Re: [backstage] BeeBuntu was [Fwd: [ORG-discuss] The Guardian drops Office has gone OpenOffice]
Quoting Kevin Anderson global...@gmail.com: Ant, I have tried just about all of DTV players and HTPC packages for Linux - Kaffeine, MeTV, Myth (so much pain for not so much payoff), Freevo, GeexBox, VDR and the list goes on. I actually end up using VLC most of the time because it's so lightweight. The first challenge would be to find (or develop) a good DTV app. Kaffeine hasn't been stable in the last couple of releases. MeTV is good, but it uses way too many cycles just to update the EPG. Myth. Where do I start? While it ticks the boxes in terms of configurability, it's too difficult to set up and way too easy to break. Freevo doesn't like Python on Ubuntu. VLC is brilliant, but it doesn't have an EPG and doesn't have a one click way to record. If anyone does know of a good DTV package that I haven't mentioned, please let me know. Oddly, I like the open source media centre packages on Windows - MediaPortal and GB-PVR more than the options on Linux. I've ended up using EyeTV on our iBook, which is brilliant. There is a lot of focus on media centre apps like Boxee, XMBC and Elisa, but there is a gaping hole when it comes to a good DTV app. What do I mean by good? * EPG - This is real glaring issue for Linux DTV apps. Kaffeine has a serviceable EPG but it only shows you what is playing and the next show. Myth does it well but has so many other issues. MeTV suffers from serious CPU load just to update the EPG. * EPG search * Scheduled recording - I want to be able to go to the EPG and click record. That's really about it, which is why I'm so baffled that there isn't something better on offer. As I've said, if anyone has tried and liked something, let me know. But, to get something like BeeBuntu, you'd need a good DTV app first. Having said that, I'll give GeexBox another try. It might be a good candidate for your idea Ant. best, k From the GeexBox installation instructions on making a DVB card work: wget http://www.linuxtv.org/download/dvb/linuxtv-dvb-apps-1.1.0.tar.bz2 tar jxvf linuxtv-dvb-apps-1.1.0.tar.bz2 cd linuxtv-dvb-apps-1.1.0/util/scan make ./scan -x 0 dvb-s/Astra-19.2E channels.conf For any sort of BBC branded utility the TV/Radio aspect should just work. People shouldn't need to be compiling source code in order to do a channel scan or running separate applications to do what should be minimal functionality. Then what about MHEG? The general public would expect MHEG to just work. And EIT present following and EIT schedule and Series Link and one touch recording plus any new features yet to be released. And what else should BeeBuntu be able to do? The BBC Micro was a success because it helped educate a generation in how computers work and what they do. So I'd propose that on top of a system which can be used for TV/Radio, Video, Images etc. that any system would need to: * provide access to the internet (possibly with adult content control) * provide access to tools which are interoperable with any de-facto industry standard tools which can be used for schoolwork, home office etc. * provide the users the chance to use the system for self-eduaction about computers, coding etc. with a nice user interface to increase computer literacy * provide educational tools like were available on the BBC micro (geordie racer anyone?) * provide access to basic video tools - to allow people to create there own content What else? -- ST st...@zepler.net - Sent via the backstage.bbc.co.uk discussion group. To unsubscribe, please visit http://backstage.bbc.co.uk/archives/2005/01/mailing_list.html. Unofficial list archive: http://www.mail-archive.com/backstage@lists.bbc.co.uk/
Re: [backstage] BBC DRM iplayer mobiles etc
Quoting Frank Wales [EMAIL PROTECTED]: Andrew Bowden wrote: Even for smaller channels, there are benefits to being encrypted, such as reduced EPG listing fees. It costs less to tell people about your programmes if you encrypt them? The reason being...? Sky give you a discount. -- ST [EMAIL PROTECTED] - Sent via the backstage.bbc.co.uk discussion group. To unsubscribe, please visit http://backstage.bbc.co.uk/archives/2005/01/mailing_list.html. Unofficial list archive: http://www.mail-archive.com/backstage@lists.bbc.co.uk/
Re: [backstage] Ray Gosling and Parsley Sidings
