Last Updated: 2007-12-17 15:00 Introduction ------------ This is intended as documentation and "action items" for myself. I'm publishing it as-is in the hope that other people might find it useful, but be aware if may be a little raw. WARNING: This is/was my TODO list and documentation, but I didn't always do things in the same order (as I was waiting for hardware, etc.). I've tried to re-organize it in a way that makes sense, but I may have goofed. Also, I may have forgotten to update this when I had to tweak something. YMMV. WARNING: Mythbuntu is based on Ubuntu Gutsy which is still BETA until mid/late Oct 2007! Legend ------ * is a TODO or a bullet point, depending on context ~ is in progress x is finished X is aborted or not done for some reason $ is a user prompt # is a comment (should be no root prompt '#' since *buntu uses sudo for everything) x) is a multi-level bullet point, where x = some number - is a multi-level bullet point >>> is a "FIXME" marker Goals ----- 1) Get away from recording TV via VCRs (seriously) 2) Provide pause/commercial skip for "live" TV timeslots 3) Wife acceptance By #2, I mean the ability to start watching a show live at say 9:00PM, but "pausing" it for 10-15 mins, then using a 30 second skip to skip over commercials. In practice, what I am really doing is scheduling the show to be recorded normally, but watching the beginning (as it's still recording the end) a few minutes after the hour, and using the 30-second skip. I thought I couldn't use MythTV's commercial flagging here for 2 reasons. First, that requires post-processing after the show is recorded and 2) the frontend device I'm using (MediaMVP) can't do it yet. It does have a 30-sec skip button though. Good enough. It turns out you can start commercial flagging when you start recording, if you have enough CPU on the backend. PROBLEM: The MediaMVP seems like it can't display closed captions, which we really like to have going, partly for amusement, partly as my sound system sucks and I haven';t gotten around to upgrading it. Caveats and Notes ----------------- * I have no high def. (HD) equipment and could not care less about it [1] * Our TV is also old and has only coax and RCA inputs, and the cable is in the coax and the DVD player in the RCA input (more on that later) * We have only the standard def. (SD) ~$16/mo Comcast service * Main use cases for MediaMVP are above, no HD, no plug-ins, no DVD, music, etc. playing - OK, so I installed slimserver for playing music, we'll see how it goes... * It's not feasible or desirable to place a "real" PC near the main TV * FYI, I'm getting 1.1G per half hour show and 2.2G per hour show using the PVT-500 with all default settings for everything related to pciture quality and size. Open MythTV Questions --------------------- * What happens on shows that run 1:02, e.g. Heroes, ER? I'd have thought the EPG would deal with that, but it didn't. * What happens when the disk fills up, how are things deleted? Oldest first, with some priority? = Find this in the docs Open MediaMVP Questions ----------------------- * How do I get CC on the MediaMVP? (I get CC on other FEs) See also "MediaMVP bugs" below Asked ML, FE ML archive is *way* behind in indexing: http://sourceforge.net/mailarchive/forum.php?forum_name=mvpmc-devel Next Actions ------------ x Order hardware x GOT: hardware 2:40 PM 9/26/2007 Got tuner card, had to remove a fan and baffle in the PE-650 for it to fit! :-/ 4:36 PM 9/27/2007 Got hard drive 4:47 PM 10/1/2007 Got MediaMVP x Sign up at https://www.schedulesdirect.org/signup Can't get program guide in VMware test machine due to lack of tuner. Oh well... x Removed plastic frame pieces and kinda jammed the PCI fan back in so no F1 on boot x Install tuner card & hard drive in B-E server x Install MythTV LiveCD on B-E server Did not use LVM, since it wasn't in the installer. Use MythTV Storage Groups later on? No LVM snapshots though :-( Bummer, as I'm getting 1.1G per half hour show and 2.2G per hour show