Interesting... I seem to get pass-through working fine on my 8.10 Mythbuntu media center. But I think I also use the ALSA libs instead of Pulse. Thanks for the heads-up on this. Might explain a few weird audio things I've experienced.
I still use the non-GUI mplayer to play videos, even if I click on them. The arrow keys and other controls are just easier to navigate the video than the clicky controls. And if I'm watching the video full-screen (which is usually) there's no room for the GUI controls anyway, so why even bother?
And only one of them is for a valid reason. BSD, Solaris, Linux and MacOS haven't burned them in the past. If a contractor fails to deliver a road when you pay them for it, you don't keep hiring them hoping they'll do it right next time.
Re:I hear lots of negative criticism about Linux.
on
Linux Needs Critics
·
· Score: 1
You do realize that the ONLY true 64bit version of Flash is on Linux, right? It's a beta release, but the Windows "64bit" Flash is just a 32bit wrapper. Straight from the horse's mouth.
ATI also has much-improved open-source support. My X1250 is running with full open-source drivers, and they're hoping to get the 2xxx and up series running fully open source within a year. With official support from ATI. Nvidia is a different issue, but their closed drivers tend to work for the most part.
Linux is already easier to install than Windows is. And if you give someone a machine that's already got Linux installed and working, it will be just as easy to use as Windows.
And saying that windows is "just not the case" is complete bullshit. It's just that you know how to solve the problems in Windows, how to work around them. Ever taken a browse through the Microsoft Knowledge Base? Ever seen a Windows support message board? Windows is far from perfect, and far from as good as you think it is. I'd wager you're simply used to the warts on Windows and just work around them, and aren't as experienced with Linux. I don't have any problems with Linux, and I keep running into things I can't do on Windows without paying through the ass for software to solve it.
Mmmm, massive hyperbole when referencing Linux, and oversimplification for Windows. How much are they paying you? At least I gave each a fair treatment. Or maybe you just wish you could suck Bill Gate's dick?
You wouldn't reasonably expect to be seen in that situation. There is NO difference between what Google would see and what any other person driving down the road would see. That's the issue.
And downloading a codec pack isn't cryptic? The average user knows what a codec is? You keep looking at Linux with blinders on, thinking that the Windows way is in some way reasonable. It's not. Someone who doesn't know what a codec is will be equally confused by a non-playing video, under any OS. My "magic words" are as inane to a normal user as "codec pack" is. "Uninstall all other individual codecs and filters (like DirectVobSub, ffdshow, CoreVorbis, CoreAAC, etc.)" is no more intelligible (and I'd wager to say less than) saying "Go to Applications, then System, then select Terminal. In the window that pops up, type 'sudo apt-get install w32codecs libdvdcss2'" and type your password in when it asks.
The only alternative to copyright is... nothing. You can't copyright a concert. You can't copyright movie theater seats. Yet you can still sell those. If copyright disappeared overnight there would be plenty of things still being shared.
Stop think of P2P as the enemy... try thinking about it as "free publicity"
Those 86% just use broadband because it just lets them send 15MB of pictures via email faster. Small bursts, which is how the suppliers want it. They don't like people that actually use their broadband.
If you're a Time Warner customer at ALL, in ANY market, you should tell them that this news is causing you to switch away ASAP. Don't wait until they roll it out and it affects you. Just refuse to do business with shoddy companies.
I think you're exactly 180 on that. mplayer plays any media I throw at it, from FLV to Real to H.264 (including my AVC files). It's the only media player I have installed on my media center PC. Windows Media Player won't play much of anything unless you install K-Lite or something similar, and still won't play AVC properly, nor MKV contained files. It certainly doesn't just work nearly as easily as you say it does. I mean, just read this link: http://www.afterdawn.com/guides/archive/how_to_play_mkv.cfm
Insane. And it needs a damn reboot! For a codec pack! WTF? I just needed to add the medibuntu repos, and then "apt-get install w64codecs libdvdcss2" and poof, it all works. You can't tell me that isn't easier. It may not be what you're used to, but it sure as hell is much easier.
I just liken it to someone that buys an electric vehicle, and then is flabbergasted and confused that there aren't charging stations all over the place. Why do people understand that, but not software? I'm firmly of the opinion that computers are indistinguishable from magic for "ordinary users", so they simply switch their brains off and bitch when it doesn't do what they expect, even if it's doing exactly what's right and what is intended.
Ehhh... he has an agenda, and doesn't always see the reality of the situation. Hell, his latest post rails on about startup times, and how OSX has it right. The thing he doesn't mention is that Apple controls the hardware, so of course it always works. He doesn't realize how fucked up ACPI is on most machines. Startup times are quite important when hardware limitations prevent you from doing the neat things OSX does.
