Are There Linux DVD Players on the Market?

veldrane asks: "I saw this article on CNN.com about there being authorized DVD players on the market for Linux. Of course, the article is vague about Mark Litvak's claim so I'd like to know is this for real or is it just a statement to take credibility from the LUG protesters in DC?" After reading the article, I found it odd that Mr. Litvak didn't mention any company names that were working on DVD Players for Linux. If anyone knows anything more, I'd be interested in finding out if such a thing exists or is actually just more vapourware expressly for the purpose of discrediting the DeCSS supporters as veldrane suggests. Updated: 04/03 05:51 by C

Oops! I posted this story late on the 28th (with it scheduled to show up today) and had missed the LinDVD announcement. However, contrary to some of the comments that mention this point, this player is not yet on the market. It will be released "soon", but until it appears, it is still vapourware. It would be very cool if InterVideo would release a beta versions of their players so that we can see for ourselves how far along they are and how far they have to go. However this remains their decision. I wish them luck in their work, and am glad to see at least one company step up to the plate like this (even if it is only a binary player).

veldrane wanted to know if there was an actual player that he could go out and buy now, and according to Mark Litvak's comment in the original article, there should be one available.

I'm still wondering why he didn't mention any names if such an animal did exist.

Comments

Biased

[volkris]

I found this article to be pretty biased in it's language. For instance where they were quoting the pro-DeCSS side they said the arguement is that DMCA "gives copyright holders 'sweeping legal protection' to restrict access to their property" where the arguement really is over weather it is still their property. By saying it this way, it seems to say that the commie Linux users don't want any more private ownership.

Also, check out the links. Link to MPAA website, but no link to an pro-DeCSS website, only a link to tux.org that was thrown in there halfheartedly.

I have to say, though, that the part where they say there are no authorized Linux players was only citing what their interviewee said, so I wouldn't call that a scandal like the Slashdot headline said... it was just unbalanced reporting.

~Chris

Well, there's _allegedly_ one...

[jht]

In fact, just a couple of days ago, this /. article discusses how Intervideo expects to release a binary-only DVD player, but it's been vaporware so far. I'll believe it when I see it. The hardware-based standalone players are generally based on a handful of chipsets and custom non-any kind of Unix RTOS.

- -Josh Turiel

Yes

[periscope]

Hi,
Yes, in fact there are DVD players available for Linux. I contacted /. a couple of months ago regarding the upcoming LinDVD software DVD player from Intervideo and they finally ran the story the other day :-)

Anyway, the LinDVD software player was demonstrated at CEBIT several months ago and people reprted that it was very good. So this is not "vaporware" but rather "betaware" in that it exists and has been demonstrated but will not be released for a couple of months. I first spoke to Intervideo about LinDVD over a month ago and they said that they would announce LinDVD soon - they did. I have no reason to assume that there won't be a release by the summer.

There are also other players being developed that I have heard of, but I am not prepared to discuss the details of these just yet - suffice it to say that there are others.

On the non-commercial front, I can get about 15-20fps using the LiViD software and have just finished using the new rage 128 stuff to watch the Matrix fullscreen on my PII. I think anyone with around a PIII-500+ should be able to watch DVDs reasonably. I have also tried the Heroine XMovie stuff, which was very very nice but not that optimised (yet) although I think it's only time before that is very good also. Futhermore, Creative labs have done a reasonalbe job with their Linux DVD stuff also.

Those of you wishing to use WINE - you're out of luck since WINE presently doesn't handle the IO calls needed to handle DVD drives, although the Xing player will load, as will the version 1.0 beta of PowerDVD. I think it's only time before you'll be able to watch DVDs using PowerDVD 1.0 under WINE (later versions do not work properly and require M$ DirectCrap anyway).

So we have:

1). LinDVD is coming out in the next couple of months - I have no pricing details yet although I am being kept informed of the details as they emerge and will tell /. - that is IF they actually bother to post what I tell them :-)

2). DeCSS is still very much relevent as we want an open source player - LinDVD is based on WinDVD, which has it's faults.

