[mythtv-users] PS3 to come with full Linux

[Byron Poland]

On 5/16/06, Ivan Kowalenko <ivan.kowalenko at gmail.com> wrote:
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> On May 16, 2006, at 11.01, Brian Wood wrote:
> > On May 16, 2006, at 9:32 AM, Jeff Coffler wrote:
> >> On Tuesday, May 16, 2006 8:12 AM, Brian Wood wrote:
> >>
> >>> From what I've read these things are going to be pretty expensive,
> >>> even if it could run a frontend, at $500 to $600 there are certainly
> >>> much cheaper alternatives.
>
> Is there word if Sony is holding the PS3 at $500/$600 indefinitely?
> I've heard economists complain and say that the X360 should have been
> that much when it first came out (due to supply), and then drop when
> the supply is more readily available. If Sony is planning to hold the
> PS3 at $500/$600 for a while, then this whole threat could be moot,
> and the PS3 could go the way of the Saturn, Jaguar, and the 3D0.
>
> >> Is there?  Depends on what the box can do.
> >>
> >> I use an Xbox as a Myth frontend, and while it's inexpensive, it's
> >> also pretty limited.  At regular playback, CPU appears to be around
> >> 80%.  If I do something funny (like picture in picture, say), then
> >> the Xbox skips
> >> and drops frames left, right, and center.  Clearly, it has no
> >> chance of
> >> being able to do anything that approaches HD.
>
> That is, until someone figures out how to make some good drivers for
> the XBox's video chipset, so we can finally harness that GPU. But,
> given that he PS3, X360, and the Wii are the wave of the future,
> there's going to be a little more attention on those machines (not to
> say there won't be development for what we have now).
>
> Just out of curiosity, does anyone know if it's possible to develop
> an XvMC-like layer to run on DirectX/Win32? If that's possible,
> someone could write a Myth front end in XBox native XBE code, and
> utilize the GPU for XvMC functions. The XBox advertised it was
> capable of HDTV (though use of that was few and far between, and
> probably only 720p), so we know the graphics chipset will output to
> that resolution. If that can be done, it might be possible to get to
> a point where we could at least have a 720p Myth Front end.
>
> >> I wouldn't mind a box that could do HD.  Any suggestions of an
> >> inexpensive box that can do that?
>
> FX5200 costs around $50, give or take, right? Say, about $250-$300
> for a bare-bones system (with RAM included), $120 for a good hard
> disk, and $20 for a FireWire card (we're assuming we're doing HD
> cable capture). Add that up, and it's still not $600. Close, but not
> there. It's even less if we don't need that big of a hard disk
> (assuming, that is, storage is elsewhere, or this is just a front end).
>
> >> I'm not sure if the new Mac Mini can do HD or not.  But it's around
> >> $600, I think.  Building your own hardware (if you get the
> >> hardware specs
> >> right, and if it's quiet enough - I haven't looked into this
> >> option yet) is
> >> about the same, I believe.
>
> Actually, the Mini is closer to $500. Theoretically, it's capable of
> HD, but people are still working on it. The old PPC Minis were pretty
> good, but there seem to be a couple stumbling blocks on the Intel Minis.
>
> > I admit I was only thinking about SD, and there are obviously cheaper
> > alternatives for that. You can buy an entire laptop that includes a
> > 14" display that will make a good SD F/E for under $300 (Inspiron
> > 7500s are going for $275 or so).
>
> Or an XBox for $129, used. $20 for a remote, $10 for a memory card
> (or an USB->XBox adapter for use with a USB Memory Stick), a $5 for
> MechAssault, and you've got it made in the shade.
>
> > For HD I'm not so sure, if the PS-3 can do that and do it well it
> > might be a practical alternative cost-wise.
>
> Sony is hyping that the PS3 can do HD, and I'm willing to be they
> aren't going to bar and X modelines that run in HD. If people can get
> at the GPU, and figure out how to do something like XVMC, it
> shouldn't be that hard. Of course, all this proprietary/slightly-
> modified-just-enough-to-make-things-annoying-or-difficult hardware,
> it would take some time.
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I started the thread because I'm interested in a small quiet HD
frontend.  right now, small quiet and HD don't mix well with low
price.  sure you can put together a machine capable of being an HD
frontend for aroudn $600 but will it be small?  will it be quiet?
I've been a little distance from updating any of my systems for a few
months, but I don't think there is a definative answer which is why I
like looking at the potential of something like the PS3.

I have a iodata linkplayer2, and while I can get recordings to
playback from myth with some of the 3rd party servers, it isn't a full
fledged front end which is what I'm really after.