Follow-Up From My LinHES/Mythbuntu Talk

[Bernie Hoefer]

     Hey, all!  I thought I'd give you a follow-up on my LinHES /
Mythbuntu talk from last week.

     As you know, the Sunday before the presentation, my LinHES install
became borked after applying updates.  (Please remember that LinHES is
based off of Arch Linux and thus has a `rolling release` model.)  During
the talk, I realized that the LinHES installer had an upgrade option
that just re-installs the binaries but keeps the back-end configuration,
database and previously recorded shows.
     Over the weekend I tried this upgrade options and it worked great!
I had to re-apply some minor front-end configurations, but otherwise I
was back up and running as if I never encountered the update problem.
     Of course, now I wonder if/when I can update my box without borking
it again.  Nobody else in the LinHES forums[1] has complained about the
problem and it is not listed as an issue[2].  I still need to post my
own comment there when I have some time.

     Even if LinHES couldn't be easily resurrected, it looks like I
would not be able to stay with Mythbuntu.[3]  Really, I prefer LinHES
over Mythbuntu because it felt more set-top box-like and less like a
desktop that just runs MythTV in kiosk mode.  There is also a little
less configuration that needs done in LinHES compared to Mythbuntu.
     So, I was not upset to hear about Mythbuntu's demise.  But if
LinHES really wasn't an option, I could still use either Ubuntu or
Fedora with MythTV installed on top of one of them.  (Probably Ubunutu
since Fedora does not have a long-life version and I don't want to have
to re-install MythTV every year.)

     To recap my points from last Wednesday's presentation:

1.  If you want something that just works without a lot of effort or
learning, MythTV is not for you.  There is a steep learning curve --
especially if you are new to video recording, TV show formats, signals, etc.

2.  If I had to do it over again, I'd probably find a place that sells
pre-made MythTV boxes.  That way I'd know all the hardware was
compatible and configured correctly & optimally.  Save myself *a lot* of
time.

3.  If you do want to make your own MythTV box, research your hardware!
My experience would now lead me to go find an Intel video display
adapter (since they use Open Source drivers) that supports VDPAU (Video
Decode and Presentation API for Unix).
    Getting a remote control that `just works` without all the
programming of keys would have been smart, too.
    Hauppauge tuners rock.  :-)

4.  LinHES is a distribution meant to be easy to setup and behave most
like a set-top box.  It mostly succeeds, but documentation is lite and
there are bugs that still get in the way of achieving its stated goal.
(Example:  although I checked the MythWeb box so I could browse the web
from MythTV, it didn't install Chromium.  I had to SSH into the box and
install it.)

5.  Mythbuntu is basically an Ubuntu desktop geared for MythTV.
Although the setup was easier than if I had taken an Ubuntu disc and
tried to configure it for MythTV, myself, it was not as easy as LinHES.
There were also bugs that I had to work around.


     Oh, one last thing:  after my shout-out to Refurb-A-Tronics during
my presentation, Armondo noted that their website[4] was suspended.
Today, I tried calling their phone number and found it was deactivated.
     Strange!  They must have just closed their doors recently because
their Facebook page[5] has posts on it from mid-August.  I don't `do`
Facebook, so if any of you care to message them to find out why they
shutdown, I'd be interested in hearing.  They were awesome.


[1]<http://forums.linhes.org/viewforum.php?f=21&sid=8f3a394b3dadbe47af843bce89a5d3f3>

[2]<http://linhes.org/projects/linhes/issues>

[3]Mythbuntu as a Separate Distribution Will Cease to Exist.
   <https://soylentnews.org/article.pl?sid=16/11/06/1331246>

[4]<http://www.refurbatronics.com/>

[5]<https://www.facebook.com/refurbatronics1>

-- 
Bernie Hoefer
PGP e-mail is welcome!  Get my 1024 bit signature key from:
<http://pgpkeys.mit.edu/pks/lookup?op=get&search=0x446A6F93>.
"The more I know, the more I realize how much I do not understand."

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