppage pvr 250, no problems there, also an nec dvd writer, no problems also, the onboard tv out is very good (both of em!!) :d

loonytunes

2004-04-22, 18:31

@warmachine
i have a hauppage pvr 250, no problems there, also an nec dvd writer, no problems also, the onboard tv out is very good :d

LarryGB

2004-04-22, 20:09

i have used both the msi 8606-40 tv tuner card, and ati tv wonder ve, with no problem [ drivers installed well, and pvr software worked great]

i use a lg 4040 dvd +/- rw/ram drive and works in both hifi and pc mode, [no eject problems]

i use the latest drivers from msi's tiawan and netherlands websites...

jimkar

2004-04-22, 20:19

hi,

first let me say, awesome program, it kicks ass!

it seems like others have got this working, but i'm having problems with the internal dvd-player. when i start it it goes black (you can just see the region where the movie is supposed to be displyed) and then i'm right back in the "my videos" menu. the only thing the log says is:
2004-04-22 19:11:03 dvdplayer:cleanup dshow graph
2004-04-22 19:11:04 dvdplayer:cleanup dshow graph
2004-04-22 19:11:04 dvdplayer:cleanup dshow graph

edit: i forgot, i have two dvd players (or rather one player and one burner...) in my machine if that makes a difference

/ jimmy

Dewmerz

2004-04-22, 20:49

@jimkar do you have 2 monitors with your desktop stretched? i had a similar problem with the internal player starting and then immediately stopping until i turned off the 2nd monitor. not sure if this behavior exists in 2 display clone mode.

jimkar

2004-04-22, 21:47

yep, i had two monitors and streched just as you said. however, it didn't help turning the other monitor off, i still get the same error :-(

/ jimmy

MrMario64

2004-04-22, 23:42

mediaportal just got it's own forum!!!
http://nolanparty.com/mediaportal.sourceforge.net/phpbb2/index.php

come on and join !!

gizmomel

2004-04-23, 03:47

hiya,

sorry if this is too early to ask.. but is there any chance the tv tuner support will be bda compliant? *i'd especially like to be able to stick in a dvb-t digital tv tuner and use it with mediaportal - the design and functionality knocks every other htpc software off the shelf.

edit: i can give links to bda drivers for the visionplus dvb-t digital tv, as well as the the nebula and dpanda dvb-t digital tv tuner cards for pc.

gizmomel

Frodo

2004-04-23, 14:48

i'll receive my nova-t dvb card in a short while
when i have it, i'll add support for it
so yes, we'll do everything possible to add bda support to mediaportal
frodo

gerner

2004-05-08, 04:47

will there be the ability to control the pvr through the xbox version?

what i am thinking is maybe a "lite" version, that can be minmized to the system tray or something. *the only function would be pvr capabilities, but completely controlled by xbmc on the xbox. *is this realistic at all?

i would like to see it where the pc part is "invisable" to the end user.

nice idea....i think your on to something there andriod...

xbmc on xbox can be used to:
1. play everything(from xbox hdd/disc/share)
2. play all streams(from network share or internet)
3. play pc's capture-card video stream :) *drool*
4. option to record shoutcast on pc or xbox(might free up xbox's cpu/ram if shoutcast can be recorded directly on the pc, and shared - still play in live shoutcast feed tho) ...

and the xbmc-pc on pc can be used to:
1. play everything (on pc hdd)
2. record video from capture-card (pvr)
3. record internet video streams and shoutcast
4. optimize streaming to xbmc by incorporating a pc-xbox streaming protocol(like xbms\relax\ccxstream) directly into xbmc-pc .....this would allow an xbox to view anything viewed from a networked pc's capture card .. *:)
just to say what a cool job your doing. this feature request .... http://www.xboxmediaplayer.de/forums/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif http://www.xboxmediaplayer.de/forums/non-cgi/emoticons/wow.gif http://www.xboxmediaplayer.de/forums/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif oh .... so much ass-kicking goodness please.

searchname

2004-05-17, 02:28

i just want to send kudos to all of the developers. *you guys are an extremely talented bunch and spread entertainment throughout the globe. *thanks for all of the time and effort you have placed into xbmp, xbmc, and now media portal. *

keep up the great work, you guys rock! :d

MrMario64

2004-05-22, 01:21

thank you very much...