using the PVT-500 with all default settings for everything related to pciture quality and size. 500G isn't going to go as far as I'd hoped. Used "Guided" partitioning on the entire 500G EIDE drive Did "Advanced Installation" Primary Backend w/ Frontend Turned Samba off (can use SSHFS or add it later) and MythTV Service on Set MythWeb & MySQL root passwords Ran MythTV Setup, see settings map for details = This failed since the capture card was not detected (hadn't rebooted yet) Rebooted server x Using CTRL-ALT-F1 console (or SSH), logged in to the command line and: $ cd /etc/apt # See [3] re: next line $ sudo replace http://mirror.cs.umn.edu/ubuntu/ http://us.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ -- sources.list $ sudo replace 'deb-src ' '#deb-src ' -- /etc/apt/sources.list $ sudo apt-get update $ sudo apt-get dist-upgrade WARNING: The following packages cannot be authenticated! mythbuntu-control-centre mythbuntu-default-settings mythbuntu-desktop Install these packages without verification [y/N]? y x Update backend NTP setup to use my local NTP server $ sudo cp ntp.conf ntp.conf.ORIG # I used my real internal NTP server below, but for documentation purposes change it here: $ sudo vi ntp.conf server ntp.pool.org $ sudo /etc/init.d/ntp restart x Configure MythTV Backend server hosts file (may be overkill) $ sudo vi /etc/hosts 127.0.0.1 localhost 192.168.xx.90 mythtv-be-01 mythtv-be-01.jpsdomain.org x Configure MythTV Backend server and local frontend GUI for that server (will be rarely used) https://help.ubuntu.com/community/MythTV_mythtvsetup See also: my settings map x Prepare infrastructure to support MediaMVP !!! WARNING: much of the docs are http://www.mvpmc.org/, esp. http://www.mvpmc.org/mvpmc-HOWTO-singlehtml.html **WRONG** for any new MediaMVP with a "Rev Hn" e.g. RevH3 like I just got!!! !!! http://mvpmc.wikispaces.com/hxhowto are newer/better. !!! :-( Using a windows box with the Hauppauge software seems much easier, but that's yucky... :-( x Tweak my existing DHCPd (Debian Etch dhcp3-server) config # This doc is OK: http://www.mvpmc.org/mvpmc-HOWTO-singlehtml.html#toc3.4 $ tail -20 /etc/dhcp3/dhcpd.conf group { next-server 192.168.xx.90; # IPA of MythTV backend and TFTP server use-host-decl-names on; option ntp-servers 192.168.xx.11; # MythTV backend server host mythtv-be-01 { hardware ethernet 00:02:B3:00:00:00; fixed-address 192.168.xx.90; } # MythTV frontend server (MediaMVP) in family room host mythtv-fe-fr { hardware ethernet 00:0D:FE:00:00:00; fixed-address 192.168.xx.91; filename "dongle.bin"; #option root-path "/home/mvp,rsize=4096,wsize=4096,nolock"; } } # end of MythTV / TFTP group x Assign static IPA for B-E & F-E servers in DNS (Debian Etch bind9) See previous section for IPAs, edit db.* files accordingly X Install/configure (BSD) tftpd on B-E server (Mythbuntu) # This doc is OK: http://www.mvpmc.org/mvpmc-HOWTO-singlehtml.html#toc3.1 $ sudo apt-get install tftpd $ sudo mkdir -m 0755 -p /srv/tftp $ cd /tmp $ wget 'http://downloads.sourceforge.net/mvpmc/dongle.bin.mvpmc-0.3.3?modtime=1169586056&big_mirror=0' # --OR-- e.g. wget 'http://www.mvpmc.org/builds/dongle.bin.mvpmc-20071002' $ cd /srv/tftp $ sudo mv /tmp/dongle.bin.mvpmc-0.3.3 . # Can't use symlinks, I guess because the tftp server won't follow them? # Per http://mvpmc.wikispaces.com/tftp symlinks don't work or you'll get "Failed To Locate GUI Server" (which I did at first). $ sudo ln dongle.bin.mvpmc-0.3.3 dongle.bin $ sudo vi dongle.bin.config #rdate -s 192.168.xx.90 export TZ='EST+5EDT,M3.2.0/2,M11.1.0/2' mvpmc -s 192.168.xx.90 -c 192.168.xx.11 --startup mythtv -p passwd -t /usr/share/mvpmc/easy.xml --weather-location uspa0311 & # Switched to using NTP via DHCP setting instead of rdate: http://www.mvpmc.org/index.php?pg=faq#q8 x Create a "ver" file # "Booting from Linux" by Sunil Goda in the newer docs: http://mvpmc.wikispaces.com/hxhowto $ cd /srv/tftp $ sudo dd if=dongle.bin of=dongle.bin.ver bs=1 count=40 skip=52 x Set up an MVP Boot Relay