[MPlayer-users] v4l record memory usage.

[James Lancaster]

On Tuesday 10 December 2002 23:48, you wrote:
> [Automatic answer: RTFM (read DOCS, FAQ), also read DOCS/bugreports.html]
> Hi,
>
>   I use mencoder to record TV from a bttv card ( ATI TVWonder).
>   command line like this:
>   mencoder -tv on:driver=v4l:width=320:height=240:amode=0:adevice=/dev/dsp
> \ -o tv.avi -oac mp3lame -lameopts cbr:br=56:mode=3 \
>            -ovc lavc -lavcopts vcodec=mpeg4:vhq:vbitrate=900
>
>   I run it on my machine with P4 2.0G, Mem=512MB
>   MPlayer version is 0.90rc1
>
>   The problem is :
>       After start to run above command line, it use more and more
>       memory and increase very fast until reached about 256MB.
>       (I use 'top' to monitor the mem usage). It sames stoped memory
>       requirment.
>

Mencoder is (or was (pre- or post- rc1?) hardwired to use half the total 
System memory for v4l capture. Someone is working on patches to have it 
allocate memory based upon free memory. (I could just imagine someone on a 
Sun 15K using mecoder twice and freaking out, not that anyone would do such a 
thing.)

>   If I use earlier snapshot version, it will still increase the
>   memory useage, but slower, finally, begin memory swap...
>   system hangs. Is it a memory-leak problem?

I would try using CVS. 
Using CVS-021208-11:17-3.2, (and recording from a null source- noise in other 
words)  mencoder was using 3.2% on each process (two tuner cards) AFAI can 
tell, the noise recorded as well as it shoud have. :)

Dual P3-800, 256MB RAM, ATI TV-Wonder VE, Happage WinTV Go

James L