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Ubuntu TV Finally Gets a Close-Up
Barence writes "Canonical has unveiled the first screenshots and details of Ubuntu TV. Plans for versions of the Linux distro for tablets, smartphones and TVs were unveiled last year, and now the television is — perhaps surprisingly — the first of those to arrive. 'It's a simple viewing experience for online video, both your own and routed over the internet,' Jane Silber, Canonical's CEO told PC Pro. Movie streaming services will be supported as well as live television broadcasts. Ubuntu TV will be integrated into television sets, but Canonical was unable to confirm any manufacturers. It will be released later this year."
Looking at the screenshots, it looks like it's running MythTV with a custom theme
I wonder how the Mythbuntu folks feel about this.
Seeing as this Ubuntu respin has never been officially endorsed by Canonical (to my knowledge), may be seen as a bit of a hijacking of the project...
but Canonical was unable to confirm any manufacturers. It will be released later this year.
Oh dear. Released by who then?
If they have never managed to get what was, at one point, a pretty decent version of GNU/Linux onto something as easy to tinker with as PCs/Laptops/Netbooks why do they think that they will get their compromised system onto something as un-tinkerable (that is, the vast, vast majority of the customer base just want's something that comes with it and work even MORE so than a PC) as smartphones, tablets and TVs?
I can't imagine anyone going to an electronics store and saying "I want to buy an Ubuntu TV." No, they're going to ask for features or for a name-brand.
Who is going to be shipping them? The author of the software behind a smart/internet-enabled TV is way down my priority list when considering the purchase of a TV.
From what I've read, none of the so-called "Smart TV" products works with ALL content. They're all broken for one media site or another, a far from perfect solution for anyone.
How about listing the streaming protocols and formats Ubuntu supports? Are there any it doesn't support? Why?
I guess we'll just have to hope for more info when CES rolls around. But for now, I'd appreciate it if the Slashbot editors would stop posting pre-announcements for products as if they're telling us anything useful in them. All you're doing is providing free advertising for products that haven't been shown yet and about which we know nothing.
I'd much rather see some articles during and after CES that actually have some information about the products, not just the names of the vendors involved.
I do not fail; I succeed at finding out what does not work.
sudo apt-get remove realitytv
sudo apt-get install somethinginteresting
More info at Canocial blog and Ubuntu website (including a video).
Hopefully there may be some new packages coming out because of this
daap seems broken on ubuntu
least ways I can't connect via daap to my media on my nas , that may be due to a bad file name for a media file. Tried several media players and failed each time.
DLNA does work with Totem and XBMC but Totem doesn't filter and XBMC takes over the whole session meaning you can't just set music playing and get on and do something else.
rhythmbox is supposed to support DLNA but the media servers don't show up.
The other issue which exists is DRM somehow there has to be some decoding of drm in order to use a lot of feeds and what content provider is going to give keys to decode content without some certainty that their content isn't going to become part of somebodies library for the price of a rental
Blarney Quality Restaurant, Plants
Okay so, we have MythTV, XBMC/Boxee/Plex, Freevo, Enna, and only Github knows how many others... and now Ubuntu TV.
How many of these me-too media center suites do we need ? I've been an XBMC fan since it was an actual Xbox app, but it is only a player. The few of my friends who want PVR functionality use MythTV. Would it not make a million times more sense to concentrate people's efforts on those two projects ? I'd rather have two awesome media center apps than ten shitty ones. Both are extensively configurable so it doesn't seem like anyone would be losing prized functionality by switching to one of the big two - or even merging them into one.
And no, I'm not new here. I'm just fed up with the unnecessary fracturing of limited free software resources. Even the venerable GeeXboX has seen the light and transformed itself into a polished XBMC-based distro. The more developers and eyeballs we have on the core projects, the better.
-Billco, Fnarg.com
http://www.reghardware.com/2012/01/09/lenovo_touts_worlds_first_ics_television_set/
If this is any good then it could well be that the Canonical offering will be too little, too late.
How about the TV is dead a perspective to begin with? Most younger people in the West watch TV. Or, do they? Well, were there is still some money around. But very little. Still, the jury may be hung, without the pornographic connection, however relevant that is.
In the five to ten year perspective, most likely, traditional TV is dead. As in a "Steve Jobs is dead," forever.
I've used MythTV extensively in the past, not as much anymore since cable providers fight tooth and nail against clear QAM and NTSC, but never mind that.
One thing I really liked about MythTV was the ability to launch any program I wanted through use of the "Game Player" section - most notably, I actually liked being able to launch actual video games. If this thing actually hits TV's or a set top box the box itself needs to support Bluetooth - for pairing PS3 controls. USB would be an alright work around and there's lots you could do with it, but really Bluetooth is the way to go. They need the MythTV like game launch for ZSNES, Mednafen, MAME, and whatever else. The console in the TV would be the rockinest thing ever!