service (http://mvpmc.wikispaces.com/relay+service) # "Booting from Linux" by Sunil Goda in the newer docs: http://mvpmc.wikispaces.com/hxhowto # Could use either: http://mvpmc.wikispaces.com/mvprelay # or: http://mvpmc.wikispaces.com/mvpboot # I tried to use mvprelay.c and got nothing but compile errors on another Gutsy box, since I didn't want to install a compiler on my MythTV backend. # Then I tried mvprelay.pl, which required installing Net::Interface from CPAN, which was annoying because it required a compiler, which I really didn't want on my backend server. Sigh. $ cd $ mkdir MVP_relay $ cd MVP_relay $ wget -O mvpboot.pl 'http://mvpmc.wikispaces.com/space/showimage/mvpboot' $ wget -O mvpboot.init 'http://mvpmc.wikispaces.com/space/showimage/mvpboot.init' $ perl -c mvpboot.pl Can't locate Net/Interface.pm in @INC (@INC contains: /etc/perl /usr/local/lib/perl/5.8.8 /usr/local/share/perl/5.8.8 /usr/lib/perl5 /usr/share/perl5 /usr/lib/perl/5.8 /usr/share/perl/5.8 /usr/local/lib/site_perl .) at mvpboot.pl line 67. BEGIN failed--compilation aborted at mvpboot.pl line 67. # Yup, we need to install 'Net/Interface.pm' and I can't find it in the Ubuntu repos, so: $ sudo apt-get install unzip zip build-essential $ sudo cpan # Go through the CPAN config settings install Net::Interface # Watch all the build stuff go by $ perl -c mvpboot.pl mvpboot.pl syntax OK # Since I'd already had to install the compiler, I tried it and it worked! WTH? $ gcc -o mvprelay mvprelay.c # I like the Perl script better, since I understand it better than C, so I used that. $ chmod 0755 mvpboot.* $ sudo cp mvpboot.pl /usr/local/bin/mvpboot $ sudo cp mvpboot.init /etc/init.d/mvpboot $ sudo update-rc.d mvpboot defaults $ sudo /etc/init.d/mvpboot start x Install/configure rdate on B-E server (see above, should have just used NTP, but it's done now) 1) rdate is built-in to inetd, just add the lines, except now I'm using NTP so they aren't needed anymore. 2) the 2 tftp lines are needed for the new "Rev Hn" devices! :-( 3) Using the stock Ubuntu inetd ported from OpenBSD (along with a BSD ftfp, for that matter) $ sudo vi /etc/services # Local services mvpboot 16881/udp # http://mvpmc.wikispaces.com/mvpboot mvptftp 16869/udp # http://mvpmc.wikispaces.com/mvpboot $ sudo vi /etc/inetd.conf tftp dgram udp wait nobody /usr/sbin/tcpd /usr/sbin/in.tftpd /srv/tftp mvptftp dgram udp wait nobody /usr/sbin/tcpd /usr/sbin/in.tftpd /srv/tftp #time stream tcp nowait root internal #time dgram udp wait root internal $ sudo /etc/init.d/openbsd-inetd restart x Install mailx (for scripts) and Postfix (so I get cron errors, logcheck messages, etc.) $ sudo apt-get install postfix mailx Postfix config ($ sudo dpkg-reconfigure postfix): General type of mail configuration: Internet Site System mail name: jpsdomain.org Root and postmaster mail recipient: jp@jpsdomain.org Other destinations to accept mail for: mythtv-be-01, localhost.localdomain, localhost Force synchronous updates on mail queue no Local networks: 127.0.0.0/8 Mailbox size limit: 0 Local address extension character: + Internet protocols to use: all $ ls ~/ | mailx -s "testing from myth to root" root x Install logcheck (I don't see MythTV logcheck files, I'll create a bug as needed for that) $ sudo apt-get install logcheck logcheck-database $ sudo vi SENDMAILTO="jp@jpsdomain.org" # https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/logcheck/+bug/149641 $ sudo touch /var/log/auth.log.1.gz x Configure MythTV Frontend server on old Dell Optiplex with a clean install of Gutsy x On the backend server I had to manually: $ sudo vi /etc/mysql/my.cnf Change: bind-address = 127.0.0.1 to: #bind-address = 127.0.0.1 $ sudo /etc/init.d/mysql x On the backend server I had to manually: mythconverg.settings.MasterServerIP and BackEndServerIP in MySQL. I think this was caused by me doing something wrong somewhere, but I'm not sure what. x Copy off anything to save x Burn Gutsy Tribe 5 BETA CD (verified md5: 198fc031e7e482514eb57a2a7890dcac