[MPlayer-users] Re: can't use dual core

[SciFi]

On Thu, 19 Apr 2007 15:10:52 -0600, Loren Merritt wrote:
> On Thu, 19 Apr 2007, Henry Garcia wrote:
>> On 4/19/07, Vladimir Mosgalin <mosgalin at vm10124.spb.edu> wrote:
>>> On 2007.04.19 at 13:16:29 -0400, Henry Garcia wrote next:
>>> 
>>>> -lavdopts threads=2
>>>>
>>>> That works for decoding with lavc on linux. Helps a little, not much.
>>> 
>>> Are you sure it ever helps at all? It doesn't seem that to me, at
>>> least when decoding h264 and mpeg4. Haven't tested wmv3 and mpeg2, but
>>> I doubt anything will change.
>>
>> Maybe it's my imagination. I feel better though. Actually, using  the 
>> table of processess  (top) from a console, I made a few comparisons,
>> and it seems to cut down the processor usage about 5 - 6 % that's
>> decoding an ffmpeg4 file. But it shows up more on my system because I'm
>> using 'slower' PIII 800 Mhz processors.
> 
> The only decoders that support -lavdopts threads are mpeg1 and mpeg2.
> All others silently ignore it.
> 
> --Loren Merritt

Does anyone know of any plans to add thread support to
h264/xvid/mpeg4 DEcoding?  The more complex codecs could use the
extra boost.  Apparently this is what's giving a big edge in
QuickTime Player and other closed software for the time being.  Using
mplayer or vlc or xine or other open projects, my Dual G5 2.7GHz here
is not playing very well the hi-def h264 .ts files coming from Europe
(and soon from the U.S., it's only time).  Since vlc houses the x264
project, you'd think they would be ahead in this area.  ;)  This Dual
G5 machine is well within Apple's specs for HDTV, but we know Apple
has hidden knowledge that gives their apps an edge anyway ... so I'm
seeing this as an issue with the open projects, we really need to get
up-to-par with "them".  ;)  (yes I've tried all kinds of lavdopt's
skip options)

What's more, Apple won't directly support .ts files, so we need to
transcode them to the MPEG-PS container format.  Thing is we want to
do this in a lossless manner, so transcode is the proper term (not
talking about the project named thus).  We don't want to re-compress
.ts files, this would certainly ruin the hi-def quality, we just want
to demux then remux into -PS (I think that's the way to say it ;) ). 
Project-X has not been updated in a year(!), it doesn't see the h264
tracks at all, so that's out.  Streamclip locks up tight with any
h264 tracks (no matter the container), so that's out also (yes I've
written the author).  I don't think transcode-the-project has been
updated in this manner either.

Is there any way we can do this in meantime while trying to work on
thread support for h264/xvid/etc., please?

Thanks.   :)