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Multimedia Home Entertainment System for Linux

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the toys-keep-getting-cooler dept.

An anonymous reader writes "A group at the University of Saarland in Germany has been busy developing a Linux-based networked multimedia home entertainment system. The project consists of two parts: the Network-Integrated Multimedia Middleware (NMM), to provide a common framework for audio and video playback using open source software, and the Multimedia-Box, a Linux box outfitted to be a TV receiver (digital and analog), video recorder, and a CD-, DVD-, and MP3- player using the NMM. Screen shots of the inside of the Multimedia-Box and the user interface are available, as well as videos and a detailed description (PDF) of the hardware and software used throughout. Can't wait to stick one of these on my network..."

4 of 125 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Legality of playback by MoonFog · · Score: 5, Informative

    Where is DeCSS illegal ? DeCSS is perfectly legal when using it to play DVD's you own on your Linux box. At least here in Norway, as the trial against Jon Johansen stated a couple of months ago.

  2. MythTV by MBCook · · Score: 4, Informative
    I've been using MythTV for a while now, and it's really quite far along. It's biggest problem is it's a bit hard to install the first time. But if you're looking for a free tivo or a entertainment hub, check 'em out.

    MythTV

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  3. Mini-ITX/EPIA-M by MsGeek · · Score: 4, Informative
    (there are EPIA systems which I think would have enough power to do what this box does, and I believe there are 12v power supplies for them, too).

    To be excruciatingly exact, the EPIA you are thinking of is EPIA-M The M stands for "Media" and this iteration of the mini-board includes MPEG-2 decoding onboard (with a dedicated co-processor, no less) and 5.1 audio. There are a few Chinese companies who are actually looking to build EPIA-M based DVD players...the Chinese name for the VIA CPU is "Heart Of China" and there is a certain amount of national pride involved in the EPIA gaining acceptance. VIA might be based in Taiwan but its boards are manufactured on the Mainland.

    One drawback, if you look at it one way, is that the EPIA-M chipset is set up for DDR RAM, not the less expensive SDRAM that previous Eden Platform systems used. However, if you look at that another way, it means a faster bus speed and a little better performance. No, it won't turn this puppy into a gaming monster system, but it will make this a friendlier platform for a MAME box, for instance.

    VIA is trying to make a play for Linux support for their EPIA platform too...the article I referenced is basically a how-to about Linux on EPIA-M. They haven't been forthcoming to the point of providing all the little details on their stuff to open-source developers, but their binary drivers have been pretty good.

    I suspect that this version of the EPIA could handle MythTV, Freevo and the other TiVo-like projects. The same cannot be said about the earlier EPIA motherboard/CPU combos...those are best left to web servers, file servers, firewalls, and other similarly light-duty projects.

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    Knowledge is power. Knowledge shared is power multiplied.
  4. Freevo! by k-s · · Score: 5, Informative

    Hello,
    There is Freevo http://freevo.sf.net that has a better UI! Also, you can run it under X or Framebuffer or anything else SDL supports (like DXR3!)
    As it uses the great MPlayer as the underlying player, it supports Mov, DivX, Mp3, Ogg, ... Almos every {video,music} format in the world. It also have a image browser and a cute TV Guide (now a Web version too!) and it plays Mame!
    The time shifting is in the work.
    Freevo: http://freevo.sf.net Mplayer: http://www.mplayerhq.hu