[mythtv-users] XBMC port to Linux and Mythtv

[Matt Emmott]

On 8/25/07, Steve MacLaren <scram69 at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>
>
> On 8/24/07, Phill Wiggin <alamar at gmail.com> wrote:
> >
> > >
> > > Thanks, the problem is I no longer have the initial conditions (xbox
> > bios
> > > and dashboard) necessary to perform step 6.
> > >
> > >  Considering the xbox is just a PC, in theory, one should be able to
> > arrive
> > > at the final state (xbmc installed) by a combination of re-flashing
> > the bios
> > > and installing the necessary "operating system".
> > >
> > >  Before I dive into the forum that is linked to by that how-to, I
> > wanted to
> > > see if any of the fairly tech-savvy folks on this list had encountered
> > and
> > > dealt with this issue...
> > >
> >
> > This isn't a simple proposition.  Without getting into gory details,
> > XBMC requires a hacked MS bios, a pre-compiled XBMC, and xbmcmythtv
> > python scripts, and a FatX (I think) formatted filesystem.
> >
> > There are auto-installer disks that will set up a dashboard for you
> > (check out xbox-scene.com or google for more info) and give you the
> > ability to FTP the XBMC and xbmcmythtv files onto the harddrive.
> > These disks will blow away your current HD install, IIRC.
>
>
> Not a problem, I've ftp'd everything I wanted off the thing under Xebian.
>
> A relatively simple thing to do would be to flash your bios w/ a
> > hacked MS bios, and build an XBMC/xbmcmythtv DVD. (Instructions are on
> > the 'net).  The hacked MS bios would try to boot off the DVD drive
> > first, and pull up XBMC for you to use (or try out to be sure you want
> > to use it on your HD).  This will preserve your Linux install; you'd
> > just need to reflash cromwell to get back to where you are now.
> >
> > If you _only_ want to use your xbox for XBMC, you can use a BIOS
> > editing tool and modify a hacked bios to load xbmc.xbe instead of
> > default.xbe . (This has the effect of auto-running XBMC instead of the
> > dashboard whenever you turn on the xbox.)
>
>
> Thanks for the guidance and the tip about xbmc.xbe.  Yes, I only want to
> use this as an XBMC mythFE.
>
> This is all rather far afield of MythTV. Xbox-scene.com is the site
> > you want (again, IIRC).
> >
> > Sorry for not being terribly specific,  but I haven't looked into this
> > stuff in ages.
>
>
> Phill,  I appreciate your help.  I've already started combing through the
> X-S forum for details.  Like I said, the intention is to turn the box into a
> dedicated mythFE.  I just wanted to get a better understanding of the
> process from those here who may have done it themselves.
>

The XBMCMythTV Python scripts are usable when you don't have the NUV issues
I mentioned, but it's not a great dedicated front end. From what I've heard,
and you probably know this better than myself, running Myth on Xebian on the
machine is slow as heck. There's a dude in China that will upgrade your Xbox
to 1GHZ/256MB, which should make it a usable front end, but by the time
you've spent the $400 or some odd dollars upgrading it you could build a
nicer front end machine. Unless of course, you know somebody that local can
solder a BGA processor. :)
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://mythtv.org/pipermail/mythtv-users/attachments/20070827/42368cbb/attachment.htm