gizmomel

2004-06-11, 04:27

mrmario64,

what's happened to the mediaportal forums please? they're inaccessible at the moment.

cheers,

gizmomelb

redriddler

2004-08-02, 01:04

is it me or has the development of mediaportal slow down the development of xbmc? i hardly see any posts of frodo and other devs anymore. not that i am complaining ofcourse about xbmc .. it is the most cool app there is. and i hope other dev's will keep up the good work..

redriddler

tslayer

2004-08-02, 02:37

frodo has not worked on xbmc in a long time now. ever since he started mediaportal.

the other devs are still working on xbmc.

ts

nagmine

2004-08-02, 22:21

also you gota remeber its summer and everyone is probably out doing stuff or on vaction lol.

Morien

2004-08-05, 15:14

are any additions to mediaportal that can be ported to xbmc, ported?

thanks
morien

Hullebulle

2004-08-05, 16:58

are any additions to mediaportal that can be ported to xbmc, ported?

thanks
morien
doubt it. many things in mediaportal depend on other software you have to install (its only a frontend for ie dvd playback) and another reason is that it is coded in vs.net.

MrMario64

2004-08-30, 17:18

updated links

homepage:
http://mediaportal.sourceforge.net/
forums:
http://nolanparty.com/mediaportal.sourceforge.net/phpbb2/index.php

dB02

2004-11-24, 07:44

what is a suggested cap card.. under or around 100 dollars... or cheapest... for using this?

i have a dv-converter type of thing now... which means no tv control just capture off a vcr and a pretty shitty cap card in my other tv....

any recomendations?

dB02

2004-11-24, 07:56

also.. would it be runable on a 700mhz pc? or no?

vicviper74

2004-12-04, 19:57

this media center is one of the best on any pc or os is it possible for you to make a pc version install so we can enjoy the simplicity &versatility of xbox media center? my windows needs tons of upgrades and crap loads of codecs to play vidoes and your was made with everything possible included.

i'm sure its been ask b4 but wont you consider it?

kraqh3d

2004-12-04, 20:18

try media portal... it began as a port of xbox media center to pc, but has grown

http://mediaportal.sourceforge.net

pike

2004-12-04, 20:58

but mediaportal requires codecs install on pc to function...

Gamester17

2004-12-05, 16:18

but mediaportal requires codecs install on pc to function...yes, strange that no one has yet added (at least) ffdshow to mediaportal's installation package so its installed together if the user chooses so.
(other things that i think could/should be added to is ac3filter and reclock, maybe frodo could program own derivitives for mediaportal ??? )

Frodo

2005-02-05, 14:58

hi,
today the mediaportal team released version 0.1.0.6
http://mediaportal.sourceforge.net

mediaportal is a full blown mediacenter for windows xp which has it roots from xboxmediacenter

frodo

jmarshall

2005-02-05, 16:04

congrats frodo!

vaeanu

2005-02-05, 16:36

nice! keep on!

kongslide

2005-04-24, 19:38

i've been using xbmc on my xbox for a while and i love it! unfortunitally my xbox frag'd last week and i'm in the process of repairing it. this leaves me at a loss because now i want to use a media center pc to watch all of my videos and movies and i haven't been able to find pc software that even comes close to xbmc as far as types of files it can play (i have a lot of .ogm and .mkv videos). i've searched the forums and haven't found a thread relating to this topic, has anyone run xbmc on thier pc? if not, is this something that people want?

thanks for any help!

spiff

2005-04-24, 19:54

you might want to check out media portal,

mediaportal.sf.net.

Tomkun

2005-05-03, 07:38

is there any interaction between xbmc and mediaportal?