3). Other players are being released later in the year - I will not provide details.

4). WINE won't help you yet, but will very soon I think.

5). LiViD is getting there - THEY REALLY NEED MMX OPTIMISERS - if you are a super genius mmx coder I'm sure they'd really want your help.

6). See below for some mails which are relevent.

Cheers,
Jonathan.
--
slashdot-comment-contact@easypenguin.co.uk

=== FROM Intervideo ===

Subject:
RE: LinDVD
Date:
Mon, 28 Feb 2000 15:56:23 -0800
From:
"Scott Marvin"
To:
"'Jon Masters'"

Hello Jon,

We are still approximately 3-4 weeks from releasing any information
regarding LinDVD.

Regards,
Scott

Scott Marvin
Sales Manager
InterVideo Inc.
mailto:scottm@intervideo.com
Office (510) 651-0888x305
Fax (510) 651-8808
Mobile (408) 781-2943

=== END ===

=== FROM Intervideo ===

Subject:
RE: Hi
Date:
Fri, 24 Mar 2000 19:51:01 -0800
From:
"kelly"
To:
"'Jon Masters'"

Dear Jonathan

Thank you for your e-mail. LinDVD is under consideration here, but at
present time, we offer no further information, other than the fact its going
to be released sometime later this year.

Regards,

Kelly Hsiao
Technical Support
InterVideo Inc.

=== END ===

=== FROM Slashdot ===

Subject:
Re: Linux DVD
Date:
Fri, 3 Mar 2000 03:16:31 -0500 (EST)
From:
hemos
To:
Jon Masters

We've been waiting on the official release - we don't have enough to link
to right now.

=== END ===

=== FROM Me To Slashdot ===

Subject:
Linux DVD
Date:
Thu, 02 Mar 2000 15:07:10 +0000
From:
Jon Masters
To:
hemos

Hi,
I'm not being a whinner and I wouldn't normally complain that my story
submission didn't get in, but this story should get on slashdot:

Intervideo, the guys who brought WinDVD are about to release a software
only DVD player for Linux called LinDVD. They'll be officially making an
announcement in 3-4 weeks time and the player will have similar system
requirements as the windows counterpart. Now if this story isn't
directly relevent to the current DVD Linux situation, I don't know what
is - please tell me why it's been rejected twice? Is it becasue the DVD
CCA and Forum have got to you guys and silenced you from publishing
anything relating to Linux and DVD? I've run a /. search and LinDVD
isn't mentioned anywhere on the site so unless I'm missing something
this story is new.

Jonathan.

=== END ===

=== FROM Me To Slashdot ===

Subject:
LinDVD
Date:
Sat, 25 Mar 2000 22:02:31 +0000
From:
Jon Masters
To:
malda
CC:
hemos

Hi,
I notice there's still no word about LinDVD on /. even though we know
that it exists and that it is definatey being released later this year.
Can you tell me what further information you want before you can
announce this to the world? I think it's good not to announce this until
the right moment, after all, we don't want the DVD Forum and co. to use
this against the community however, I believe /. is the lesser of many
evils in that you'll proably phase the announcemnt tactfully so that
this doesn't become negative.

If you want further info, I can try digging for you.

Cheers,
Jonathan.

=== END ===

=== FROM Me to Slashdot ===

Subject:
Re: LinDVD
Date:
Sat, 01 Apr 2000 00:00:20 +0100
From:
Jon Masters
To:
hemos

Hi,
Thanks for finally mentioning LinDVD.

Jonathan.

=== END ===

Hope this helps to clarify everything and I'd love to know why /. held out so long on that story in the first place.

Jonathan

Sigma Designs is doing something...

[pxpt]

Well I know that Sigma Designs have announced their intentions regarding Linux...

http://www.sigmadesigns.com/press/000201.htm

Have a looksee

LiViD - The Open Source DVD Player

[ebola-zaire]

The guys at the Linux Video Project have been working on an Open Source DVD Player (among other things). Their DVD player looks like it will be great, but still needs some work in the performance area. I also suggest you check out their DVD Playing HOWTO.

