Crash loading Skin - improper Fonts & Graphics Rendering (1 Viewer)

[Dadeo]

TV-Server Version: Inbuilt
MediaPortal Version: 1.0
MediaPortal Skin: PureVision, Blue3++
Windows Version: Vista Ultimate 32 bit SP1
CPU Type: Intel Core2Duo 2.4GHz E6600
HDD: Seagate 500GB, 300GB, 250GB
Memory: Kingston 2GB 1067 Mhz
Motherboard: Intel DG965WHMKR
Video Card: Nvidia 8600 GTS
Video Card Driver: 178.24
Sound Card: Sigmatel 7.1
Sound Card Driver: Intel IDT 6.10.5713.7
1. TV Card: Hauppauge WinTV PVR 150 MCE kit
1. TV Card Type: Analog
1. TV Card Driver: 2.0.48.25037
MPEG2 Video Codec: MPG2 MPV
MPEG2 Audio Codec: Klite Codec Pack 434 Full
h.264 Video Codec: FFDshow
Cooling: CoolerMaster
Power Supply: CoolerMaster 600W
Remote: MCE R6
TV: Aiwa CT202 20"
TV - HTPC Connection: Composite
Monitor - Samsung 19" 940B

When I load a skin with font48 start=0 and end=1536, MP 1.0 final (not SVN) crashes on my 1280x1024 computer screen. See the attached logs. This occurs in any 4:3 skin, including Blue3, if I alter font48.

There is no problem in XP Pro SP2 (MP 0.2.3 or 1.0). There is no problem in Vista using my 4:3 Pal TV (resolution of 720x576), only on my computer monitor.

The first time I load the skin, and the cache is created, MP USUALLY crashes, but not always. When it crashes, the fonts cache only shows fonts up to font48 as it crashes trying to render the font. Sometimes it does not crash, instead it renders font48 as font48_78.dds. Font48 then displays correctly, and will continue to, until I switch to my TV and back.

When I load the skin again, MP does not crash, and font48 appears in the Cache as font48_85.dds. However, the font does not display correctly on my screen. It becomes streaked white lines (see attached screenshot).

When I switch between my TV monitor and my computer screen, additional fonts are added to the cache for the different screen size. When I return to my computer monitor, with the higher resolution, font48 MAY change to display correctly, or if it was before, to displaying incorrectly, although this behaviour is inconsistent.

In addition, there are minor variations in the size and placement of elements on the screen. Most noticeably rating stars, but also, to a lesser degree, textures (boxes) and even images and video overlays. Sometimes, pictures or music cover art do not display in the preview window. However, when font48 displays correctly, then they do.

At present I can operate perfectly on my TV screen, but I would like to be able to use my computer monitor sometimes!

 

[infinite.loop]

Thanks for reporting!
I have forwarded your report to our developers. Hopefully they can take a look soon.

 

[joz]

I was wondering how this was going? Any explanation or indication?

 

[tourettes]

-2147024882 (E_OUTOFMEMORY)

GPU runs out of memory. Try some other skin that has less texture memory requirements. Also there is related Mantis memory requirement optimization:

0001969: Default skin has huge performance issue with 128MB GPUs - MediaPortal Bugtracker

 

[Dadeo]

Tourettes, thanks for the update and submitting the bugreport. However I just want to point out that my graphics card has 256MB memory so it really should not be having these issues. Perhaps you could update the bugreport (i.e that it is not just 128MB GPUs). I should be able to support up to 8 texture packets with my card, but I cannot if I use large fonts (i.e. font 48)

Can you explain why I am running out of memory on Vista but not on XP using the exact same hardware, version of MP and Skin?

I can make the skin work, so I don't need to try other skins. What I want is some clear documentation on the limitations of using graphics and large text fonts in MP! There is documentation regarding the number of packet textures (i.e about 32MB per pack) but nowhere can I find anything that says that using large fonts also affects the memory limitations or how much memory using large fonts requires.

If it is possible it would be helpful to specify a more accurate memory limitation overall. I mean not just "about 32MB per pack" Can you state what the overall limitation is for all texture packs and for processing fonts? For example, if there are 8 texture packs they could be of varying sizes so I would think they are each using a different amount of memory. Currently Blue3 default skin requires 9.26MB on disk. Is there a correlation between the size of the texture packs and the amount of memory used?

Sorry if I am asking dumb questions but this stuff is pretty esoteric for me!

 

[tourettes]

OnVista, AERO itself uses some part of the GPU memory.

What comes to the larger fonts, they need larger textures to be build into GPU memory that is why we cannot specify any exact GPU memory requirement. Also using different skin or plugins have different GPU memory requirements, so its case by case if there is enough memory or not.

 

[tourettes]

Currently Blue3 default skin requires 9.26MB on disk. Is there a correlation between the size of the texture packs and the amount of memory used?

There is no relation between size on disk and in texture memory.

 

[infinite.loop]

Dadeo
based on your log it seems that you are using some kind of modified Blue3(3) skin.

2009-01-13 03:36:38.357411 [Info.][MPMain]:   Load fonts from C:\Program Files\Team MediaPortal\MediaPortal\Skin\Test\fonts.xml

Does this also happen when you just use the original B3(w) skin?

i guess it does not.

So whatever you did to the skin, causes that your gpu memory gets full.

 

[tourettes]

So whatever you did to the skin, causes that your gpu memory gets full.

...bigger fonts

 

[Dadeo]

Chris, yes it does happen using Blue3 if I modify the fonts.xml to use the full font 48 for headers even without changing any other fonts or using larger fonts in the skin! However, it does not happen as often as with the skin I am using (now called aMPed). When I get a chance I'll try testing by disabling various plugins to see if there is a particular plugin using a lot of memory. I have noticed some variation depending on what other programs I have loaded on my system whenever the cache is being updated or created.

tourettes - thanks very much that info is very helpful. I did try turning Aero off in Vista (suspecting it was using GPU memory) but it did not help as it should have, which mystifies me! One thing that did help (a lot!) was cleaning up the graphics using PNGGauntlet! I do have a lot of plugins as well, so that may explain some of my difficulties.

I'd just like to clarify a couple of points - everything you are referring to is regarding GPU memory? Would increasing system memory help? By 'everything' I mean the larger fonts, full font 48 for headers, textures, plugins.

Also, when you said "larger fonts, they need larger textures to be build into GPU memory." I am assuming you mean the dds and dds.bxml files in the fonts folder in Cache, not the packedgfx...png files. Is that right? When I say textures I mean the packedgfx...png files not the fonts (sorry if my terminology is inaccurate). I never thought of the fonts as textures but perhaps they are from MP's point of view.

Thanks guys for helping out with this. I always seem to end up pushing the limits!

P.S. Be assured I would never post a bug report unless I could duplicate the problem in the default skins!