1. Seems reasonable to me. Would you ask an architect how to install your vinyl flooring, and then get upset when he didn't help? Why is a different standard applied to computer knowledge? Because it's a "magic box", and the rules are different?
2. "The grass is green! I wanted it to be red!" Why should Linux be anything other than Linux? Do you really think that, say, drive letters are a good idea? If you ask for drive letters on Linux, you will rightfully be laughed at. Same with many other things, because even if you don't like it, Linux is Linux.
3. Depends who you're asking. Are you asking the person who's maintaining and developing on the application? If not, why the hell not? Do you bitch to your bus driver about the mechanic not fixing your car right, and then get upset when he tells you to fix it yourself or find another mechanic? I've never had the actual developer of an application tell me anything like "go fix it yourself!"
You have no point, you're only trolling. There is a culture to Linux. Just as there is with Windows, and OSX. Acting as if there isn't is a good way to piss people off.
Yeah, he has a point, but not always a lot of information behind his rants. His current post is about how boot times are the wrong thing to focus on, and Mac has it solved. It's got a grain of truth, but no knowledge behind it. The reason that boot times are being focused on is because every single manufacturer fucks up ACPI in their own special way, and Linux is expected to deal with it. Apple controls the hardware, so they don't have those problems. Funny, that. So the best solution for Linux with ACPI not being documented and completely hosed is to just shut down, and save sessions. I know he doesn't LIKE that solution, but in the face of reality, it's all that's truly available.
Saying "your program sucks!" is not criticism. It's being an asshole. Saying "I expected this program to do X, but it did Y, or didn't do anything at all. Why is that?" is criticism.
I found a great article all about that, I tend to point new Linux users to it to read before they consider using Linux. Because as it turns out, Linux is not Windows, apparently.
Re:I hear lots of negative criticism about Linux.
on
Linux Needs Critics
·
· Score: 1
It's not snobbery. The problem is that Linux is not Windows. People switching to Linux and expecting it to be "like Windows, but free!" tend to get very frustrated. They expect Linux to act like Windows, and it doesn't except for using a mouse and a window-based GUI.
It's the same as a Linux zealot ranting on about BSOD's. Most of the "criticism" of Linux is from people who "just didn't check XYZ, because that would have solved his issue". Because they don't know, because they try to treat Linux like Windows. And your instructor was quite likely expecting Windows to work somewhat like Linux, and he got frustrated when it didn't.
You're obviously a Windows user with a persecution complex. Perhaps you ought to look into your own "snobbery" before calling others such?
I'm gonna have to call bullshit. I've used OSX and Linux, and both have warts. Anyone who says a computer "just works" is a person who's learned to work around the warts of their system without having to actually think about the workarounds as workarounds. A site called "MacFixIt" would not exist if OSX "just worked" as you say it does.
Your problem is that most likely you're using applications that are using older styles of sound card access which are incompatible with new ones. Possibly just a very old application that hasn't been updated. There are some compatibility layers, but it's like running a Windows 95 application on Vista and wondering why every single bell and whistle won't work. Hell, I've heard of a lot of Win95 apps not even installing right on Vista...
Software is not magic. If someone doesn't take care of it, it starts to suffer from "bit rot". Fortunately with open-source, if you want it working, you can work on it yourself or pay someone to do so.
Re:Let me be the first critic
on
Linux Needs Critics
·
· Score: 3, Interesting
It's true a lot of that is lacking in Linux. But on the flip side, you have a lot more power to make the machine do what you actually want, rather than just working around what you're given. DRM tilt bits causing HDMI dropouts, 15 different media players depending on what format you want to play, having to use the awful half-assed applications included with your hardware. Ever installed anything from HP?
Anyone saying Linux lacks consistency is looking at Windows through rose-colored glasses, and possibly ignorant of the current repository based Linux architecture. Windows is consistent, but none of the applications you get are, and you have to go hunt down some random application from some dodgy site to get anything other than checking email and surfing the web done. That's 180 degrees from Linux, where applications to do almost everything you need are right in the software repositories. Just use the install new programs application (which actually does like it says, unlike Windows) and install what you want.
There are benefits and drawbacks to every OS. It depends on what you're looking to get out of it as to what you choose. I personally want a system that does what I want (even if it takes a little hacking), rather than choosing from what it allows me to do. Therefore, I choose Linux. You're obviously quite happy with choosing something predefined but easy, so Windows is great.
Skinner: Well, I was wrong. The lizards are a godsend.
Lisa: But isnâ(TM)t that a bit short-sighted? What happens when weâ(TM)re overrun by lizards?
Skinner: No problem. We simply release wave after wave of Chinese needle snakes. Theyâ(TM)ll wipe out the lizards.
Lisa: But arenâ(TM)t the snakes even worse?
Skinner: Yes, but weâ(TM)re prepared for that. Weâ(TM)ve lined up a fabulous type of gorilla that thrives on snake meat.