DVD Players for Linux Announced

[bflame]

On Friday March 31, /. ran this article about a Linux DVD player.

Creative Labs do linux

[oolon]

I have been playing my DVDs using my DXR2 card from Creative Labs, for months now. Though the software (The version I have is very basic, no forward and back, there may be a better version now) it works like a dream. No problems with CSS as the card handles that....

I play directly via the AC3 output to my widescreen TV. Not sure if graphics overlay works yet, though I don't like that mode. The software as is suits my needs perfectly. (Though I have been good and not bought any new DVDs).

Though the linux cache is quite amusing at times, with up to 15 minutes of my DVD in the cache...!

Re:Player Availability / DeCSS issue

[tjwhaynes]

It is important to note that this in no way affects the credibility of DeCSS as a tool for the playback of DVDs on systems that do not yet have a software DVD player. Those systems may no longer include Linux, but they DO still include AmigaOS, BeOS, several commercial Unixes, OS/2, and BSD, among others.

Linux is far more than just x86 platforms. When I see source code (preferably clearly legally available) for a Linux DVD player, then we can say that there truely is a Linux DVD player. Until that time we can all suffer with kernel incompatabilities (especially once 2.4 comes out) caused by a binary-only release, along with a complete absence of support for platforms like Alpha, StrongARM, PPC, etc.

Cheers,

Toby Haynes

Linux is not the point

[slim]

Linux is just an example of a "non standard" platform upon which DVDs should be viewable. If DVD wants to be the standard format for selling video, then the right to develop a player should be free.

Bringing out a closed-source, X86 binary only player for Linux does *not* get the MPAA off the hook as far as CSS is concerned. Simply substitute NetBSD, LinuxPPC, QNX, whatever, for "Linux", and make the same argument all over again.
--

Commercial DVD? I hope not

[theonetruekeebler]

If some company starts rushing an "authorized" Linux DVD driver/player out the door, it will be a tactic in the pending DeCSS lawsuit, not a goodwill gesture to the Linux community. They will release it unsupported, due to the "unstable and unpredictable" Linux environment. But they will mention that there are authorized DVD players for Linux, thus proving once and for all that a tool like DeCSS are for stealing, just like kitchen knives are for stabbing battered spouses. Why own a kitchen knife when you can buy wholesome products already sliced for you?

They can't Open Source it. That would be violating their own collusion--err--consortium's charter. When such a player does show up, it will be closed source, so as to protect the already widely known trade secrets the lawsuits are trying to make us unknow. It won't be an effort to embrace another user community; it will be an effort to control yet another market segment.

--

Q: How many Slashdot authors...

[guran]

...does it take to post a story about the screwing of a lightbulb?

A: Only one... per section
A2: Six
One to report the news "Lightbulb broken", One to post "Ask Slashdot: best way to screw a lightbulb", One to discuss patents about lightbulbs, One to report about the "Open Source Lightbulb Exchange Project" and finally JonKatz to write a meg about how the lightbulb soon will be obsolete in the digital age.
Six? yeah they count like they spell...

Linux made illegal under the DeCSS

[luckykaa]

Here's some important news I just made up.

In court today, Microsoft succesfully managed to gain an injunction against the Linux Operating system on the basis that it is a tool for piracy.

This was demonstrated by the Microsoft representatives using cat </dev/hda1 >/nfs/dev/hda1 to copy Windows98(tm) from one computer to another. They also claimed that Linux reverse engineered some of Microsoft's intellectual property including SMB.

Linux users claimed that Linux is useful as an OS for the PPC and Alpha platforms that MS wasn't supporting. MS pointed out that there were legal operating systems for these platforms and said words to the effect of "What are they cmplaining about.

In related news, programmer Linus Torvalds was arrested for his role in writing Linux, as well as a number of other international programmers.