gutsy-desktop-i386.iso) x Clean install from beta CD Had to use "safe" GUI, as default installer could not display on monitor (KVM issue?) Had issues with display: graphics mode messed up old KVM? Hit KVM reset, which seemed to help, then it went off again. Also powered it off. Signal from Giffin skewing it? And VMware seems locked. apt-get dist-upgrade everything, power reset KVM/LCD = seems OK now $ sudo apt-get update $ sudo apt-get dist-upgrade x Install Myth Front-end Used GUI Add/Remove Applications for that, which seems to have installed way more than needed Looks like it was set up as a secondary backend by default. WAD? Having issues configuring it, waiting until everything is installed and upgraded to try again x MythTV frontend doesn't have the same themes as backend when installed from Ubuntu (Gutsy) Add/Remove GUI $ sudo apt-get install mythtv-themes x Update again (more changes!) Removed deb-src repos, and CD-ROM $ sudo apt-get update $ sudo apt-get dist-upgrade x Install latest VMware server $ sudo apt-get install linux-image-686 linux-headers-686 build-essential autoconf2.13 automake1.9 automake xinetd $ scp . $ tar xzf VMware-server-1.0.4-56528.tar.gz $ cd vmware-server-distrib $ sudo ./vmware-install.pl x Copy data back from backup location ~ Fiddle with video drivers (may be partly due to use of a legacy xorg.conf file) # Having an issue where a few pixels at the top of the screen are cut off. Not that big a deal. $ sudo apt-get remove xserver-xorg-video-i810 $ sudo apt-get install xserver-xorg-video-intel $ sudo dpkg-reconfigure xserver-xorg x Run CAT-5 to entertainment center x Pay for SchedulesDirect yearly subscription ~ Verify MediaMVP working as expected, then install in Ent. Center x Put mythtv-be-01:/etc into SVN apt-get install subversion x (2:45 AM 10/13/2007) BackupPC for mythtv-be-01 /boot, /etc, /home, /root, /srv, /var/spool/cron x Install and configure slimserver for playing music http://mvpmc.wikispaces.com/slimserver - On my main file server (where the music library is) apt-get install slimserver I chose to install the silserver firmware at package install/upgrade time, just in case, though it's probably unnecessary. - On my MythTV backend, edit my dongle.bin.config to include "-c - Use the silmserver web GUI (http://server:9000) to update: Server settings: Music Folder Security: Allowed IP Addresses Network: CLI port: 9090 * Get "iconmap.xml" out of MythTV SVN in re: http://www.mythtv.org/docs/mythtv-HOWTO-9.html#ss9.5 Current Mythbuntu /usr/share/doc/mythtv-backend/contrib/master_iconmap.xml.gz fails with a 404 on 'http://images.zap2it.com/station_logo/abc.jpg' * Mythbuntu and/or MythTV and/or mvpmc and/or ivtv announce MLs? Things to Look Into ------------------- * Saving MediaMVP settings via tftp http://mvpmc.wikispaces.com/saving+settings+via+TFTP * Look into http://mythbuntu.org/auto-builds * Look into a Windows frontend client * mythtvplayer = Windows playback only client http://www.sudu.dk/mythtvplayer/index.php?page=download * A VLC server: http://mvpmc.wikispaces.com/vlc http://www.mvpmc.org/~mvallevand/mvpmc-HOWTO-stream.html MythTV BUGs ----------- * MythTV: Utilities / Setup; Setup; General; Database Configuration 2/2: "Use custom identifier for frontend preferences" should not allow you to shoot yourself in the foot. * MythTV GUI should leave "breadcrumbs" since the menu structure has so many options. * The Netflix plugin is leaving HTML cruft (e.g. " mythtv_backup.sql >>> Talk about just the "settings" table here! * Always keep a record of your recording schedule, and check it after doing any kind of messing with channels! ? how to keep a record? * If you need to change the MySQL password: sudp dpgk-reconfigure mythtv-common See also: cat /etc/mythtv/mysql.txt * Where in the GUI do you set NetFlix Account info? = Nowhere, you have to do it manually, see http://www.mythtv.org/wiki/index.php/MythFlix $ sudo -u mythtv /usr/share/mythtv/mythflix/scripts/netflix.pl -L Status Code: 501 $ sudo apt-get