[MPlayer-users] mplayer and window manager - desktop environment

[Vladimir Mosgalin]

On Thu, 30 Jan 2003, scroto at interfree.it wrote:

>hi everybody,
>is it important to have a particular window manager or desktop
>environment to let mplayer work better? I mean, using kde 1.x, 2.x or
>3.x would be the same for mplayer (consider that I'm using a Pentium
>MMX 233 Mhz with 160 Mbyte RAM but an horrible video card: S3Trio64v+)?
>and what about window maker, blackbox, fvwm or even twm?

Don't use X11 at all, or use dga. Try vesa output, it should be fastest
for you. In dga mode, don't use double buffering. In other modes, use
-double -dr -cache 8192. As audio output, use oss or alsa.
Better upgrade your video card, at least to s3virge, it supports vesa
better. However, you can load linux from dos (using loadlin), and this
way you'll be able to load univbe (search the web for it, version 6.x),
after that your card will support vesa 2 and -vo vesa will work.
Stop as much of background processes as you can allow.
Use X11 for xv output (if your card support it, type "xvinfo"). In this
mode, load twm/mwm, for example, and don't use high resolutions (made
another X11 config) - if you are planning to play 352x240, define only
resolutions like 400x300, 512x384. Another tip: define 352x240, 358x240,
352x280, 352x288, 320x240, 480x480 and you'll be able to play most of
mpeg1/mpeg2 files in correct aspect ration without rescaling, for
example using dga.

Try less postprocessing options... vesa and dga outputs shouldn't take
much cpu time, so if you'll stuck with speed after that, turn of
deringing. If that doesn't help you, turn of some of deblocking (first
h1/v1, if that still doesn't help, try h1:y/v1:y), or completely turn it
off. The result may be horrible for some files, but so are you system...

Don't use vesa+postprocessing+mpeg files, it will crash mplayer and
leave your display in some strange state, you'll have to reset your
video mode or even reboot computer. Or at least it does this for me.

Optimize mplayer for your system. Compile it from sources using latest
gcc.

In some rare cases, were video decoding takes about 100% of cpu time,
audio pre-decoding may help you.
mencoder file.avi -o file_.avi -ovc copy -oac pcm -idx
then play file_.avi.

In similar system, but with p166mmx and s3 virge, I am able to play
(without framedropping) files such as
640x360, 600kbit/s, 24 fps
640x480, 1.1mbit/s, 15 fps
320x240, 1.3mbit/s, 30 fps
512x384, 1.1mbit/s, 24 fps
(all divx)
and 480x480 mpeg2s (svcd profile) with 3-4mbit/s bitrate (with small
3-10% framedrop, which isn't visible)

If you have questions, ask, but do it fast - in a week or two I'm buying
new system, and this one will never be used to play video anymore... ;)

-- 

Vladimir