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blizzard · Aug 22, 2004, 03:39 PM

I often use my Powerbook to view TV shows and video I download onto my PC. This occurs over a wireless .11G network with widely variable reception rates, so I'm forced to use MPlayer OSX because it has a an easy-to-find video buffer option that ensures smooth playback. I've poked around VLC's interface a few times but haven't found a comparable option, which strikes me as odd since its purpose in life is to be a network video viewer. Does anyone know if such an option exists, and if so then how do I enable it?

Thanks in advance!

awaspaas · Aug 22, 2004, 04:48 PM

Preferences/Modules/access/access_file

Increase the caching value (in milliseconds)

blizzard · Aug 23, 2004, 12:25 AM

Thanks for the help...I gunned it up to 10 000 ms and what that accomplished was to make the video play smoothly until the buffer ran out, and then grind to a halt again. When I check in the console, it says 'PTS out of range'. Any ideas?

The DJ · Aug 26, 2004, 04:28 PM

Yeah, your internet connection to the server is too slow.

VLC was originally designed to receive live streams. That implies that you have enough bandwith to receive a stream well...

So when the buffer runs out, it will not pause and refill the buffer.
We are however slowly changing things to deal with this. It will just take some time to change VLC from a live stream client into an allround player and streamer for every possible situation.

We are getting closer, but as the small team that we are, often flooded with requests and complaints by users, development could be faster if we there were more developers and more helpers...

Unfortunatly because MPlayer was the first to do this, they generally have more supporters from the linux world (where most of the developers of these Open Source applications come from, also for VLC).

blizzard · Aug 26, 2004, 07:43 PM

Thanks for your response. If you have the time, I'm just curious to know why the network connection can stream files without a hitch to MPlayer, Realplayer, and Quicktime, but stutters with VLC? Is that the changeover to VLC you were just referring to? One thing I tried to do for a bit was enable the streaming server on the PC that stores my videos and try to get the Mac client to receive the stream, but in the end that was just too much work.

I'd help you out if I could, by the way, but I can't code my way out of a wet paper bag. Are there are other areas where you're looking for help? Once I'm done studying for my commercial pilot's license I'll have some time.

Ian.

The DJ · Aug 27, 2004, 06:47 AM

If you are talking about playing files on a Windows share, than this is because VLC reads very little bytes at a time where most players download several MBs at once. There is a bug in Apple's CIFS/SMB implementation that causes it to very much dislike this approach. It is supposed to be fixed in the next version of Mac OS X (Tiger).

And we are always looking for forum moderators, graphic artists, documentation writers, mailinlist lurkers etc.

mintcake · May 3, 2005, 10:53 PM

DJ - hi - hope you're still reading these boards. I was looking forward to the fix in Tiger - looks as if it hasn't happened. Any comments?

Spliff · May 3, 2005, 11:26 PM

Originally Posted by awaspaas

Preferences/Modules/access/access_file

Glad to see that the VLC developers understand good UI design and logical layout.

That app needs an overhaul and the UI designers need to be bitch-slapped until they learn decent UI design.

Chuckit · May 4, 2005, 12:51 AM

Originally Posted by Spliff

That app needs an overhaul and the UI designers need to be bitch-slapped until they learn decent UI design.

Yeah, because The DJ is totally a highly paid team of UI designers.

Spliff · May 4, 2005, 01:15 AM

Originally Posted by Chuckit

Yeah, because The DJ is totally a highly paid team of UI designers.

They don't need to be highly paid. They just have to know how to write in plain English. Have you looked at the preferences in VLC? The only way they could be more obscure than they already are is if they were written in Sanskrit.

If they're not going to redesign it, I'd settle for a detail and comprehensive user manual and FAQ that translates WTF all those obscure features (e.g., sout access, libc memcpy) mean.

The DJ · May 15, 2005, 06:44 PM

It's user responses like this that often make me consider to quit alltogether:
http://sidequest.org/weblog/archives...eeds_your.html

i spent 45 hours a week keeping VLC running at all on OSX and supporting users. There is no TIME to do anything else. Like my blog post above says. If we had more than 2 OSX people, then we could do some nice actual development and work on things like improving the core to better suit the OSX GUI. But we don't. So untill you do something for US shut up and stop bitching, or go use QuickTime, MplayerOSX, Xineplayer, GLplayer or whatever the hell you think is so much better than VLC.

Weyland-Yutani · May 15, 2005, 07:23 PM

You have my full support Derk-Jan, I really appreciate your work. It is admirable. I've been using VLC since version 0.4 and must say the improvements since then have been nothing but admirable.

I don't know any coding or programming so I can't offer you anything but my best wishes. May not be worth much.

cheers

W-Y