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Kodi Beta version discussion thread


im85288

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elcabong

I think you may be wrong about the Pi not being a good enough platform, it is in essance an ipad. The issue is the bloatware that has been built into XBMC.

 

I may not be a programmer but I am well versed in computers and what works.

 

Its not about 'proving you wrong' mate, its about putting our heads together and trying to find a viable way to make things work. Surely this is whole reason you became a programmer in the first place? The fun in trying to build and compile something to achieve a particular goal. Do you think Steve Jobs and Bill gates would have got where they are today if they had the attitude 'it will take too long and quite frankly I cant be bothered'? 

 

 

The Pi is far from an ideal piece of hardware for running xbmc, especially when using a remote library/database.  It has an outdated, slower version of Python, which is what xbmc/kodi scripts use.  By your iPad comment, i assume you mean the iPad 1.  which was ok when it first came out, but is now very underpowered when compared to similarly priced new hardware.  This is the same as the Pi, you cannot expect it will perform the same as 100$ hardware, or anywhere close to $200+ hardware.

 

I agree with your statement about trying to build something to achieve a particular goal, but this is a free, open source project.  Things will get done if the DEVELOPERS feel it is needed.  Currently, there are no developers who use a raspberry pi for anything other than basic testing.  We know the limits of the Pi, and are optimizing the code to make it work better on less powerful devices, but the Pi will never be a device that works perfectly.  it just doesnt have the horsepower.  If you feel it could be better, then start programming to make it better and submit a pull request, or pay someone to do it.  People working for free can only take so many requests that arent inline with their own goals.  That is why you will never see some features in xbmc/Kodi, and find some that are there but you feel shouldnt be.  Its because someone wanted them, and worked on the code to do it, then submitted a pull request to get it into the main code base.

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b0dyr0ck2006

The Pi is far from an ideal piece of hardware for running xbmc, especially when using a remote library/database.  It has an outdated, slower version of Python, which is what xbmc/kodi scripts use.  By your iPad comment, i assume you mean the iPad 1.  which was ok when it first came out, but is now very underpowered when compared to similarly priced new hardware.  This is the same as the Pi, you cannot expect it will perform the same as 100$ hardware, or anywhere close to $200+ hardware.

 

I agree with your statement about trying to build something to achieve a particular goal, but this is a free, open source project.  Things will get done if the DEVELOPERS feel it is needed.  Currently, there are no developers who use a raspberry pi for anything other than basic testing.  We know the limits of the Pi, and are optimizing the code to make it work better on less powerful devices, but the Pi will never be a device that works perfectly.  it just doesnt have the horsepower.  If you feel it could be better, then start programming to make it better and submit a pull request, or pay someone to do it.  People working for free can only take so many requests that arent inline with their own goals.  That is why you will never see some features in xbmc/Kodi, and find some that are there but you feel shouldnt be.  Its because someone wanted them, and worked on the code to do it, then submitted a pull request to get it into the main code base.

 

And this is a perfect response, Thank you for taking the time for a quick explanation. I understand the pi is well underpowered and am very impressed it works as it does. When you say it has an outdated version of Python, is this updatable? 

 

Yes of course I mean the slower/older ipads  :D  but they are a proof of concept alone that shows what can be done with an Arm chip and low ram. I was using this as an example to show that the pi shouldnt be passed over. As I mentioned earlier, if it was my choice I would build a full HTPC but this isnt what is wanted. I could even plug an old iphone/ipod touch into the system and run Airplay but its still not the same. The options are plentiful but I feel that MBT is the best option, if I can get the raspberry Pi to run without errors (it doesnt have to be fast - it never will be) then we have a perfect setup.

 

I am surprised that the Pi hasn't had more interest really, is it just because of the hardware limitations that have held it back?

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b0dyr0ck2006

Okay, I am not going to respond any more to the 'I am not a programmer, but if I was ...' line of this thread any more as it is not fruitful.

 

Movie Info doesn't refresh because it is a separate window from the listing window.  It is full screen though, so there is know way for the users to be able to tell that subtle difference.

 

xnappo

 

What Seems to be happening is I click from Movie List -> Movie info, Then back out from the Movie info -> Movie List is doesnt display the movie title list again, I have to blind backup to the main screen. This is what is shown at the end of the video before it finishes.

