[mythtv-users] Netbook as low-power combined back-end / front-end?

[Tyler T]

> Could you give any details on your low power split backend / frontend
> setup?   I had always assumed that a single device would be lower
> power, as the process scheduling could float back and forth as needed
> (transcoding, etc, when the user isn't watching a program, but then
> pausing the jobs when video is playing).  Do you power down your front
> end when it isn't in use?

Yes, my FE-only device is an Intel x86 Mini-ITX system with an NVidia
PCI card that's powered off when not in use. Compared to my BE, it's
power-hungry at a couple dozen watts... and requires fans due to my
unwise case selection.

My headless BE is a SheevaPlug, a fanless 1.2Ghz 512MB ARM device with
an external 2.5" 500GB USB HD. Power consumption, including the hard
drive, is something like 6-9 watts.

Note, while Myth 0.23 and 0.24 run on ARM, I haven't tried 0.25 yet.
You may also encounter some anti-ARM sentiment on this list.

> We flag commercials, but due to some issues with false detections, we
> quit transcoding a few years ago.  I would probably keep commercial
> flagging running, but if a program (or even most of the programs)
> didn't make it through the queue before we watched it, it wouldn't be
> a big deal.

Yeah, you can still commflag/transcode but if you record a ton of
shows, your CPU may not be able to keep up and your queue will grow
infinitely.

Unless you are transcoding for playback on portable devices, IMHO it's
better to just buy more disk space to hold raw recordings. Disks are
cheap and you buy them once, whereas you pay every month for the
electricity used to transcode.

> The current "TV" is a 24" LCD via a DVI connection.   I would have to
> step down to an analog VGA connection for most of the netbooks, but
> given the display size and our viewing distances, I don't think it
> would be a significant issue.

I believe VGA is technically "High-Definition", even though it's
analog. Just keep your cable lengths short, and don't cheap out on a
skinny unshielded cable.

> have tried using a USB drive before on my current system, and run into
> minor bandwidth problems if too many shows are being read/written at

I can record 2 shows from my HDHR and play back a third at the same
time without problems on my 2.5" USB HD. YMMV of course.