Gamester17

2005-05-03, 09:41

is there any interaction between xbmc and mediaportal?no, (at least not yet, read the feature request for a mediaportal-client (http://www.xboxmediaplayer.de/cgi-bin/forums/ikonboard.pl?act=st;f=4;t=5937) in the feature suggestions forum for more information)

oboulanger

2005-08-27, 01:08

my xbox has been great so far but i am thinking about recycling an old p3 1ghz in a htpc. all the other distros (geekbox etc..) look ok but xbmc really is the best.

do you know *if it is possible to run xbmc in any way on pc hardware? i don't want o run it in a virtual machine on linux or windows, i want the pc to boot xmbc.

thanks,

olivier

floink

2005-08-27, 01:39

the creator of xbmc brings you: mediaportal (http://mediaportal.sourceforge.net/)

don't ask again... :d

raid517

2006-05-12, 05:13

hi well my title says it all, when (if ever) are you guys going to go legit and port xbmc to the pc?

i like the xbox well enough - but really ultimately one day (not too far off) it's appeal will wain. besides which, the extent of what can actually be achieved with the xbox is limited - whereas with a pc it is virtually unlimited. (if you can imagine it, you could probably do it).

with the profusion of ultra small motherboards out there (take a look at min-itx.com to see just how far this field has progressed - now all the major manufacturers are in on the act) and tiny media pc's, xbmc would make the ideal platform to take the best possible advantage of these.

yes i know you are going to say, 'well why not just use freevo', or mythtv? well the answer to that is equally obvious in my view - because as a media center, xbmc leaves these other wannabe's trailing far behind in it's dust.

obviously (being biased in such things) my main attraction would be to see xbmc running on top of a nice tight linux kernel for fast booting times - or perhaps even as a live cd.

but it seems to me that if xbmc is to have a long term future that looking at the possibility of porting it to a pc platform might not be such a bad thing at all. maybe in 10 years we could all still be here, long after the old xbox is dead and forgotten. ;)

alternatively i'm curious about what the plans for the future are? what happens when people loose interest in the xbox? will the project just be allowed to wither away and die?

gj

jarod71

2006-05-12, 05:31

well, the xbox is already retired in microsofts eyes and xbmc has gone farther than anyone xpected. version 2.0 is on the way and no end in sight, as far as pc, check out media portal, it is the sister of xbmc, it branched off from xbmc a long time ago and is pretty cool too...
http://www.team-mediaportal.com/

this is a good place to start...
http://www.team-mediaportal.com/news....ld.html (http://www.team-mediaportal.com/news/global/mediaportal_2_years_old.html)

i prefer xbmc for simplicity and it is cheaper, i dont record livetv much anymore, i mostly torrent my tv shows even though i have 2 replaytv's and pay for sat service....

even if development stopped on xbmc now, it is what it is and i could live with it as it is now for a long time... i originally got into media portal cuz i didnt see a long life for xbmc and now i use xbmc only. i prefer it but medial portal does more with tv cards etc, the cost of xbmc with xbox is much cheaper than a pc. i love xbmc, it is very polished at this point and does most of what i want as i am more geared towards iptv stuff. as iptv stuff takes off, we will have more sources of entertainment for our xbox. divx looks great upscaled to 720p, i am totally happy with my xbox/xbmc and cannot wait to mod another one!

raid517

2006-05-12, 07:07

yes but despite your (our) obvious enthusiasm, it really can't go on for ever.

besides which surely i can't be alone in finding it slightly jarring to have xbmc voted the best fucking oss project on the planet (which is a title it richly deserves) ever, period - while also overlooking the fact that requires microsoft proprietary source code in order to compile it?

i had a look at 'mediaportal' and like you i am similarly unconvinced by it. it lacks the polish and sheer slickness of xbmc - and again it relies on proprietary code in order for it to work. (so ok the software itself is open source, but the os it runs on isn't).

i'm not an oss zealot (i'm writing this on a windows machine now) but what i love about xbmc is the totally dedicated nature of what it does. it really is a media center - not just an app that runs on top of an os. and long term future or not (i mean will for example xbmc 3.0 be purely xbox based? will there still be enough working xboxes around then to make it viable?) i just don't think that it is possible to get that same 'dedicated' media center feel that xbmc has, by using a huge cumbersome os like ms windows. there will also though, come a time when the xbox will outlive it appeal for us all, or they will become so scarce and the parts so hard to find that it will no longer be worthwhile to continue.