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elcabong

does it not show the list again, even after waiting for a few minutes?  it should take about the same amount of time to load the movies list coming from the main menu as it does going back from an info screen or after video playback.  This can seem like an eternity on slower devices tho.

 

Im not sure if the Python can be updated, or if the Pi just processes Python slower for some reason.  Id have to dig up the thread on here or xbmc/kodi forum, cant find now.

 

I would treat the Pi like a chromecast (and it should be thought of as a chromecast competitor, not full xbmc/kodi mediacenter).  I would use a smartphone/tablet and the mediabrowser web interface to choose what i want, then send it to the Pi.  This should result in more desired performance, but you dont get the nice GUI feel of scrolling through content on the tv.  The cheapest/minimal spec device i would use for actually viewing through the GUI would be something like the amazon fire tv (not stick, the full one).  I have 1 in my bedroom, and while it still takes a few extra seconds to load my movies list and full tv section compared to my full htpc, it is 5x-10x times faster than the Pi using the interface and can be had for less than 100$ (at least in the US), is fanless/silent, and comes with a remote.

 

The only way to really make the Pi faster is to use a very basic skin and strip a lot of the info out of the requests that give xbmc/kodi its rich experience.  In my eyes, the speed improvements that are being worked on now for xbmb3c are mainly for devices (currently) in the 60-100$ range, and if there are benefits for the Pi, its more of a happy accident as the user experience will never be there on Pi IMO.

 

Not that im trying to push people away who use the Pi, just want to set their expectations accordingly.  The Pi was designed to be a great, cheap little device with a wide range of functions, and proved to be a great proof of concept for cheap computing applications.  But it is aging now, and much faster devices are not that much more expensive.  It will still probably be another year or two before we see bullet proof sub 90-100$ devices that can run xbmc/kodi seamlessly and to its full capability.

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b0dyr0ck2006

It is people like you that prove forums can be so very helpful. I am more than happy to tinker and mod to try and achieve what I want, it is what I have always done. I dont expect anyone to do the legwork for me but it is great to get some decent feedback or suggestions. It takes a moment to pass an idea and elcabong proves this perfectly again. Perhaps others could take note.....

 

I think the Pi is a clever bit of kit for the size of it and the price, im not sure Python is the way to go but that is just personal. To me it is the same as all the other usb plug in devices such as the chromecast but at the same time should perform ok. 

 

I have left it for about half an hour and nothing, i have to actually back out right to the main screen.

 

If you can find that thread it would be great, I cant seem to find much info here and requests get ignored or just get unhelpful comments left.

 

So currently the options are:

  • use a basic skin and native XBMC and SMB share over the network, install trakt and sync it with MBT
  • use XBMB3C and browse using the web interface on a device
  • learn how to code and build my own system
  • bin the £60 i have spent and buy something else
  • build a dedicated HTPC
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xnappo

Now you've got it :)

 

There is no option to use XBMC other than Python, and Pi sucks at python:

 

http://trouch.com/2013/01/12/raspberry-pi-benchmark/

 

No one here has the time to develop a native solution - as you said we would need a college student or someone with loads of time on their hands.

 

Still curious about 'Fast Movies' though !

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dark_slayer

It's been mentioned a few times here, so I thought it might be worth throwing in my own experience

 

The FireTV is not a good platform for XBMB3C either in my experience. For my library, "All Movies" takes over 100s to load, and I don't recall anyone else seeing it do much faster. Tried both XBMC and SPMC. It's more than manageable if you use im85288's 1080XF skin and just run everything from the homescreen widgets without entering your whole movies library, but even those that long for the FTV as a low power (3W during playback ;) ) HTPC replacement will be better served performance wise by the upcoming amazon app

 

I do wonder how the bay-trail platform performs under this architecture? I would eventually like to sell of my existing OE htpc for a Nexus player for it's OEM built-in cast support and power-consumption, behind the tv placement options, etc. It could very well perform poorly in this environment as well

 

So far the stuff I have that does well is just desktop class intel processors and my rMBP, but to be fair the only arm stuff I've tested is the old N7 (sucky wifi and slow storage to begin with), my G2 and a FireTV. The FireTV is wired but the G2 is on my dedicated 5G AC band ~ the performance is about the same for both - i.e always >60s to enter all movies. Too much time for me to seriously consider as an htpc except for a scenario that I'd only use "recents", "next up", and "in progress"

 

TL;DR version ~ I've not found an arm device that kodi/mb3 runs very well

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xnappo

Have you tried 'Fast Movies' in the beta combined with the current server beta? Should be at least twice as fast, hopefully more. This weekend I should get it applicable to large user nodes too.

