Playing incomplete RAR files

[gryphon5]

Hello,

Using XBMC for XBOX, I can start viewing a file archived into multiple rar files before the rar-set is complete. This is useful for starting viewing a video while the archives are still transferring.

This is not the case with XBMC for Linux, it simply hangs on the "Buffering" screen and gets no further, pressing cancel only changes the buffering window to display "Buffering (Cancelling)" but it doesn't cleanly cancel.

XBMC's VFS handling of RAR files is in one of its best features (especially since no other media player comes close), so it would be very good if this feature worked the same between XBOX and Linux. Is there some buffering setting I should change or am I simply asking the impossible?

Many Thanks,
Tom.

[knatsch]

AFAIK this has never worked in Linux XBMC. I am also really missing this feature.

[knatsch]

Probably only very few users see an advantage in this feature because torrent does not benefit of it.

[spiff]

works just fine for me - if there is a problem it is not due to half-done archives

[Jezz_X]

spiff I also have this issue on xbox its 100% but on linux you seem to need the complete rarset before it will start playing. But I will admit its been a few months since I tried

[knatsch]

spiff: Its really working for you under Linux? What is your setup? Are you playing these rar parts locally or do you stream over smb?

[spiff]

truth with a modification.

yes it works, and the rar code works just fine.
however dvdplayer has issues with it. a quick workaround for now is to do a seek backwards rite at the beginning - after that it should behave. exactly the same happens on xbox. i'll notify elupus as soon as i see him around, i'm sure he'll figure out what it is.

[knatsch]

Hey this is really working :) Nice find!

[spiff]

fyi i have fixed this, however my changes breaks mplayer on xbox and i dont have access to xbox/win32 development at all atm and fixing mplayer in the blind isnt very easy. but it is on my list so no reason to worry, i wont abandon you ftp leechers just yet ;)

[knatsch]

Nice to hear that :)
Is x264 also working for you? Earlier I tried only xvid which was working, but with x264 backward seeking stops the file immediately.