clearly it's true too that pretty much any old joe can slap media center software on top of windows (apps like this are pretty much 10 a penny) but having a completely 100% dedicated media center that does nothing else other than work as a media center, is a whole other prospect entirely.

you see it is easy to mistake what xbmc is. personally if i wish to use a media center, i really do want it to be a media center, not just a computer with an os, with a whole load of junk stuffed on top of it and with the media center software sitting on top of that. that's not a media center, that's a pc. and if i wanted a pc - i have a choice of several that i could already choose from.

gj

akarimco

2006-06-23, 16:07

here's my two cents... xbmc would be pretty spiffy on a pc, yes, but i think it's incredible enough as it is. i have a laptop, so a media center on it would be pointless since i like to watch stuff on my tv, not my 12-inch laptop screen. i like having a dedicated box to pump my music to my home theater stereo. so what if the xbox is dead. as long as i have xbmc on my xbox, it'll never be dead. i'm even planning to go buy another used xbox to put in the bedroom. wouldn't i rather buy an xbox 360? heck no! it costs more than twice as much and doesn't do nearly as much in terms of media capabilities. my love for video games has subdued enough that the game offerings on the 360 are not even remotely interesting to me. xbmc gives me exactly what i want, and my xbox will remain my main source of entertainment far longer than microsoft ever intended.

ashlar

2006-07-09, 14:12

yes, but xbox(es) can break down. sooner or later it will become almost impossible to repair them properly and impossible to buy new ones.

by that time, i hope that this awesome dev community will have moved to something else as far as hardware platform is concerned.

jarod71

2006-07-10, 05:37

i would bet u can find xbox parts or xboxes for a few years yet... i plan to buy an extra or two for parts...

ashlar

2006-07-13, 02:11

i would bet u can find xbox parts or xboxes for a few years yet... i plan to buy an extra or two for parts...well, we can debate as much as we want, the fact remains. there *will* come a time when xbox won't be a viable platform for what would remain otherwise an awesome piece of software. it might not be a problem now. it might not be a problem in one year. but that time will come.

sheepie

2006-07-15, 02:09

by that time if there is now pc port then perhaps they will jump to x360 if someone ever gets round to running un signed code on it

drakethegreat

2006-07-16, 02:24

Its funny how everyone seems to think that Xboxes are gonna break down. Obviously they will but I have a 1.0 Xbox that I've owned since the first year it came out and I've never had any hardware issues at all. Thats after adding a larger hard disk twice already. I'm probably incredibly lucky but a track record like that makes me not worry too much because by the time it breaks down I probably won't care. MediaPortal itself is buggy as crap still and I think its insulting to XBMC, to be considered a port. Its as crappy as EA's port of BF2 to the Xbox 360.

Freddo

2006-07-17, 17:09

Has anyone seen mediaportal is implementing a server/client system, for serving tv across a network, if XBMC could act as a client for it then its useful lifespan could go on a good while longer.

ashlar

2006-07-18, 19:42

Its funny how everyone seems to think that Xboxes are gonna break down. Obviously they will but I have a 1.0 Xbox that I've owned since the first year it came out and I've never had any hardware issues at all. Thats after adding a larger hard disk twice already. I'm probably incredibly lucky...The fact you are lucky is not certain. The fact you've not been *un*lucky it's pretty much a given... Not everybody will share your luck. And in a year or so I bet it's gonna be quite tough buying a replacement console ,what with Microsoft stopping production...

P3kurwud

2006-08-26, 02:04

First, thanks to the XBMC community for building such a robust, kewl, OS for the XBOX. It has become the center piece for our living room!

I liked it so much, I started looking into how I might config a PC to do the same as XBMC (minus the games of course. I know, but gaming really isn't my thing, its the entertainment center portion I use all the time).

My first foray led me to knoppmyth, which is damn close, but is missing things like a real easy menu interface, shoutcast (I have tried getting this going on knoppmyth, but so far no luck).

So, my question is, how difficult would it be to port the XBMC OS to a generic PC? XBOX is basically a PC, with a different human interface device, gamepad vs keyboard. Otherwise, they seem much the same. Games of course would be difficult.

