Messages

The password in /usr/share/mythtv/mysql.txt looks to be the same as the password in the Myth setup.

They should match.  I believe the values that you see in the myth setup are pulled from that file.  My point was that the password in the file may not match the database if you accidentally modified that field from within the mythTV setup.

That sounds a lot like the dreaded MySQL DBPassword mismatch that Myth is famous for.  Chances are that the database password defined in mysql.txt doesn't match the actual database password.  This should have worked out of the box, but it's possible that you fat fingered the setting when you were configuring things from the GUI.  Changing the password from the GUI updates the file.  Do a grep for mysql.txt (I don't recall where LMCE expects it to live).  The username and password for the mythconverg database are stored there.

I don't recall what the default DBPassword should be for a clean LinuxMCE install.  I can check on my box tonight and post it.  If anyone else knows or can check before then please post it for hobbsc.

Take a look at this thread as well.
http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?p=2817553 

I'm seeing the same problem on occassion.  The solution that I've found is to set both IPs to localhost in the myth setup.  My frontend and backend are on the same box so it works.  Once you exit setup you will be able to connect to the backend.  The problem is that the database gets modified each time you reboot, so the settings are lost.  I probably need to tweak one of the shell scripts to use localhost by default.

Technically I don't think the mythbackend has died.  LMCE just can't connect to it so it assumes it has died and prints out that message.

Does your user have permissions to write to the drive containing the mythconverg database?

Here's the libxine that I'm using:

chris@dcerouter:~$ sudo dpkg -s libxine1 | grep Version
Password:
Version: 1.1.4-2ubuntu3

Here are a couple of screen shots of a show that I recorded from analog cable(NTSC) using the mythbackend and my PVR-150 capture card.  The image tvCapture_LMCE.jpg was taken of the video played back inside LMCE.  tvCapture_xine.jpg was taken while playing back the video from xine directly.  The LMCE version is clearly squished horizontally.  See attachments.

I have a few questions about linux mce that I want to know the answer to before I install.

1. I already have some movies ripped as avi files, can I use these with linux mce, or do I have to re-rip the dvds? If yes, can I use any media format that xine will play with linux mce?
Xine plays back .avi files nicely.  You can playback anything the xine supports.

2. Is it really necessary to have a TV at each media director, or can I just use a monitor?
I don't see why you couldn't use a monitor.

3. If I use the core with only one network card, and have it as the DHCP server, do I lose any functionality as compared to have it with the dual network card "Firewall" setup?
Not sure.  I'm currently using 1 network card, and I haven't come across any restrictions.
4. Does the core need a lot of ram and a good processor, or can I just use an old PC with a big HD?
Depends what you are doing with the core.  If you are trying to record 4 HD streams at once and serve up video/music to the whole house then a fair amount of RAM would be wise.
5. I'm thinking of installing within the next week or so. Is the beta 2 stable enough to install/will the stable version be coming out that soon? Should I stick with version 1.0 for now?
I would personally wait until 1.1 Beta3 or whatever they call it. 1.1 is definitely more stable than 1.0.

6. Can a USB webcam attached to the core a be watched live from media directors?

7. Can two media directors be watching the same movie/tv channel at once?

8. If I have a VCR hooked up to my core, can I control it (rewind/pause etc.) from the media directors?

Thanks in advance!

Autodetection of aspect ratio should be present in Xine player, when you do not get correct aspect ratio, this means it failed for certain movie This generates an idea that it would be nicer to have ability to change the aspect ratio 'on fly' - and override the AR when it is set to wrong value.

Xine_Player does appear to detect some content correctly.  I can playback XVID encoded HDTV shows just fine.  It also seems to handle 1080i\720p MPEG2 files,but it doesn't do well with 4:3 MPEG2 TV or DVD's.  The common denominator is that 16:9 content is displayed correctly on my 16:9 TV, but 4:3 or 1.85 isn't.

Are you saying to playback the recorded shows using Kaffeine from inside LinuxMCE?  I didn't think that was possible.

Outside of LMCE, Xine correctly detects the aspect ratio of my content.  Last night I tried to watch a DVD (Click) from within LinuxMCE and it was squished horizontally.  I then exited to the KDE desktop and launched Xine directly without any options except deinterlacing enabled.  It played fine.  I have modified my xorg.conf file to include the "DisplaySize" option.  I'm not sure if Xine would have displayed the movie correctly on my 16:9 TV without that option.  I'll remove that option tonight and try it again.  I'll also post a couple of screen shots so people with 4:3 TV's can see what those of us with 16:9 TV's are complaining about

 

Displaying the correct aspect ratio is may more important than being able to zoom IMOP.  Currently on my 16:9 display, DVD's and SD shows recorded from the Mythbackend are squished horizontally.  It's basically unwatchable.  I either have to watch the show from inside the MythTV frontend which is annoying, or I have to set my TV to zoom.  The 2nd option is bad because it causes a significant portion of the top and bottom of the image to get chopped off.

Xine natively supports auto aspect ratio detection.  Please reconsider making this a priority for the 1.1 release.

Thanks

If zoom is planned for 1.1 how about auto aspect ratio detection?

I'm really glad to hear that the focus is on the media features.  Thanks!!

Here are the two main improvements that I would like to see:

1. Better TV viewing capabilities.  Keep the mythBackend, but design a new frontend that has the LMCE look and feel.  They already have a custom program guide, so that's a start.  It just feels like a hack when you launch TV and the mythFrontend starts up.
2. Get a dedicated photo viewer app and make it easier to switch between using flickr photos and your personal photos for the screen saver.  The background images are one of the coolest features of the system.  Displaying photos of the kids would go a long way toward improving the WAF.

I see this problem constantly.  My current work around until I find a better solution is to run the mythsetup and change the IP address for dcerouter to localhost.  My frontend and backend are on the same box.  When I exit the setup I'm able to connect to the backend again.  This seems to work fine until I reboot.  There's apparently a shell script that updates the database when you launch LMCE.  I've been too lazy to track it down and change it.

Surprisingly the Microsoft Media Center remote is pretty decent.  I find my self preferring it to my Harmony.  If only it could control my receiver.  It just feels good in my hand.

You will only be able to run UI2 with masking if you disable Composite.  UI2 with alpha-blending won't work.