faq
flatforty
contribute
subscribe
configure
search
rdf
main
parent
|
Ubuntu Media Center / Mythbuntu on the wrong path
by AC on Wednesday 15/Aug/2007, @20:05
|
It would be nice to see Ubuntu Media Center (https://wiki.ubuntu.com/UbuntuMediaCenterTeam) and Mythbuntu (http://mythbuntu.org) join LinuxMCE and the KDE team to create one kickass Free/Open Source media center. Given that MythTV is built on Qt, that would make perfect sense, wouldn't it? But no -- they want to build their tools based on GTK and Gstreamer (which are LGPL) so that they can force proprietary DRM and closed-source software on the user. Even the Mythbuntu installer and desktop is based on GTK instead of Qt -- how silly is that?
I congratulate LinuxMCE for building your exciting technology on top of the truly Free Software desktop: KDE. Too bad Ubuntu has so many anti-KDE, anti-Qt, anti-GPL, pro-DRM zealots calling the shots. (BTW: I'm not referring to Mark Shuttleworth or Jonathan Riddell, but to some of the GNOME developers hired by Canonical). |
|
|
The Fine Print: The following comments
are owned by whomever posted them.
( Reply )
|
Re: Ubuntu Media Center / Mythbuntu on the wrong path
by Aaron J. Seigo on Thursday 16/Aug/2007, @09:30
|
i find the persistent NIH in the open source world frustrating as well. as i've blogged about before, where there is real innovation happening or even just simple "because i wanted to learn" kind of things, duplication of effort doesn't bug me one bit; but reinvention for reinvention's sake to fullfill goals that basically boil down to "it's not the colour of green i use" is silly.
whether or not the *buntu efforts fall into that category or not, i really don't know to be honest. i'll leave that judgement up to others.
what i do see is a bunch of '0%'s on their progress list, though they do have remotes over lirc working apparently ;) elisa is also a young project; the cynic in me says it's primarily a way to promote gstreamer while the realist in me says it's a very young project with a *long* ways to go.
linuxMCE is pretty darn mature and builds on some other solid projects like MythTV that have been around for a long time and proven themselves. the pragmatist in me likes that.
that these projects weren't grown up inside of KDE doesn't bother me. that LinuxMCE didn't try and build their own OS and that they looked at various options (yes, not just KDE, but also GNOME and XFCE; not just *buntu, either) before deciding which way to flow makes me feel much more confident in their abilities and pragmatism.
as for projects like MediaBuntu, well ... we've essentially already created and shipped exactly what they are aiming for with this release. it's a working media center + desktop + ubuntu base.
if other individuals or projects would like to coordinate efforts or even outright join in with what we're doing, that would be awesome. they would all be *more* than welcome. of course, it's free software and people will do what they want =) given Mark's recent "coordinate and have a single rhythm" mantra lately, it would make sense to me to see his own community embrace that first.
i have started talking with some people in the wider open source media center world about these things. hopefully we can build up some more steam and power behind this train =)
|
[
Reply To This | View ]
|
Re: Ubuntu Media Center / Mythbuntu on the wrong p
by AC on Thursday 16/Aug/2007, @13:46
|
Right on, Aaron! It's great to see LinuxMCE reach out to KDE. I think they would do good to also let their other "upstream" projects such as MythTV and Linux know about them. These are two huge communities, and simply sending a couple of patches or messages from a LinuxMCE.org email address with a footer/signature advertising LinuxMCE will go a long way toward raising awareness and their reputation.
They should also blog on PlanetKDE now that they are using and improving Plasma!
|
[
Reply To This | View ]
|
|
Re: Ubuntu Media Center / Mythbuntu on the wrong p
by Segedunum on Friday 17/Aug/2007, @03:00
|
"It would be nice to see Ubuntu Media Center (https://wiki.ubuntu.com/UbuntuMediaCenterTeam) and Mythbuntu (http://mythbuntu.org) join LinuxMCE and the KDE team to create one kickass Free/Open Source media center. Given that MythTV is built on Qt, that would make perfect sense, wouldn't it? But no -- they want to build their tools based on GTK and Gstreamer"
I take a pretty extreme view to NIH syndrome, and I don't really apologise for it. If there are legitimate reasons for re-architecting something, such as you want to get certain things out of a toolkit you're using you wouldn't out of anything else, then fine. However, if all you're doing is re-writing something in another toolkit to get the same effect with the same functionality, in some cases having to work harder, then I find that daft.
This happened in openSUSE with the Gnome install profile. The people there steadfastly refused to have TaskJuggler in there, even though it was the best project management tool we have. All traces of Qt and kdelibs were to be eliminated, even though GTK is installed on a KDE install and no one cares.
As for GTK apps on KDE, couldn't care a less. We have QtGTK which gets GTK apps to fit in on the desktop and I don't particularly see why they should be rewritten in Qt with KDE libraries.
I just find all the rewriting for GTK stuff to come out of insecurity.
|
[
Reply To This | View ]
|
Re: Ubuntu Media Center / Mythbuntu on the wrong p
by jospoortvliet on Friday 17/Aug/2007, @04:00
|
Insecurity indeed. They try to lock KDE out of their environment, as they feel they can't compete head-to-head with it on a technical plane. So they politicalize the whole issue...
Pity, in FOSS, the best technology should win. Yet we have exaile (amarok clone), and that project to clone Kalzium... Aaah, let's see it as a compliment. Those apps are soo good, even the KDE/Qt haters can't be without them so the rewrite em...
|
[
Reply To This | View ]
|
|
Re: Ubuntu Media Center / Mythbuntu on the wrong p
by Pi on Friday 25/Jan/2008, @08:20
|
Mythbuntu isn't on the wrong path
Mythbuntu even using older version of xfce. it's to reduce resource. and it's still on 1 cd. so you can using live disk on non-linux pc and joint myth w/o install.
but it have only small program pre-install. it's like it's make for run only myth. suitable for being home media server. (and live cd on new computer)
while LinuxMCE still have other program install but it as big as 3 cd and no live mode suitable for multi function Media Center
since it's run on myth tv. so both can run together
|
[
Reply To This | View ]
|
The Fine Print: The previous
comments are owned by whomever posted them.
( Reply )
|
|
![[KDE Dot News]](http://www.kde.org/dot/Images/kdedotnews.gif)