(Building in support for a Myth backend would be nice also, but who am I fooling? Cable providers have put a bullet in that. It's easier to just torrent and watch shows than it is to time shift - the irony of the situation - fighting against the peoples ability to legally do as they should be able to causes more piracy - who would have guessed?)
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I don't want Unity on my computer and I don't watch TV, just youtube videos. They are going the way of a TV on a general computer with Unity and sacrificing normal desktop for it.
You can't handle the truth.
me to find a new distro
1) Force 3D into desktop ...
2) Turn 3D desktop into YouTube
3)
4) Less productivity than with Windows98
I'm using TV over the internet http://tvkaista.fi/ here in finland. Works just fine through xbmc plugin. They are being sued by broadcasting companies though, but knowing Finnish legal system it's going to be available for few more years at least.
Considering Ubuntu doesn't come with the (built in) ability to connect to Windows networks I'm a little concerned that Ubuntu TV will prove just as handicapped.
Yes I appreciate Samba (or similar) will add this feature back in but I would hope that they have had the foresight to include this as default in Ubuntu TV.
I like the idea of Ubuntu arriving at phones, tablets and TVs, but not for the reason you think.
Ubuntu has a sad history of packaging bleeding edge stuff (from Debian's unstable branch) like PulseAudio that tend to break upgrades for lots of people (even on supported hardware), and then pretend everything is OK.
However, offering Ubuntu pre-installed on tightly integrated stuff like phones, tablets and TVs is like offering warranties. So it will force Canonical to acknowledge the fact that Ubuntu's upgrades broke because of bundling bleeding edge stuff. This would be a major win from the user's side (i prefer being but raped by Apple's restrictions regarding the hardware OS X runs on than by Canonical's bundling of bleeding edge stuff, because the first works, hopefully the situation will change someday).
On the good side, I LOVE, absolutely LOVE the DVR functionality. I never understood why people buy devices that can't record. Google TV devices have a CPU powerfull enough to surf the net, so why can't they record from DTV sources? Even in a royalty free format?
They can compete with XBMC?
Honestly, XBMC is a far better and polished setup. and it's brain dead easy to put a basic linux under it to make it a "distro"
Why is ubuntu trying to reinvent the wheel?
Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
If Ubuntu would support Raspberry Pi, this would be brilliant. Imagine a device the size of a deck of cards that provided a full streaming TV, add network storage and "Bob's your Uncle"
UbuntuTV! Maybe I'll be able to root my old black and white Philco.
It's got a little problem with the vertical hold, but that goes away if I reach in the back and wiggle one of the tubes.
You are welcome on my lawn.
One of the main reasons I don't like Unity is that it wastes so much screenspace and makes the icons so big that you only get to see a few on the screen at a time.
I noticed the paradigm continues with unbuntuTV.
I have over 1000 videos. Using the whole screen to show 6 movie icons at a time won't even slightly work for me.
Does it run on Raspberry Pi?
Like so many other things Ubuntu?
I have to post anon, I've moderated.
What proprietary software does Ubuntu distribute?
This is an excellent way to get people open to the idea of using Ubuntu. Considering that the only decent DVR software is Windows Media Center, and that adds a premium to building HTPCs, system builders will be anxious to give this a shot. One the pay-offs if this is a hit is that people will be forced to try out Ubuntu and may boost familiarity amongst a greater number of users.
In Finland, Elisa Viihde also offers HDTV over internet and it works just fine.
Considering that netflix is the application that consumes the most bandwidth on the internet, I have to ask you what the hell your talking about.
Flash, nVidia drivers
None of this is on the livecd, nor is it installed without asking the user, so I'm not sure why AC is complaining about this.
Not that I have any problem with it but Canonical do distribute some proprietary software, albeit not installed by default. Off the top of my head:-
Oracle Java, Adobe Flash, nVidia and AMD graphics drivers. Probably lots more too in the restricted and multiverse repositories.
This actually makes sense. Prior to the iPhone, there were no widely accepted smart phones for consumers. It seems like Ubuntu is trying to do for TV what Apple did for cell phones. If you wanted to penetrate the consumer market, which Ubuntu does, then the TV seems a better avenue than the already crowded cellphone and tablet market.
If successful with a smart TV, then people will be more willing to look at an Ubuntu powered tablet or phone.
Any "DVR" that doesn't support cablecards is worthless to me. IR blasters are a kludgy "solution" that won't even let me watch something and record something else at the same time (much less record two different shows at once). Digital cable and satellite are my only options for watching anything other than crappy network shows. And so my only options at present are the DVR from my cableco and Tivo.
SJW: Someone who has run out of real oppression, and has to fake it.
Whether this fails or not, hopefully Canonical will find the time to develop a "Ubuntu Desktop" variant for us poor sods who still use keyboards and mice to interact with our systems.