Quoting Richard Hyett [EMAIL PROTECTED]: While I'm on the subject, Arthur Lowe and Ian Lavendar in Parsley Sidings another national treasure that needs bringing back to the surface from which ever dust coated shelf it has been sitting on these past 35 years. Both spin-offs from Dad's Army have been on BBC7 in full -- ST [EMAIL PROTECTED] - Sent via the backstage.bbc.co.uk discussion group. To unsubscribe, please visit http://backstage.bbc.co.uk/archives/2005/01/mailing_list.html. Unofficial list archive: http://www.mail-archive.com/backstage@lists.bbc.co.uk/
Re: [backstage] Thinking Digital conference
Quoting Mr I Forrester [EMAIL PROTECTED]: Hi All, Backstage is sponsoring a few a events around the thinking digital conference, if your up in the North East of England and want to hang out (lobbycom), chat with some great speakers. Drop into the Sage in Gateshead. We're running a geekdinner on Friday night which leads nicely into the BarCampNorthEast which is this weekend. Tell the truth, you only want to stay because Girl's Aloud are on at the Arena. Is the Geekdinner at the Pitcher and Piano? They have a quite strict dress code. Personally if I was in toon this weekend I'd go to Projectile2008, possibly take in the Sunday Session at the Tyne and see what the evolution festival were doing at the Cluny or Spillers. -- ST [EMAIL PROTECTED] - Sent via the backstage.bbc.co.uk discussion group. To unsubscribe, please visit http://backstage.bbc.co.uk/archives/2005/01/mailing_list.html. Unofficial list archive: http://www.mail-archive.com/backstage@lists.bbc.co.uk/
Re: [backstage] Open Flash
Quoting Andy [EMAIL PROTECTED]: Dave Crossland wrote: I look forward to the day when the BBC stops requiring proprietary software and stops imposing DRM :-) And on that day the devil will skate to work! (Can't remember which programme I heard that quote on). The BBC will pick proprietary solutions even if they are technically inferior to the open standards alternatives, just look at Kontiki, Bittorrent would have worked far better, at least most clients support some level of user controllable throttling, many even support scheduling. Andy Kontiki may be inferior in technological terms, but would be vastly superior in terms of a Media Lawyer never having seen its name associated with intellectual property theft. -- ST [EMAIL PROTECTED] - Sent via the backstage.bbc.co.uk discussion group. To unsubscribe, please visit http://backstage.bbc.co.uk/archives/2005/01/mailing_list.html. Unofficial list archive: http://www.mail-archive.com/backstage@lists.bbc.co.uk/
[backstage] The Future of DTT
OFCOM have finally reported on their future of DTT consultation. http://www.ofcom.org.uk/consult/condocs/dttfuture/statement/statement.pdf http://www.bbc.co.uk/bbctrust/assets/files/pdf/regulatory_framework/other_activities/hd_on_dtt.pdf Main conclusion is to force the BBC to vacate a multiplex, conversion of multiplex to DVB-T2 MPEG4 on air by Q4 2009. Displaced services going into existing multiplexes. Any thoughts. -- ST [EMAIL PROTECTED] - Sent via the backstage.bbc.co.uk discussion group. To unsubscribe, please visit http://backstage.bbc.co.uk/archives/2005/01/mailing_list.html. Unofficial list archive: http://www.mail-archive.com/backstage@lists.bbc.co.uk/
Re: [backstage] DVB-H finally gets formal adoption by the EC (oh and vista SP1!)
Quoting Matt Barber [EMAIL PROTECTED]: BBC HD is broadcast in the clear on Astra 2D (28.2E) at 10.847Ghz V 22000SR 5/6FEC, I'm pretty sure it is still broadcast as DVB-S (rather then DVB-S2 like the Sky HD channels) so a normal DVB-S card and a dish set up for Sky Digital should do the job. I might give this a try, I've got a rather old dish but I think the LNB should receive the signal OK - does anyone know of any other HD signals flying around that are encoded with DVB-S? - Sent via the backstage.bbc.co.uk discussion group. To unsubscribe, please visit http://backstage.bbc.co.uk/archives/2005/01/mailing_list.html. Unofficial list archive: http://www.mail-archive.com/backstage@lists.bbc.co.uk/ Lyngsat has a listing, but for Free-To-Air HD (MPEG4) you're probably limited to BBC, Luxe TV and Euro1080. As for the EU choosing DVB-H - it's an old standard - why not go with DVB-SH? -- ST [EMAIL PROTECTED] - Sent via the backstage.bbc.co.uk discussion group. To unsubscribe, please visit http://backstage.bbc.co.uk/archives/2005/01/mailing_list.html. Unofficial list archive: http://www.mail-archive.com/backstage@lists.bbc.co.uk/
Re: [backstage] Is it just me, or is some stereo audio on BBC chans (Freeview) out of phase?