Just asking... :o

LaTropa64

2006-08-26, 03:19

Supposedly MediaPortal is XBMC for the PC but it just isn't up to par in my opinion.

I tried it out awhile ago and it left a lot to be desired.

Nothing I've tried so far (MythTV, MediaPortal, MCE) can come close to the experience of XBMC. Even with XBMC lacking live TV it still, in my opinion, blows away any other media application.

P3kurwud

2006-09-01, 08:42

jgawera

2006-09-01, 10:29

Microsoft wants to beat PS3. Here is a suggestion on how to make this certain: Prior to - or at the same time as - the release of PS3, what if MS leaked tech docs that showed a road map for modding the XBOX 360. PS3 would be at a big disadvantage.

(I only hope someone from MS reads my rant) :nod:

Heh, I like it, MS are secretly working on XBMC360 to kill off PS3 :)
The funny, and if it were true, it probably would kill off the PS3.
Or if Sony decided to make PS3MC, it would definately help kill off the 360 IMHO

Lets wait and see...

Gamester17

2006-09-01, 12:28

I thought I'd searched the forums for what I was looking for, didnt find anything, so posted a topic

AND GOT MOVED

Cool

Cool, because it showed me in the forum (this one) that I got moved to that I'm not the only one thinking about the longevity of a device that is so good at what its designed ( or really 'redesigned' ) to do.

After reading through this thread, I would agree that XBOX's will start breaking down. Peripherals too. Parts will inevitably become more and more rare. Ebay etcetera will eventually exhaust, unusual parts first, followed eventually by even parts commonly replaced: DVD ROMS for example.

Which ultimately, IMO, brings us to XBOX 360. Not moddable yet. Maybe it will become moddable, maybe not. Even if it was, it will eventually go the way of the original XBOX (meaning become old, hard to find parts for). Technology does change, and fast. Try find a fax card for an original IBM PS2 pc, and the OS, and drivers required to run it. Why would you? So all you can do is look to the next best alternative. I think that currently, its XBOX 360.

Microsoft wants to beat PS3. Here is a suggestion on how to make this certain: Prior to - or at the same time as - the release of PS3, what if MS leaked tech docs that showed a road map for modding the XBOX 360. PS3 would be at a big disadvantage.

That said, ultimately I think a Linux based Media Center (as good as or better than XBMC) for the PC would have the longest survival. And, PC's are getting cheap!

(I only hope someone from MS reads my rant) :nod:a non-Windows (like Linux/UNIX/BSD or PlayStation) port of XBMC will probebely never happen becuase the XBMC GUI (which really is what XBMC is, a GUI) depends very heavely on the DirectX API. Please read these other topic treads in which this has been discussed / argued about aready to the death, (so no point in starting a new discussion in this thread):
- Poll: Would you like to see XBMC on a other console/hardware-platform? (http://xbmc.org/forum/showthread.php?t=19144)
- XBMC for/on PlayStation 3 (PS3)? (http://xbmc.org/forum/showthread.php?t=21849)
- XBMC for/on PlayStation 2 (PS2)? (http://xbmc.org/forum/showthread.php?t=9288)
- Port XBMC to PSP (PlayStation Portable)? (http://xbmc.org/forum/showthread.php?t=14941)
- XBMC Linux-OS port (XBMC on a Linux PC)? (http://xbmc.org/forum/showthread.php?t=9287)
- Using XBMC legally on a PC ...ever possible? (http://xbmc.org/forum/showthread.php?t=18703)
- XBMC vs. The World?, looking for an Xbox/XBMC alternative (http://xbmc.org/forum/showthread.php?t=21240)
- Xbox360 and XBMC (XBMC on Xbox360?)? (http://xbmc.org/forum/showthread.php?t=9299) <= the most serious discussion is probebely in this thread
:rolleyes:

LaTropa64

2006-09-02, 00:35

a non-Windows (like Linux/UNIX/BSD or PlayStation) port of XBMC will probebely never happen becuase the XBMC GUI (which really is what XBMC is, a GUI) depends very heavely on the DirectX API.Do you think there is any chance of another windows port of XBMC? MediaPortal just isn't it. It seems to have went in a different direction and just doesn't have the look or feel of XBMC.