 

You should also try turning some services off as well as 'show indicators'.

Edited by xnappo
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dark_slayer

Yeah show indicators, plot, and people turned off every time. Already on the beta server, but not Dev

 

Fast Movies didn't work too reliably, but 30 seconds would still be 20~some odd seconds too much for me to consider as a daily driver

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xnappo

Can you do some testing with the very latest 'Fast Movies' and maybe send a profile?

 

Unlike the Pi, I think there is hope for FireTV - need to see where it is spending time.

 

I am not interested in 'All Movies' though, only fast movies.  Also make sure to clear out your 'userdata/plugin.video.xbmb3c/cache' directory or else it will still be parsing a lot of data.

 

xnappo

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dark_slayer

 

 

Can you do some testing with the very latest 'Fast Movies' and maybe send a profile?

 

Unlike the Pi, I think there is hope for FireTV - need to see where it is spending time

Sure thing. I'll check it out before I go out of town hopefully. Enable performance profiling?

 

I'll log it for you soon. When you uninstall apks on the fire I think you have to pass a -k at the end of adb to keep data, so I'll just reinstall

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well now that the stable server release is out, everyone has access to the api performance improvements. so hopefully we hear good news on the pi/fire fronts

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Angelblue05

Hey guys, @@im85288 and @@xnappo, I'm getting this error with the latest version 0.9.737

 

I'm getting this error as soon as I boot XBMC. It's preventing MediaBrowser Kodi from loading.

10:58:58 T:16928  NOTICE: XBMB3C DownloadUtils -> Looking for user name: AngelnDaniel
10:58:58 T:16928   ERROR: EXCEPTION Thrown (PythonToCppException) : -->Python callback/script returned the following error<--
                                             - NOTE: IGNORING THIS CAN LEAD TO MEMORY LEAKS!
                                            Error Type: <type 'exceptions.AttributeError'>
                                            Error Contents: 'str' object has no attribute 'hexdigest'
                                            Traceback (most recent call last):
                                              File "C:\Users\Corruption\AppData\Roaming\XBMC\addons\plugin.video.xbmb3c\default.py", line 39, in <module>
                                                MainModule.MainEntryPoint()
                                              File "C:\Users\Corruption\AppData\Roaming\XBMC\addons\plugin.video.xbmb3c\resources\lib\MainModule.py", line 1496, in MainEntryPoint
                                                skin()
                                              File "C:\Users\Corruption\AppData\Roaming\XBMC\addons\plugin.video.xbmb3c\resources\lib\MainModule.py", line 499, in skin
                                                allSections = getCollections(getDetailsString())
                                              File "C:\Users\Corruption\AppData\Roaming\XBMC\addons\plugin.video.xbmb3c\resources\lib\MainModule.py", line 188, in getCollections
                                                userid = downloadUtils.getUserId()
                                              File "C:\Users\Corruption\AppData\Roaming\XBMC\addons\plugin.video.xbmb3c\resources\lib\DownloadUtils.py", line 59, in getUserId
                                                authOk = self.authenticate()
                                              File "C:\Users\Corruption\AppData\Roaming\XBMC\addons\plugin.video.xbmb3c\resources\lib\DownloadUtils.py", line 112, in authenticate
                                                messageData = "username=" + self.addonSettings.getSetting('username') + "&password=" + sha1.hexdigest()
                                            AttributeError: 'str' object has no attribute 'hexdigest'
                                            -->End of Python script error report<--
Edited by Angelblue05
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xnappo

If you add a password to your account you will be back up and running.  It is an easy fix, but can't do it right now

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im85288

Yeah just wait an hour or so, I'll put a fix up in a bit.

 

Edit - 0.9.738 is up for testing

Edited by im85288
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Angelblue05

@@im85288, am I annoying or what? ;) Here's another error that happened just now, after I switched profile (I'm not sure if it's related.) This happens when connecting to a remote server (HTTP). I can still see some of the content, but I can't enter them, it throws the error. It also throws other errors when backing out of menus. When I connect locally to my server, everything seems normal.