install libcrypt-ssleay-perl # Docs say to run this twice, so I did $ sudo -u mythtv /usr/share/mythtv/mythflix/scripts/netflix.pl -L $ sudo -u mythtv /usr/share/mythtv/mythflix/scripts/netflix.pl -L Status Code: 200 $ mysql -u mythtv -p insert into mythconverg.netflix values ('Queue','NetFlix', '[YOUR QUEUE RSS URL]','http://cdn.nflximg.com/us/icons/nficon.ico', null, 1); insert into mythconverg.netflix values ('History','NetFlix', '[YOUR HISTORY RSS URL]','http://cdn.nflximg.com/us/icons/nficon.ico', null, 2); quit * Check out this script on the MythTV backend server: /etc/cron.weekly/mythtv-database script - check and backup mythconverg tables which creates a weekly: /var/backups/mythconverg.sql.gz MediaMVP Tips ------------- * You can telnet to the MediaMVP, then log in as root with no password. :-/ * Once you telnet into your MediaMVP, you can experiment with mvpmc lines until you get what you want. Leave off the trailing '&', which also allows you to see console messages which can be very handy. See: http://mvpmc.wikispaces.com/commandline e.g.: mvpmc -s 192.168.xx.90 --startup mythtv -p dbpasswd -t /usr/share/mvpmc/easy.xml & * Setting your time and time zone (without which LiveTV and other things won't work) http://mvpmc.wikispaces.com/timezone?f=print * Setting your weather location http://mvpmc.wikispaces.com/menus.weather * Booting and tftp: - The names of the files looked for seems to vary a bit. As far as I can tell there are some defaults, but it's not clear what they are. If you pass a file name using DHCP my H3 will accept that as use it as the base for the other names. So that's what I did. Your tftpd logs are helpful here. $ tail -f /var/log/daemon.log # on tftp server, using Ubuntu stock 'tftpd' - Try installing a tftp client and connecting to the server to manually grab files if necessary: $ tftp connect mythtv-be-01 16869 verbose get dongle.bin.ver * Hardware related info and pointers: http://gagravarr.org/computing/hauppauge-media-mvp.shtml JP Configuration ---------------- * Re-org, rename channel listings (e.g. WCAU = NBC) >>> To be added MythTV (Mythbuntu) Settings Map & JP Configuration -------------------------------------------------- MythTV has a *lot* of settings, and it's hard to remember where everything is. This is a combination settings map and record of the things I changed and want to keep track of. It's not 100% complete, but will hopefully be enough. See also: http://www.mythtv.org/docs/mythtv-HOWTO-singlehtml.html#toc9.1 Anything not listed is set at default. Anything prefixed with # is a comment. Anything in (parens) are pages under that section (instead of the usual sub-sections or settings). Utilities / Setup, Setup, Mythbuntu, Launch MythTV Setup (or 'mythtv-setup') ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Watch TV # Well, what do *you* think it does? Media Library Watch Recordings # List Watch Videos # Folder broweser Listen to Music # Player Play online Streams # Player Image Gallery # Player Manage Recordings Schedule Recordings Program Guide Program Finder Search Words Search Lists Custom Record Manual Schedule Set Priorities # List Upcoming Recordings # List Delete Recordings # List Previously Recorded # List Information Center News Feeds Weather NetFlix Web System Status Optical Disks Play DVD Play VCD Import DVD Archive Files Import CD Eject MEdia Utilities / Setup Music Tools Video Manager Edit Keys Setup General Database Configuration 1/2 Hostname: locahost User: mythtv Password: Database Configuration 2/2 Audio General 1/2 System Exit Key: CTRL-ESC (default is ESC) General 2/2 Myth Database Logging Turned this on, left the defaults Except, turned on Mythfilldatabase Turned this on, left the defaults Appearance Theme Theme: MythCenter Font: Small Screen Settings Video Mode Settings Localization Date format: Ddd CCYY-MM-dd Short Date format: Ddd M/d QT # Fonts, fill and stuff LCD device display TV Settings General Channel format: changed to "number name" Turn on Avoid conflicts