What would be great is if there was a Windows port that could interface with our xbox's and use the same database, etc. Even if it didn't support live TV immediately it would still be very useful for other things that the Xbox can't do (like HD).

drakethegreat

2006-09-02, 03:53

Ya I think MediaPortal is a failed attempt. I think that a port of XBMC could be done that blows MediaPortal out of the water. Integrate it well enough that the scripts, skins, and SQLite DB are interchangable between the Xbox version and the PC version. That would be the way to do it right. The problem with MediaPortal is it is truly unstable and doesn't do a good job at any compatibility whatsoever. Its nothing like XBMC in my opinion besides being a media center.

patito

2006-09-08, 14:17

hi,

i really like xbmc in the xbox, a big thanks for all the people involved in the project.

can it be ported to work in win32 oses?

i will even pay for that kind of port!

thanks

LaTropa64

2006-09-08, 14:42

hi,

i really like xbmc in the xbox, a big thanks for all the people involved in the project.

can it be ported to work in win32 oses?

i will even pay for that kind of port!

thanks

Your post will probably get merged into the MediaPortal post. XBMC was ported a year or two ago I think and MediaPortal was the result but it has nothing on the current versions of XBMC. There isn't anything for the PC that compares... but, yeah, I too wish there was and would be willing to donate to the cause.

baxuz

2007-01-03, 18:21

The XBMC for Xbox is currently on another whole level, compared to the Media Portal it isnt possible to portal the current XBMC for PC? i would pay for it

theomms

2007-01-13, 07:52

I too would pay for a port of XBMC to windows.

if it was ported over well then it would easily become the standard for the frontend of HTPC's (the same way that it has dominated all of the other xbox dashboards). I have tried all of the other major media systems that are listed in this thread and XBMC is by far:

-the easiest to use
-the most flexible
-most stable
-most customizeable
-most available support for upgrades and troubleshooting

if XBMC had TV support it would be already be in half the electronic stores in the U.S.

just my .02;)

dexx

2007-03-15, 09:19

0.2.2.0 of Mediaportal is improved. But i still find it to be slow and buggy. Quite often it hangs when navigating through screens

Gir_Ver_2.0

2007-03-15, 09:52

ezechiel1917

2007-03-16, 11:30

I have tried MediaPortal and it comes nowhere near XBMC.

I'm glad we have something on XBOX which can show what HTPC software on PC could be capable of. I like uniqueness of this. As long as we can keep our XBOXes working its just a software you would like to have updated there. It's basicaly stuff which keeps your XBOX alive and kicking!

Of course I would like to have full PC port, it would just rock the world :)
And yes, if I imagine XBMC ported to PC with TV support/HD playback... :shocked: :shocked: :shocked:

Well you never know...

ashlar

2007-03-17, 05:03

Well how about this question... How much $$ would it take for a few of you devs to write and maintain a Windows (vista or xp) version of XBMC? Just a realistic dollar amount that if someone handed to you you would get to work and release it.You could adopt a ransom model.

Set a target of money needed to develop, say $5,000 as an example. If enough people pledge through PayPal, you code it. Otherwise... it's money back for everybody and no time wasted.

1wizzard

2007-03-17, 16:22

If there is to be a pledge, the best way it to initiate a pledge drive where people pledge x amount of dollar each promising to send the money when the goal is reached. This way you skip the enormous job of sending back the money if it fails.
As for donating in general, why not start an monthly donation program? Where people cold automatically donate a buck or two each month the forum has over 13k members of you culd get 1500 members to donate 2$/month it would mean 3000USd /month well enough to keep a full time employee
Porting to win I think is a must, the Xbox is getting old, and with more and more people getting HDTV screens and want to be able to watch HDTV materials on their screens.
There has been some talks about porting to Xbox360 but even if that become an possibility the will most likely still be no PVR functionality.
I think it is time for XBMC to grove up and become fully legit. On an windows platform XBMC has the ability to become the full featured media center (software) that the market has been looking for.
HDTV and PVR is an must really soon I think many people is starting to leave XBMC or at least start using an HTPC with media portal or similar to satisfy their needs parallel to xbox/xbmc.
It would be grate if it would be possible to use ReactOS as an base for two reasons 1) free 2) fast

1wizzard

2007-03-17, 16:23

If there is to be a pledge, the best way it to initiate a pledge drive where people pledge x amount of dollar each promising to send the money when the goal is reached. This way you skip the enormous job of sending back the money if it fails.