00:19:12 T:6428  NOTICE: HTTP response error: 500 NullReferenceException
00:19:12 T:6428  NOTICE: Previous line repeats 1 times.
00:19:12 T:6428   ERROR: EXCEPTION Thrown (PythonToCppException) : -->Python callback/script returned the following error<--
                                             - NOTE: IGNORING THIS CAN LEAD TO MEMORY LEAKS!
                                            Error Type: <type 'exceptions.ValueError'>
                                            Error Contents: No JSON object could be decoded
                                            Traceback (most recent call last):
                                              File "C:\Users\Corruption\AppData\Roaming\XBMC\addons\plugin.video.xbmb3c\default.py", line 39, in <module>
                                                MainModule.MainEntryPoint()
                                              File "C:\Users\Corruption\AppData\Roaming\XBMC\addons\plugin.video.xbmb3c\resources\lib\MainModule.py", line 1496, in MainEntryPoint
                                                skin()
                                              File "C:\Users\Corruption\AppData\Roaming\XBMC\addons\plugin.video.xbmb3c\resources\lib\MainModule.py", line 499, in skin
                                                allSections = getCollections(getDetailsString())
                                              File "C:\Users\Corruption\AppData\Roaming\XBMC\addons\plugin.video.xbmb3c\resources\lib\MainModule.py", line 201, in getCollections
                                                result = json.loads(jsonData)
                                              File "C:\Program Files (x86)\XBMC\system\python\Lib\json\__init__.py", line 338, in loads
                                                return _default_decoder.decode(s)
                                              File "C:\Program Files (x86)\XBMC\system\python\Lib\json\decoder.py", line 365, in decode
                                                obj, end = self.raw_decode(s, idx=_w(s, 0).end())
                                              File "C:\Program Files (x86)\XBMC\system\python\Lib\json\decoder.py", line 383, in raw_decode
                                                raise ValueError("No JSON object could be decoded")
                                            ValueError: No JSON object could be decoded
                                            -->End of Python script error report<--

What I've tried:  I have deleted the cache file from XBMC addon_data to make sure. There are more errors, different from the one directly mentioned in this post, so I've attached the MBKodi debug log.

Edited by Angelblue05
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Angelblue05

I'll give it a try, waiting for the new version to appear :)

 

@@im85288, you did it again! It's fixed, great work! Thank you so much. Just out of curiosity, what was the problem? It was quite odd....

Edited by Angelblue05
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im85288

I'll give it a try, waiting for the new version to appear :)

 

@@im85288, you did it again! It's fixed, great work! Thank you so much. Just out of curiosity, what was the problem? It was quite odd....

 

Great! It is a problem we have in a few places where the settings are not being updated once changed...so in this case the ip address was changed but not picked up correctly, it was a similar problem with the user profile switching. 

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Angelblue05

I've reported any bugs I found. Keep up the great work guys!

 

Feature request

I am connected to my brother's remote server via Kodi. The way I have it set up is with HTTP enabled and a reduced streaming speed. Transcoding the content is the best way to have it, for a smooth playback. Is there a way we could be able to select the audio language before starting the playback. Sometimes, some shows have multiple audio tracks and the default is not always in English. Since it's transcoding, there's no way to change the language.

 

I don't know if it's possible, but it would be great to have this little option available. Is there a current workaround I'm missing, perhaps?

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Angelblue05

Crap, @@im85288 and @@xnappo, I'm still getting the null exception and then I'm unable to play anything until I reboot XBMC. :( It happens when I switch profile with different servers. I've deleted cache file again, just to be safe. Please check my attached log to see what's going on. It seems you partially fixed the error.