I think the PVR as a device is going to disappear entirely by 2015. If the "RokuStick" they're announcing (HDMI dongle for your TV) is any indication
How will a dongle be big enough to hold a hard drive that can store recorded shows that haven't yet made it to the streaming services?
You will get a Netflix dongle free with your subscription, along with one for your Hulu Plus subscription
Which means I'd have to reach around behind to TV to plug in a different dongle when I want to watch each different streaming provider's programming.
cable TV and satellite boxes will disappear completely and you'll get an HDMI dongle in a bubble pack mailer instead of a VCR-looking device.
How will a dongle be big enough to hold a CableCARD so that it can descramble the channels to which one subscribes?
A tv with a shitty interface where all the buttons get moved around every update ... how could it fail?
No, Canonical does not "distribute" any of those proprietary software packages. The stock Ubuntu distribution includes only free packages. It's up to the end user to download and install those non-free drivers and packages on their own. The Ubuntu Software Center offers a gateway to the sources of these packages, but Canonical itself is not the source of them.
With current *buntus you can download these non-OS packages during install. Even with an nVidia or ATi card, you can be up and running in the correct resolution on first boot.
Windows 7 can't do that to my knowledge.
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law
Everything in my house is over the same internet connection: 1080p TV, phone and internet. It works fine most of the time.
Excuse me, but please get off my Pennisetum Clandestinum, eh!
Is there a dollar prompt on the TV?
Netflix doesn't support Linux OS (excluding sanctioned devices like Roku).
Must be nice to have massive bandwidth at your fingertips. Here, with Time-Warner, I'm lucky to get 100kb/s downloads. I shudder to think of trying to stream 1080p here.
Understanding the scope of the problem is the first step on the path to true panic.
Because he is a hacktivist with no genitals?
-- no sig today
What is this new trend where GUI's are now using all the screenspace for whitespace or non-informative visual fluff, while making the amount of space for the actual useful info tiny and/or crammed into a corner?
I mean look at the screenshots in the article. Thjey have a whole HD widescreen and the movie list page has space for 6 icons? I have more than 1000 movie files, with that GUI finding a movie by browsing will get old REAL FAST.
And look at the page for the Cars2 movie. They cant even get a short description text to fully fit because of the stupidly large screenshot graphic that communicates practically nothing but is allocated nearly the whole screen.
Ubuntu especially seem to have no clue at GUI design.
Usability, ease of use, and communication of useful info all take a back seat in favor of useless eye-candy (Unity is just awful for all practical uses) compared to a conventional desktop. Worryingly, This seems to be becoming a general trend with not just Ubuntu doing it (Gnome 3 is another example of a giant step backwards).
Considering your thoughtlessness: you seem to forget that Netflix is a largely US-American endeavour. Here in Europe, just to name an example, it is largely meaningless. I suppose this also holds for China and India. Your "consumes the most bandwidth" should be reduced to the more correct "consumes the most bandwidth within the USA". You seem to suffer of Americanocentrism, a well-known disease on /.
Religous speak to God. Insane are spoken to by God. When all shut up, one can finally hear Shostakovich in peace
I pay 40e/mo for 110mbit connection here in Finland.
Although lucky swedish get 100mbit connection for 10e~ :(
Few years ago sweden decided to concernate on fiber connections, Finland decided to go for digitv rather than improving fibers. A big mistake. But our connections are still pretty cheap compared to US, which seems to be 3rd world of consumer connections.
You seem to think that everyone else has tried and failed. Those who have licensed the right content have been successful. The only reason that there isn't such a service in Europe is because no one has created it.
For one value of "we."
This is why there's never going to be One Best Answer, or at least not while DRM is still around (which is probably still a long time). Supporting proprietary streaming services means the device must be locked down, which means it's going to be lacking an overwhelming shitload of basic functionality that many people have come to expect over the last 12-13 years. If people need Netflix, then the living room is going to have at least two different computers in it, and it's just a question of which one of them happens to be embedded inside the TV, and which one is in a seperate enclosure. (And whether or not there's a third computer with a shitload of hard disks in another room.)
One box can't address everyone's desires, and possibly not even the desires of a fairly large minority of the population. Fortunately, a small minority can still be a shitload of people. Remember that one of the biggest most successful companies in the world makes desktop PCs that only about 10% of people want. Serve your niche well, and you can win -- it's just not the kind of "win" where your enemies are crushed.
Windows 7 can't do that to my knowledge.
Then you're doing it wrong.
The only reason that there isn't such a service in Europe is because no one has created it.
That is a rather gratuitous statement. Is your intellectual honesty going at least as far as to consider the possibility that there may have been other reasons ?
Those who have licensed the right content have been successful.
"The right content". What is THAT supposed to be ? And could you please underpin your statement with at least one significant example ?