between live TC and scheduled shows LiveTV recordings Max Age: changed from 1 to 3 Time to record before start of show (in seconds): changed from 0 to 30 Time to record past end of show (in seconds): changed from 0 to 30 Program Guide Guide Shading Method: changed to low CPU use Channels to display: changed from 5 to 10 (12 max) Time blocks (30 mins) to display: changed from 4 to 5 (max) Guide starts at channel: changed from 3 to 8 Playback Action on playback exit: change to always prompt Prommpt at end of recording: turned on Display thumbnail preview images of recording: turn on CPU friendly preview of recordings: turn on Automatically Skip Commercials: Yes Always display closed captioning or subtitles" turn on # Other CC settings here too Playback Groups Recording Profiles (all 4 appear to be identical) MPEG-2 Encoders (PVR-500) Default LiveTV High Quality Low Quality Bitrate: 2200 Max. Bitrate: 4500 Recording Priority Set Recording Priorities Channel Priorities Media Settings Music Settings General Settings Player Settings Ripper Settings Videos Settings General Settings Player Settings File Types (aka File Associations) DVD Settings General Settings Play Settings Rip Settings Images Settings (General & Slideshow) MythStream Settings Streams Storage Archive Files Settings (Various settings) Info Center Settings Weather Settings !!!! # Unusably slow for me, top reports 100% CPU for Xorg News Settings RSS Feeds NetFlix Settings NetFlix 'Top N' lists Web Settings Bookmarks Mythbuntu (sudo password to run 'mythtv-setup') System Roles Primary Backend Frontend No Desktop MythTV Configuration >> Imporant [See next section "MythTV Setup"] Applications & Plugins Proprietary Drivers Remote Control System Services VNC = off SSH = on Samba = off (default is on) NFS = off MySQL = on (default is off) Artwork & Login Behavior Advanced Management MythTV Setup ------------ Utilities / Setup, Setup, Mythbuntu, Launch MythTV Setup (or 'mythtv-setup') 1 General Global Backend Setup VBI format: NTSC Close Caption (was none) Channel frequency table: us-cable (was us-bcast) Job Queue (Global) Start Auto-Commercial Flagging jobs when the recording starts: on (was off) # Note, I may have to turn this off, trying it since I have a lot of CPU... 2 Capture Cards 1 Card type: MPEG-2 encoder card (PVR-x50, PVR-500) Video Device: /dev/video0 Default input: Tuner1 2 Card type: MPEG-2 encoder card (PVR-x50, PVR-500) Video Device: /dev/video0 Default input: Composite1 3 Card type: MPEG-2 encoder card (PVR-x50, PVR-500) Video Device: /dev/video1 Default input: Tuner1 3 Video Sources 1 Comcast SchedulesDirect User ID and password 2 Local composite in Grabber: no grabber 4 Input connections [MPEG " /dev/video0 ] (Tuner 1) -> Display Name: Tuner 1 Comcast Video Source: Comcast [MPEG " /dev/video0 ] (Composte 1) -> Display Name: Tuner 1 Composite Video Source: Local composite in [MPEG " /dev/video1 ] (Tuner 1) -> Display Name: Tuner 2 Comcast Video Source: Comcast 5 Channel Editor # Tweaks I made to Channel Names 3 CBS KWY 4 CSPAN 6 ABC WPVI 9 Fox WTXF 10 NBC WCAU 12 PBS WHYY 13 CW WPSG 14 PBS WLVT 6 (Storage Directories) # Not yet available in my version MythTV GUI ~~~~~~~~~~ >>> Map to be added (may be overkill, and menu theme can vary) Presentations and References ---------------------------- Ubuntu Live 2007 MythTV: Live on Ubuntu - Mario Limonciello & Andrew Oswald http://conferences.oreillynet.com/cs/ubuntu/view/e_sess/13454 http://conferences.oreillynet.com/presentations/ubuntu2007/ul_limonciello.odp Linux + HDTV http://www.phillylinux.org/slides/hdtv-on-linux-20070726.pdf MythTV Seminar and Installations by Matt Mossholder (This is the basis for most of the info here.) https://wiki.ubuntu.com/PennsylvaniaTeam/Philly/MythTVSeminar MythDocs (& single & PDF) http://www.mythtv.org/docs/mythtv-HOWTO.html http://www.mythtv.org/docs/mythtv-HOWTO-singlehtml.html http://www.mythtv.org/docs/mythtv-HOWTO.pdf MythTV Wiki http://mythtv.org/wiki/index.php/Main_Page Design and Hardware ------------------- 0) Software: Mythbuntu http://mythbuntu.org/ 0.1) Note that the Mythbuntu LiveCD is based on an alpha/beta version of Gutsy, which is scheduled to be released in October 2007. 