02:24:32 T:8320  NOTICE: XBMB3C DownloadUtils -> DOWNLOAD_URL = 192.168.0.190:8096/mediabrowser/Users/a1bb43b93687d6361173a92774062f64/Items/Root?format=json
02:24:32 T:8320  NOTICE: XBMB3C DownloadUtils -> DownloadUtils -> Returning saved UserID : a1bb43b93687d6361173a92774062f64UserName: AngelnDaniel
02:24:32 T:8320  NOTICE: XBMB3C DownloadUtils -> DownloadUtils -> Returning saved AccessToken for user : AngelnDaniel token: 8f0df9cfb15f4dbd80f0032cf39c53ad
02:24:32 T:8320  NOTICE: XBMB3C DownloadUtils -> Authentication Header : {'Accept-Charset': 'UTF-8,*', 'Accept-encoding': 'gzip', 'Authorization': 'MediaBrowser UserId="a1bb43b93687d6361173a92774062f64",Client="XBMC",Device="XBMC",DeviceId="D736AAF672FA494EA4A020CC9E2948BE",Version="0.9.739"', 'X-MediaBrowser-Token': '8f0df9cfb15f4dbd80f0032cf39c53ad'}
02:24:32 T:8320  NOTICE: XBMB3C DownloadUtils -> HEADERS : {'Accept-Charset': 'UTF-8,*', 'Accept-encoding': 'gzip', 'Authorization': 'MediaBrowser UserId="a1bb43b93687d6361173a92774062f64",Client="XBMC",Device="XBMC",DeviceId="D736AAF672FA494EA4A020CC9E2948BE",Version="0.9.739"', 'X-MediaBrowser-Token': '8f0df9cfb15f4dbd80f0032cf39c53ad'}
02:24:32 T:16040  NOTICE: XBMB3C LoadMenuOptionsThread -> LoadMenuOptionsThread -> Loading menu items from : C:\Users\Corruption\AppData\Roaming\XBMC\userdata\favourites.xml
02:24:32 T:16040  NOTICE: XBMB3C LoadMenuOptionsThread -> LoadMenuOptionsThread -> Error Parsing favourites.xml : [Errno 2] No such file or directory: 'C:\\Users\\Corruption\\AppData\\Roaming\\XBMC\\userdata\\favourites.xml'
02:24:32 T:8320  NOTICE: HTTP response error: 500 NullReferenceException
02:24:32 T:8320  NOTICE: Previous line repeats 1 times.
02:24:32 T:8320   ERROR: EXCEPTION Thrown (PythonToCppException) : -->Python callback/script returned the following error<--
                                             - NOTE: IGNORING THIS CAN LEAD TO MEMORY LEAKS!
                                            Error Type: <type 'exceptions.ValueError'>
                                            Error Contents: No JSON object could be decoded
                                            Traceback (most recent call last):
                                              File "C:\Users\Corruption\AppData\Roaming\XBMC\addons\plugin.video.xbmb3c\default.py", line 39, in <module>
                                                MainModule.MainEntryPoint()
                                              File "C:\Users\Corruption\AppData\Roaming\XBMC\addons\plugin.video.xbmb3c\resources\lib\MainModule.py", line 1496, in MainEntryPoint
                                                skin()
                                              File "C:\Users\Corruption\AppData\Roaming\XBMC\addons\plugin.video.xbmb3c\resources\lib\MainModule.py", line 499, in skin
                                                allSections = getCollections(getDetailsString())
                                              File "C:\Users\Corruption\AppData\Roaming\XBMC\addons\plugin.video.xbmb3c\resources\lib\MainModule.py", line 201, in getCollections
                                                result = json.loads(jsonData)
                                              File "C:\Program Files (x86)\XBMC\system\python\Lib\json\__init__.py", line 338, in loads
                                                return _default_decoder.decode(s)
                                              File "C:\Program Files (x86)\XBMC\system\python\Lib\json\decoder.py", line 365, in decode
                                                obj, end = self.raw_decode(s, idx=_w(s, 0).end())
                                              File "C:\Program Files (x86)\XBMC\system\python\Lib\json\decoder.py", line 383, in raw_decode
                                                raise ValueError("No JSON object could be decoded")
                                            ValueError: No JSON object could be decoded
                                            -->End of Python script error report<-- 

Edit: I don't know if this helps, but in my current log, the HTTP seems to be missing from this line (right before the error pops). It's only happening after the profile switch to my local server. Switching to the remote server doesn't cause the error. That's why I think you partially fixed the problem.

02:24:32 T:8320 NOTICE: XBMB3C DownloadUtils -> DOWNLOAD_URL = 192.168.0.190:8096/mediabrowser/Users/a1bb43b93687d6361173a92774062f64/Items/Root?format=json
Edited by Angelblue05
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Angelblue05

The above post problem is still happening. Any ideas? I just don't want this error to slip into the stable version :(

 

Also, "Remove from favorites" doesn't seem to work anymore. When adding to favorites, it doesn't become remove from favorites. This used to work in previous version.

Edited by Angelblue05
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im85288

Sorry I haven't had time to look into it, too busy being Santa! If no one else solves it I'll get back to it in a few days.

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