<div class="gE iv gt">Seems
interesting enough, I'd have to become a bit more familiar with the
problem to fully understand it but it seems odd that a program of any
known worth would have such a blatant bug, but sure, if it seems as
straight forward as it sounds I'd be interested in helping.</div><div class="gmail_quote"><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="border-left: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); margin: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.8ex; padding-left: 1ex;">
<div><div></div><div class="h5"><br>
<br><div class="gmail_quote">On Fri, Jan 1, 2010 at 11:34 AM, Richard Houser <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:rick@divinesymphony.net" target="_blank">rick@divinesymphony.net</a>></span> wrote:<br><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="border-left: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); margin: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.8ex; padding-left: 1ex;">
The only really obvious question I see: "Is XBMC the right tool for<br>
the job?" You may be better off either using another software (ex.<br>
MythTV) adding a translation layer (batch conversion process, fuse<br>
decompression layer, etc.) Aside from that, if the project is written<br>
in Python, you should stick to that unless there is an explicit reason<br>
that prevents that (ex. performance issues or hardware acceleration<br>
require C libraries, etc.). It's easier for a semi-decent programmer<br>
to learn a new language than it is to try to bolt something that<br>
doesn't fit on via a known language.<br>
<div><div></div><div><br>
On Fri, Jan 1, 2010 at 8:00 AM, vanek <<a href="mailto:vanek@acd.net" target="_blank">vanek@acd.net</a>> wrote:<br>
> Steven Sayers wrote:<br>
>><br>
>> I've been studying programming quite a lot lately and I was wondering if<br>
>> there were any programming projects any of you were engaged in that I could<br>
>> assist with, I'm most familiar with java.<br>
>><br>
>><br>
>> _______________________________________________<br>
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>><br>
><br>
> Hi Steven,<br>
><br>
> My name is Lou and I was wondering whether you found another open-source<br>
> commitment, and whether you are still available. If you haven't found<br>
> anything interesting yet, please give the following all the consideration<br>
> you think it deserves. I know that I may have caught you at a bad time, and<br>
> you may still be pukin' your guts out over the porcelain alter, but after<br>
> you get done doing that, if you still feel up to it, I may have the second<br>
> most fun thing to do. OK, maybe not the second-most, but the 11th-most: an<br>
> open-source patch to XBMC! Yes, that's right, one of the coolest open-source<br>
> projects on the planet is in need of a patch, and you have been chosen to<br>
> partake in this wondrous experience, to be remembered by legions, revered by<br>
> all, and hailed by 10 or so geeks.<br>
><br>
> Have I got your attention? Good. But if you need to take a moment and go<br>
> look to see if you still have that bottle of Pepto-Bismol, I can wait.<br>
><br>
> Here's teh skinny: right now XBMC recognizes about 10% of my TV and movie<br>
> files, and I'd like that to be closer to 100%. I know there are stupid<br>
> work-arounds to get XBMC to recognize them all, but, like I said, they're<br>
> stupid. As far as I know, you have to organize your files carefully in<br>
> separate, carefully-labeled directories in order to give the scraper enough<br>
> information to do its job. People shouldn't have to expend effort that a<br>
> computer should be able to manage itself. I think you should be able to<br>
> place all your video files in one directory and let XBMC figure out what<br>
> they are. I'm trying to simplify life, not just for me but for anybody who<br>
> uses the program. It appears to be the one sticking point for new users when<br>
> they first install XBMC.<br>
><br>
> I've found a program called 'TVRenamer' that mitigates a small portion of<br>
> the problem, but it is by no means a total solution. The program renames<br>
> video files so that the scraper recognizes their corresponding<br>
> meta-information better.<br>
><br>
> I'm estimating this patch/project will take somewhere between 0-1000 lines<br>
> of code. The reason why I say "0" lines of code is because I haven't fully<br>
> researched the problem and I may not understand it. I'm new to XBMC so I may<br>
> be overlooking something. (If you've used XBMC before maybe you can clue me<br>
> in.) It's better to solve a problem with no code if that option is<br>
> available.<br>
><br>
> The reason why I know this project has legs is because Boxee is able to do<br>
> this, and Boxee is built on top of XBMC.<br>
><br>
> You mention you know Java. The languages I was planning on using were either<br>
> Ruby or Python. I know Ruby better than Python, but XBMC is written in<br>
> Python so that's the "native" language that should probably be used. I've<br>
> also considered Java, but I ranked Java as the 92nd best language to use on<br>
> a project of this type. (It's not surprising that Java consistently ranks<br>
> near the bottom of my lists.) If you're up to learning something new, you<br>
> can contribute. I'm not a code purist; I just like to get something done. I<br>
> suck at Python myself but I've never let that stop me. What's the worse that<br>
> could happen?<br>
><br>
> The database you would be interacting with is sqlite3 (that's what XBMC<br>
> uses). It's a very simple, undemanding database. I've found a description of<br>
> all the tables that XBMC uses. Some database spelunking would be required.<br>
> You would also be required to install the coolest open-source program on<br>
> your computer and watch movies to test the program. It's just one of the<br>
> burdens of being an open-source developer. We learn to live with it.<br>
><br>
> BTW, if anybody here thinks I'm overlooking something obvious, please speak<br>
> up. Like I said, I'm new to XBMC, but I have to scratch this itch.<br>
><br>
> Thanks for listening and I hope to hear back,<br>
> Lou Vanek<br>
><br>
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><br>
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</div></div></blockquote></div><br>
</div></div></blockquote></div><br>