0.2) MythTV is present in the production Ubuntu versions and distros, but as this is written (2007-09-24) the version is still using the defunct Zap2It schedues and thus won't work. I'd imagine they will back-port the patches required to use the new SchedulesDirect service RSN. But I don't care, I'm using Mythbuntu on the backend which won't have that problem. Note: http://www.mythbuntu.org/downloads "The Mythbuntu team opted to track the Gutsy archive instead during June. The 7.04 release has hence been skipped, and the rest of the development will track the 7.10 (Gutsy) archive. "Mythbuntu 7.10 has not yet been released, but an alpha ISO image is available on our website here:" 1) Master backend = Dell PE-650 P4 2.4G HT CPU with 1G RAM and 500G disk 1.1) Hauppauge WinTV-PVR-500MCE = dual *analog* tuner PCI card 1.2) The LVM is for easy storage expandability (e.g. later add another 500+G drive), not sure of the partition scheme yet 1.3) The single spindle, no fault-tolerance disk arrangement is not ideal (performance-wise) for a dual tuner setup, but since it's not HD I hope it'll work 2) Single (so far) frontend on a Hauppauge MediaMVP [2] http://www.hauppauge.com/html/mediamvp_datasheet.htm 2.1) RCA output to VCR RCA input, then pipe that to the TV Could have used a switch box, but... x I wonder if you can mix and match MythTV backend and frontend versions = NO! Bummer. e.g. Mythbuntu backend server (i.e. 7.10) with whatever frontend is in the 6.04 or 7.04 repos MediaMVP "cheats" and just lies about what version it is. Sweet! :-) * I already had the PE-650, so all I actually bought was as noted * I tweaked my existing DHCP server config on another box, but put the tftpd on the MythTV backend. * I considered a dedicated "LAN" (OK, cross-over cable), but that would have been limiting in terms of expansion and accessibility from elsewhere. Parts Needed and Cost --------------------- $20/year for http://www.schedulesdirect.org/ 2007-09-23: PriceGrabber JP Manual MediaMVP 88.99 Buy.com 80.03 Provantage PVE-500 125 mwave 124.9 Provantage 500G EIDE HD 104.99 Newegg 104.99 Newegg (no tax or S&H) Tax 0 0 S&H 5.85 13.50 Total 324.83 323.42 * * I already have accounts and am familiar with these vendors, which is a plus. Other? Cables x splitter(s) = since card has internal splitter, will jsut unplug office TV for now X CATV Coax Amp? If I didn't already have the PE-650, the cost would go up a lot, and I'd think harder about http://mythtv.org/wiki/index.php/Commercial_MythTV_System. Haupauge PVR-500 tuner (installed in backend) --------------------------------------------- http://www.haupauge.com/pages/products/data_pvr500mce.html Kit w/ remote: (not what I'm getting): http://www.haupauge.com/pages/products/data_pvr500mcekit.html Seems a bit obsolete re install instructions: http://www.mythtv.org/wiki/index.php/Hauppauge_PVR-500 Dual *analog* tuner on a single PCI card, to be installed in the MythTV "backend" Pro: 2 tuners, single PCI card Composite (RCA) and s-vid in Con: Analog There is only 1 CATV in and the splitter is internal; the other coax is FM ant. That's good for my cable/splitter situation but bad for flexibility. :-/ Hauppauge MediaMVP (frontend) ----------------------------- http://www.hauppauge.com/html/mediamvp_datasheet.htm http://www.hauppauge.com/html/sw_mediamvp.htm http://www.hauppauge.com/html/faq_mediamvp.htm http://www.mvpmc.org/ MythTV "frontend" * Composite (RCA) or S-video outs Pro: Small Low power Silent Handles the whole "remote control" issue **Can do commercial skipping (if flagged)**, but you have to set up MySQL access via config file http://mvpmc.wikispaces.com/commskip Just plain cool Con: Can't do closed captions See also http://ccextractor.sourceforge.net/ Can't do HD Can't do Myth Plug-ins (can play streaming content