Quoting Martin Deutsch [EMAIL PROTECTED]: I've been emailing Christopher off-list about this - I suspect it may well be a reciever issue. Most of the services on mux 1 are coded in London, and are the same across much of the country on DTT -- and I'm not seeing any phase issues on our monitoring here, with a couple of different set-top-boxes. I've suggested that Christopher tries another reciever, or moves the aerial to somewhere with better signal strength. (I don't know that much about how the decoding process works, but perhaps someone more fluent in DVB will know - is it possible that error correction and recovery could be doing odd things to the sound in the event of low signal strength?) - martin This doesn't sound like an interference issue. For interference to only affect the MPEG-Audio PES, the interference would have to be spread correctly across the approx. 2k carriers with the interference occurring at exactly the right time so that once the data had transited a symbol de-interleaver, a bit de-interleaver, a Vitterbi decoder and a Reed-Solomon Decoder only the MPEG-Audio PES packet headers are effected. This could be checked by using something like dvbsnoop/tzap or TSReaderLite to look to see if any error messages are being generated. Other possible errors include an error in the Broadcaster Mix - but this hasn't been apparent to anyone else - or an error in installation or manufacture. --- ST [EMAIL PROTECTED] - Sent via the backstage.bbc.co.uk discussion group. To unsubscribe, please visit http://backstage.bbc.co.uk/archives/2005/01/mailing_list.html. Unofficial list archive: http://www.mail-archive.com/backstage@lists.bbc.co.uk/
Re: [backstage] One-day Conference To Help Web Developers Address Accessibility in Web 2.0
Quoting Ian Forrester [EMAIL PROTECTED]: Robin Christopherson Web Services Manager of AbilityNet said “We believe it’s time for the focus to come back onto Accessibility, and that a conference of this kind is what is needed to help developers make their Web 2.0 applications accessible. It promises to be a highly practical day, where delegates come away knowing exactly what they need to do, and where they need to focus to make sure they consider accessibility in their products. With some of the biggest and best names in the industry we are very excited about what this event is going to bring to individuals and the industry as a whole.” Is one day really enough to do justice to this subject. What do we mean by accessibility? Do we mean people with differing levels of computer literacy and the design of sites and services to evolve to be fully inclusive? Do we mean accessibility for those with presbycusis, protanopia, deuteranopia, photosensitive epilepsy, tinnitus and other mildly disabling issues, all of which are specialist use cases. If designers design to be inclusive of all these cases, they are noticeably limited in design schemes and technologies, but normally can create something useful to all. Alternatively, can the data be available in alternative guises, like in BETSIE? For more debilitating issues, it is often necessary to design in such a way that the data may be accessed in alternative ways, like feed readers, text-to-speech engines? Is there a open-standard method? Then what are the legal aspects of the design implementation, from the DPA requirements of holding data about end-users abilities, to the potential for legislation like the Broadcasting Act but for the internet with regards to presentation of access services and OFCOM's guidances on photosensitive epilepsy. -- ST [EMAIL PROTECTED] - Sent via the backstage.bbc.co.uk discussion group. To unsubscribe, please visit http://backstage.bbc.co.uk/archives/2005/01/mailing_list.html. Unofficial list archive: http://www.mail-archive.com/backstage@lists.bbc.co.uk/
Re: [backstage] Adobe fuses on and offline worlds
Dave Crossland wrote: For a certain value judgement of 'good' that is? It tramples users' freedom and their friendships since we can't know how it works or redistribute it. That's not good. Conversely, it allows SMEs to enter market places with the knowledge that their intellectual property can gain them an income. But it is a reduction in freedom! :-) Is it? You're perfectly free to choose not to install a certain software package. You're free to find an alternative consumption method. You're free to gain employment by the BBC and change it from within. If someone running GNU+Linux uses more proprietary software tomorrow than they use today, that is not good. Why? Because you say so? Are all commercial software products inherently bad? I take it you don't use any patent-encumbered software, like MPEG encoders for instance then? I feel uncomfortably like you're avoiding thinking about ethical aspects of your profession. I don't think that an ad hominem argument helps your case. It's a very unfair comment based on your personal, biased viewpoint and should be retracted. For the record, I don't think that it's unethical to pay a company for a product that they have spent time creating and I don't believe we have an automatic right to do as we will with their product. I don't think so; software freedom increases content accessibility. In a way in which rights holders would agree for the data to be disseminated via the internet? Presumably they want it to be as ephemeral as possible, with a clause for time-shifting c.f. UHF Transmission. If a proprietary thing lets you do something in a way that meets your requirements better, then to argue that it should be used seems very over simplistic, since it ignores the ethical implications. Then is your argument not over simplistic too? In that it ignores such delicacies as service level agreements with third party companies who have control over technology provisions, support arrangements (presumably the developers of Gnash don't have a 24hr support service?), licensing arrangements with people like the MPEG LA and legally enforceable guaranteed levels of service. When we cannot understand how our computers work we are faced with a grave social problem. You sure - most of the population neither knows nor cares about how their PCs work? Some of the most brilliant user interaction and interface designers I've met don't know what's happening beyond their high-level code. It's why the world has engineers. When was the last time you had the feeler guage out to re-tappet your car? -- ST [EMAIL PROTECTED] - Sent via the backstage.bbc.co.uk discussion group. To unsubscribe, please visit http://backstage.bbc.co.uk/archives/2005/01/mailing_list.html. Unofficial list archive: http://www.mail-archive.com/backstage@lists.bbc.co.uk/