Lisa: But then weâ(TM)re stuck with gorillas!
Skinner: No, thatâ(TM)s the beautiful part. When wintertime rolls around, the gorillas simply freeze to death.
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Interesting... I seem to get pass-through working fine on my 8.10 Mythbuntu media center. But I think I also use the ALSA libs instead of Pulse. Thanks for the heads-up on this. Might explain a few weird audio things I've experienced.
I still use the non-GUI mplayer to play videos, even if I click on them. The arrow keys and other controls are just easier to navigate the video than the clicky controls. And if I'm watching the video full-screen (which is usually) there's no room for the GUI controls anyway, so why even bother?
And only one of them is for a valid reason. BSD, Solaris, Linux and MacOS haven't burned them in the past. If a contractor fails to deliver a road when you pay them for it, you don't keep hiring them hoping they'll do it right next time.
You do realize that the ONLY true 64bit version of Flash is on Linux, right? It's a beta release, but the Windows "64bit" Flash is just a 32bit wrapper. Straight from the horse's mouth.
ATI also has much-improved open-source support. My X1250 is running with full open-source drivers, and they're hoping to get the 2xxx and up series running fully open source within a year. With official support from ATI. Nvidia is a different issue, but their closed drivers tend to work for the most part.
Linux is already easier to install than Windows is. And if you give someone a machine that's already got Linux installed and working, it will be just as easy to use as Windows.
And saying that windows is "just not the case" is complete bullshit. It's just that you know how to solve the problems in Windows, how to work around them. Ever taken a browse through the Microsoft Knowledge Base? Ever seen a Windows support message board? Windows is far from perfect, and far from as good as you think it is. I'd wager you're simply used to the warts on Windows and just work around them, and aren't as experienced with Linux. I don't have any problems with Linux, and I keep running into things I can't do on Windows without paying through the ass for software to solve it.
Mmmm, massive hyperbole when referencing Linux, and oversimplification for Windows. How much are they paying you? At least I gave each a fair treatment. Or maybe you just wish you could suck Bill Gate's dick?
You wouldn't reasonably expect to be seen in that situation. There is NO difference between what Google would see and what any other person driving down the road would see. That's the issue.
Theaters are losing ground? since when? Just because the industry says so doesn't make it true.
And downloading a codec pack isn't cryptic? The average user knows what a codec is? You keep looking at Linux with blinders on, thinking that the Windows way is in some way reasonable. It's not. Someone who doesn't know what a codec is will be equally confused by a non-playing video, under any OS. My "magic words" are as inane to a normal user as "codec pack" is. "Uninstall all other individual codecs and filters (like DirectVobSub, ffdshow, CoreVorbis, CoreAAC, etc.)" is no more intelligible (and I'd wager to say less than) saying "Go to Applications, then System, then select Terminal. In the window that pops up, type 'sudo apt-get install w32codecs libdvdcss2'" and type your password in when it asks.
The only alternative to copyright is... nothing. You can't copyright a concert. You can't copyright movie theater seats. Yet you can still sell those. If copyright disappeared overnight there would be plenty of things still being shared.
Stop think of P2P as the enemy... try thinking about it as "free publicity"
Why don't you just watch what everyone else is watching? Sheesh. Expecting them to deliver what they offer... what kind of consumer are you?
Those 86% just use broadband because it just lets them send 15MB of pictures via email faster. Small bursts, which is how the suppliers want it. They don't like people that actually use their broadband.
If you're a Time Warner customer at ALL, in ANY market, you should tell them that this news is causing you to switch away ASAP. Don't wait until they roll it out and it affects you. Just refuse to do business with shoddy companies.
I think you're exactly 180 on that. mplayer plays any media I throw at it, from FLV to Real to H.264 (including my AVC files). It's the only media player I have installed on my media center PC. Windows Media Player won't play much of anything unless you install K-Lite or something similar, and still won't play AVC properly, nor MKV contained files. It certainly doesn't just work nearly as easily as you say it does. I mean, just read this link: http://www.afterdawn.com/guides/archive/how_to_play_mkv.cfm
Gotta install one set of codecs and filters from one place to play mkv files, and you have to install RealPlayer to play back RealMedia streams in a markov. And just look at the install instructions: http://www.cccp-project.net/wiki/index.php?title=Main_Page#Installation_Instructions
Insane. And it needs a damn reboot! For a codec pack! WTF? I just needed to add the medibuntu repos, and then "apt-get install w64codecs libdvdcss2" and poof, it all works. You can't tell me that isn't easier. It may not be what you're used to, but it sure as hell is much easier.
I just liken it to someone that buys an electric vehicle, and then is flabbergasted and confused that there aren't charging stations all over the place. Why do people understand that, but not software? I'm firmly of the opinion that computers are indistinguishable from magic for "ordinary users", so they simply switch their brains off and bitch when it doesn't do what they expect, even if it's doing exactly what's right and what is intended.