from e.g. VLC though) Can do commercial skipping (if flagged), **but you have to set up MySQL access via config file** http://mvpmc.wikispaces.com/commskip Possible HD replacements (check for CC): * http://www.trustedreviews.com/networking/news/2007/10/09/D-Link-Makes-HD-Media-Streamer-With-Open-Source-SDK/p1 * http://www.mythtv.org/wiki/index.php/UPnP * http://www.mythtv.org/wiki/index.php/DLinkDSM520-UPnP * http://www.netgear.com/Products/Entertainment/DigitalMediaPlayers/EVA700.aspx * http://www.dlink.com/products/category.asp?cid=127&sec=0 * http://mvixusa.com/product.php?product=mx760 - Wireless only? :-( - Has a fan! :-( - $250-300 with hard drive *not* included - http://mvixcommunity.com/wiki/MX-760HD_Main_Page - http://skippy.net/mvix-mx-760hd - Not sure about MythTV FE * Date: Tue, 11 Dec 2007 23:28:41 -0500 From: MVallevand Subject: Re: [Mvpmc-devel] SageTV HD Media Extender - HD, runs linux, hm... Cc: mvpmc-devel@lists.sourceforge.net [...] http://www.networkedmediatank.com/index.php and also the hardware site http://www.popcornhour.com/ URLs ---- http://mythtv.org/ http://mythbuntu.org/ http://www.mythtv.org/docs/mythtv-HOWTO.html http://www.mythtv.org/docs/mythtv-HOWTO-singlehtml.html http://www.mythtv.org/docs/mythtv-HOWTO.pdf http://www.mvpmc.org/ http://www.schedulesdirect.org/ MediaMVP Prices (from 2007-09 or so) $80 http://www.provantage.com/hauppauge-1000~7HAUP11X.htm $90 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16815116617&Tpk=mediamvp http://www.google.com/products?q=%22mediaMVP%22&lmode=online&scoring=p http://search.ebay.com/MediaMVP_W0QQ_trksidZm37QQfromZR40 http://computers.pricegrabber.com/other-multimedia/m/1602719/search=mediamvp http://www.radioshack.com/search/index.jsp?kwCatId=&kw=mediamvp&origkw=mediamvp&sr=1 PVR-500 Prices (from 2007-09 or so) $125 http://www.provantage.com/hauppauge-1081~7HAUP128.htm http://www.provantage.com/hauppauge-model-253~7HAUP12E.htm $140 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16815116628&Tpk=PVR-500 http://www.google.com/products?q=%22pvr-500%22&lmode=online&scoring=p http://search.ebay.com/search/search.dll?from=R40&_trksid=m37&satitle=%22PVR-500%22 http://computers.pricegrabber.com/video-capture-devices/m/18192402/search=%22PVR-500%22 Hard Drive (*EIDE* and I just like Western Digital) http://www.pricewatch.com/hard_drives/ $150 500G WD http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16822136110&ATT=22-136-110&CMP=OTC-pr1c3watch&cm_mmc=OTC-pr1c3watch-_-Hard+Drives-_-Western+Digital-_-22136110 ___________________ Footnotes [1] You may argue that not caring about HD is short-sighted. I understand the point, and I understand that recording in HD then transcoding to play on an SD TV is in theory a good thing. In practice, it interferes with my #2 goals. [2] One of the brilliant things about the Hauppauge MediaMVP is the fact that it uses DHCP to get a tftp server to boot. So to "hack" it you simply replace the code it downloads to boot. To revert, you just swap in the OEM code. Sweet! [3] Mythbuntu default repo (http://mirror.cs.umn.edu/ubuntu/) in /etc/apt/sources.list didn't work for updates for me. Due to beta status? [...] E: Some index files failed to download, they have been ignored, or old ones used instead. [...] Err http://mirror.cs.umn.edu gutsy/main xfce4-utils 4.4.1-1ubuntu4 404 Not Found Failed to fetch http://mirror.cs.umn.edu/ubuntu/pool/main/u/udev/libvolume-id0_113-0ubuntu12_i386.deb 404 Not Found [...] This fixed it, but I initially got an error that went away later (after more updates and reboots, so who knows): $ cd /etc/apt $ sudo replace http://mirror.cs.umn.edu/ubuntu/ http://us.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ -- sources.list $ sudo replace 'deb-src ' '#deb-src ' -- sources.list $ sudo apt-get update $ sudo apt-get dist-upgrade WARNING: The following packages cannot be authenticated! mythbuntu-control-centre mythbuntu-default-settings mythbuntu-desktop Install these packages without verification [y/N]? y