As for donating in general, why not start an monthly donation program? Where people cold automatically donate a buck or two each month the forum has over 13k members of you culd get 1500 members to donate 2$/month it would mean 3000USd /month well enough to keep a full time employee

Porting to win I think is a must, the Xbox is getting old, and with more and more people getting HDTV screens and want to be able to watch HDTV materials on their screens.

There has been some talks about porting to Xbox360 but even if that become an possibility the will most likely still be no PVR functionality.

I think it is time for XBMC to grove up and become fully legit. On an windows platform XBMC has the ability to become the full featured media center (software) that the market has been looking for.

HDTV and PVR is an must really soon I think many people is starting to leave XBMC or at least start using an HTPC with media portal or similar to satisfy their needs parallel to xbox/xbmc.

It would be grate if it would be possible to use ReactOS as an base for two reasons 1) free 2) fast

Gir_Ver_2.0

2007-03-23, 03:51

Well devs, what amount will we have to gather for you to do such a thing?

spiff

2007-03-23, 04:35

if money was an issue. why would we be developing a foss application in the first place?

speaking for myself; i have a paying job.

don't throw your money at problems; fix them yourself.

Gir_Ver_2.0

2007-03-23, 18:26

well I am not a coder nor do I have the inclination to learn. Nor did I say money was an issue like you guys were starving, I was talking about the age old tradition of paying someone for their time in order to get what you want when you don't have the skill / time to do it yourself.

So we know Spiffs attitude twords this, any other devs wanna chime in?

PS. If not for $$ then what would it take to motivate you all to do something like this?

szsori

2007-03-23, 18:39

Just to make a point, some of the more popular FOSS teams out there have one or two people that are paid to work on the software. Perl is a good example... Larry Wall and Damian Conway both work for companies that pay them to work on it full time. mySQL, Firefox, and various flavors of linux also have examples of paid employees. In the most extreme case, Linus Torvalds is worth $20m due to kickbacks from Redhat and VA Linux. He also worked for Transmeta and did linux development while there.

I wouldn't mind donating money to show my appreciation for XBMC, but I don't think any developers would expect payment either (shown by spiff's response :). I always think the best way to handle this is to let the developers do their own thing and if you're appreciative, ask for their Paypal info so you can send them beer money. Also, just saying thanks once in a while goes a long way. :)

jmarshall

2007-03-24, 01:00

Indeed. The point is that I extremely doubt that donations from the community would get anywhere near close to the coding hours that would go into such an endeavour.

Sure, some stuff can probably be done without too much trouble (basically what needs to be written first off is a windows videorenderer path - with that XBMC_PC will be able to play video), but that is just the beginning of something like this. Anything else is a very large undertaking.

Plus, we do this for fun. Converting it to a job will very likely suck the fun out of it - with money comes obligation.

Cheers
Jonathan

Gir_Ver_2.0

2007-03-24, 04:08

True about the suck the fun out of it factor, however, i was just curious how much it would take.. you know if someone were to fund the project....

B1llyGo4t

2007-03-27, 17:44

First id like to say thank you developers for creating the most awsome media center around!
Anyway, for me the great thing about XBMC is the simplistic platform it runs on. I hate computers, I hate being geek hunched over a keyboard and mouse. I hate playing games and watching movies and all that stuff on a computer. they lock up and crash and sloooooooow dooooown. it ruins the experience. all that crap running in the background and bla bla bla! If the ONLY option was to port XBMC to PC then Id be for it, and i know there are many proes over running on a console. but personaly i dont want to shell out the cash to build a computer that can do what this 120 dollar VIDEO GAME can do. by the time XBMC were to move on to another system it would be cheap too. And i dont feal exploited useing this program.
Iv been useing XBMC since it came with the project mayhem 2 skin and will untill there are no more working xboxs for me to get!