Ehhh... he has an agenda, and doesn't always see the reality of the situation. Hell, his latest post rails on about startup times, and how OSX has it right. The thing he doesn't mention is that Apple controls the hardware, so of course it always works. He doesn't realize how fucked up ACPI is on most machines. Startup times are quite important when hardware limitations prevent you from doing the neat things OSX does.
1. Seems reasonable to me. Would you ask an architect how to install your vinyl flooring, and then get upset when he didn't help? Why is a different standard applied to computer knowledge? Because it's a "magic box", and the rules are different?
2. "The grass is green! I wanted it to be red!" Why should Linux be anything other than Linux? Do you really think that, say, drive letters are a good idea? If you ask for drive letters on Linux, you will rightfully be laughed at. Same with many other things, because even if you don't like it, Linux is Linux.
3. Depends who you're asking. Are you asking the person who's maintaining and developing on the application? If not, why the hell not? Do you bitch to your bus driver about the mechanic not fixing your car right, and then get upset when he tells you to fix it yourself or find another mechanic? I've never had the actual developer of an application tell me anything like "go fix it yourself!"
You have no point, you're only trolling. There is a culture to Linux. Just as there is with Windows, and OSX. Acting as if there isn't is a good way to piss people off.
Yeah, he has a point, but not always a lot of information behind his rants. His current post is about how boot times are the wrong thing to focus on, and Mac has it solved. It's got a grain of truth, but no knowledge behind it. The reason that boot times are being focused on is because every single manufacturer fucks up ACPI in their own special way, and Linux is expected to deal with it. Apple controls the hardware, so they don't have those problems. Funny, that. So the best solution for Linux with ACPI not being documented and completely hosed is to just shut down, and save sessions. I know he doesn't LIKE that solution, but in the face of reality, it's all that's truly available.
Saying "your program sucks!" is not criticism. It's being an asshole. Saying "I expected this program to do X, but it did Y, or didn't do anything at all. Why is that?" is criticism.
Study the examples. Learn the difference.
I found a great article all about that, I tend to point new Linux users to it to read before they consider using Linux. Because as it turns out, Linux is not Windows, apparently.
It's not snobbery. The problem is that Linux is not Windows. People switching to Linux and expecting it to be "like Windows, but free!" tend to get very frustrated. They expect Linux to act like Windows, and it doesn't except for using a mouse and a window-based GUI.
It's the same as a Linux zealot ranting on about BSOD's. Most of the "criticism" of Linux is from people who "just didn't check XYZ, because that would have solved his issue". Because they don't know, because they try to treat Linux like Windows. And your instructor was quite likely expecting Windows to work somewhat like Linux, and he got frustrated when it didn't.
You're obviously a Windows user with a persecution complex. Perhaps you ought to look into your own "snobbery" before calling others such?
I'm gonna have to call bullshit. I've used OSX and Linux, and both have warts. Anyone who says a computer "just works" is a person who's learned to work around the warts of their system without having to actually think about the workarounds as workarounds. A site called "MacFixIt" would not exist if OSX "just worked" as you say it does.
Your problem is that most likely you're using applications that are using older styles of sound card access which are incompatible with new ones. Possibly just a very old application that hasn't been updated. There are some compatibility layers, but it's like running a Windows 95 application on Vista and wondering why every single bell and whistle won't work. Hell, I've heard of a lot of Win95 apps not even installing right on Vista...
Software is not magic. If someone doesn't take care of it, it starts to suffer from "bit rot". Fortunately with open-source, if you want it working, you can work on it yourself or pay someone to do so.
It's true a lot of that is lacking in Linux. But on the flip side, you have a lot more power to make the machine do what you actually want, rather than just working around what you're given. DRM tilt bits causing HDMI dropouts, 15 different media players depending on what format you want to play, having to use the awful half-assed applications included with your hardware. Ever installed anything from HP?
Anyone saying Linux lacks consistency is looking at Windows through rose-colored glasses, and possibly ignorant of the current repository based Linux architecture. Windows is consistent, but none of the applications you get are, and you have to go hunt down some random application from some dodgy site to get anything other than checking email and surfing the web done. That's 180 degrees from Linux, where applications to do almost everything you need are right in the software repositories. Just use the install new programs application (which actually does like it says, unlike Windows) and install what you want.
There are benefits and drawbacks to every OS. It depends on what you're looking to get out of it as to what you choose. I personally want a system that does what I want (even if it takes a little hacking), rather than choosing from what it allows me to do. Therefore, I choose Linux. You're obviously quite happy with choosing something predefined but easy, so Windows is great.
Looks like SOMEBODY has a case of the Mondays!
Which is strange, because it's Wednesday.