[mythtv-users] [old] Re: XvMC and libmpeg2 to be dropped in 0.25

[Nick Rout]

On Mon, Feb 7, 2011 at 9:09 AM, D. Hugh Redelmeier <hugh at mimosa.com> wrote:
> | From: Brian Wood <beww at beww.org>
> | Date: Fri, 3 Dec 2010 11:22:59 -0700
>
> | XvMC is an older hardware support method for mpeg2, it's pretty well
> | been replaced by VDPAU, and decoding mpeg2 in software is not all that
> | CPU intensive (pretty much anything over 500 Mhz. can handle it at SD
> | resolutions).
>
> [Sorry for reviving this old thread.  I'm way behind.]

old thread, but still relevant.

>
> As I understand it VDPAU is only supported by the nVidia proprietary
> drivers on nVidia hardware.  I'd like something supported by open
> source on a wide variety of hardware.

So would we all.

> I don't exactly have a
> candidate API: XvMC is too limited, VA API is apparently not there
> yet, XvBA is AMD-proprietary (I think), perhaps OpenGL isn't overkill.
>
> Some of my Myth boxes don't use nVidia hardware (a couple of those are
> old too -- no PCIe slot).

One option for you might be an 8400 PCI nVidia card, it isn't the
snappiest vdpau performer, and will only do mpeg2 and h264 (ie not
xvid/divx and cousins).

> Of course I could stay at .24 (hey, I'm not
> all there yet) but I want to get all my Myth boxes running at the same
> level.  After all, Myth boxes are only supposed to talk to others that
> have the same version.
>
> One argument thrown out in the discussion is that replacing boxes is
> good for the environment.

you don't always have to throw the whole box, and face it, it is all
due for the scrap heap ONE day.

>
> (a) it depends.  For example, on the amount of time the box is on.
>
> (b) making modern boxes use CPU decoding when they could have used
>    their hardware assistance (eg. ATI cards), is certainly not a win
>    on energy consumption.
> _______________________________________________