LaTropa64

2007-03-28, 00:12

If the ONLY option was to port XBMC to PC then Id be for it, and i know there are many proes over running on a console. but personaly i dont want to shell out the cash to build a computer that can do what this 120 dollar VIDEO GAME can do. by the time XBMC were to move on to another system it would be cheap too.The problem is XBMC on the Xbox is already starting to see the end of its life when it comes to video playback. It is by far the best media center app out there but because high def is becoming more and more popular, it just can't be used for some things anymore. I love getting h264 movies and tv shows in 720p and 1080p but there is no way to play them back with XBMC. Right now my only option to watch those videos is with a computer and unfortunately all the media centers available for PC's are garbage when you compare them to how feature rich and user friendly XBMC is.

Even though it can't handle true HD contet, I still won't be giving up XBMC anytime soon because it does such an awesome job at cataloging my networked music and ripped dvd collection. It is just a shame that you have to switch over to a PC and an entirely different media center interface and database of your movies when you want to playback h264. One day soon I'm hoping will have a platform that can run both HD movies and XBMC (and, of course, live TV would be a nice bonus too). It is something I'm sure a lot of people, including myself, would be willing to pay for.

ultrabrutal

2007-03-28, 00:54

I watch HD and live TV on my XBMC's just fine ;)

HD divx is possible and looking great. HR TV shows looks great too
TV is possible using a Dreambox as tuner. Sadly MPEG2 at 1080i is too much for XBMC to handle even rendered at 720p. Also deinterlacers could be better

There are really no HW alternatives and XBMC is by far the best Media Center. I just hope something will break on the GPU utilization front, that could open a whole new world

raid517

2007-04-02, 06:16

I know the developers of XBMC out there think that this is a real old chestnut. But hey I just tried the XBMC PC environment - and to put it bluntly, it is simply fantastic!!! Everything works (except video). The music works, the library works, LastFM works, UPNP works....

Even in it's current state, it it way times better than any Windows Media center PC.

The only major problem is as I said, no video.

I know the XBMC guys have said they wouldn't support it as a fully fledged PC environment - which is sad. The reason so many people would like this is exactly because XBMC is so much better than any other media center experience out there. I have tried literally dozens and dozens of media center type applications over the last 12 years (both on Linux and Windows) and really XBMC is still the hands down winner.

I hope you guys will take this as the compliment it was intended to be. But as far as media center type applications go, you guys have I think genuinely nailed it.

I would love to move beyond my old XBox 1 and just use a small dedicated XBMC PC.

But going by what you guys have always said, I guess there are more chances of that happening than of the moon turning bright pink, or of someone discovering a cure for geekyness. (Or put another way, it just ain't gonna happen).

Oh well...

bmfrosty

2007-04-08, 04:50

I've been hemming and hawing over this problem for the last couple of weeks, spurred on mostly by the excitement surrounding the AppleTV and by (the now partially solved) problem with XBMC and the playback of H.264 video. It seems to me that the most likely resolution to the problem will come when some hacker puts together a version of the XBMC interface (whether it be the PC dev platform, mediaportal, or some new fork from the CVS/SVN), ReactOS (http://www.reactos.org/en/index.html), mono (http://www.mono-project.com/Main_Page), and either ffdshow (http://www.free-codecs.com/download/FFDShow.htm) or mplayer (http://www.mplayerhq.hu/design7/news.html). Whoever puts this together will not develop it within this community (although they may advertise here or be an active community member) and when they release it it will show that it's mostly nuts and bolts, but when it's done, others will join them and they'll have forums and some quiet releases (because of the legal issues that will no doubt surround ReactOS).

Even more than than this I look forward to the platform that will host this. It may end up being AppleTV, but I don't think that will be it unless the Open Source community learns how to do H.264 decoding on that NVidia GPU. It will probably be something else entirely. Personally I'm hoping that either VIA or the newly merged ATI/AMD company come out with a Media Center platform that comes standard with a remote. It will probably come standard with some crappy proprietary software that someone will manage to hack out and post about during the first week, and things will just start flowing from there.

I look forward to the things that are sure to come.