How stable is MediaPortal (1 Viewer)

[morphjk]

I am looking at installing MediaPortal on my first ever HTPC and from what I have read on some other sites some people are complaining of MediaPortal being unstable when compared to MCE 2005.

What do people think? I really do like the look of MediaPortal and if it is stable and easy for the wife to use then I will be happy .

 

[Bram]

MediaPortal is pretty much rock solid. I've been using the SVN (nightly builds) for over two years now. Even these releases, which may be interpreted as Alpha's I think, almost never cause problems. Sometimes a small bug comes up, but never anything crucial. MediaPortal has many,...many more features then MCE2005 an MCE Vista. The only things that top MediaPortal in the MCE's is CD/DVD burning support and the interface animation-capabilities. All other stuff that they haven't even thought of in MCE is there. If you have any problem you can report it and in most cases it will be fixed in no time. Keep in mind that using the BlueTwo (default) skin with the SVN versions is the best choice if you want optimal stability. The custom skins get updated every once in a while. I use the PMIII skin mycelf which is updated regularly and looks good bot on my widescreen TV and my 4:3 15'' tft.

I say, give it shot. I know you will like it

 

[morphjk]

What is SVN? Is there a particular version I should download?

 

[FlipGer]

Hi,

currently I am using 0.2.2.0 final, which is very stable. I have no problem running MP over weeks of vacation.

Flip.

 

[EasyTargeT]

What is SVN? Is there a particular version I should download?

SVNs are nightly builds, if you're new to Media Portal I would recommend you to stick to the latest stable build, 0.2.2.0 for the moment.
I've been running that since it was released and never had any problems.
If you are careful when setting MP up, and use skins that are uptodate you should never have any problems.

 

[morphjk]

What is SVN? Is there a particular version I should download?

SVNs are nightly builds, if you're new to Media Portal I would recommend you to stick to the latest stable build, 0.2.2.0 for the moment.
I've been running that since it was released and never had any problems.
If you are careful when setting MP up, and use skins that are uptodate you should never have any problems.

This sounding good. I just wish I had my HTPC right now.

 

[morphjk]

Is MediaPortal resource hungry?

 

[bindalf]

i have some problems with tv.. but all in all its more stable then mce05 but still nothing for my girlfriend.

 

[morphjk]

i have some problems with tv.. but all in all its more stable then mce05 but still nothing for my girlfriend.

Is it big problems with the TV. So your girlfriend can use it?

 

[GadgetMan]

Hey there morphjk.

My wife enjoys it somewhat. She was relunctant at first, but is warming up to it.

The features that I think she likes are:
- Electronic Program Guide (EPG), allowing you to pick a show, and hit record.
- Watching recorded TV easy, and allowing to jump forward 30secs, 1 min, etc
- Music playing. Allow to play all songs from an artist, album, etc.
- Viewing pictures from our Dig camera
- Playing backed up DVDs for our son's want to watch DVDs. It's easy, and no fetching DVDs all the time.

The feature I'm looking forward to most, is the inclusion of commercial skipping.
An application called comskip, will look for ads using different techniques, and creates a file containing the blocks of the ads.
Soon (I hear), MP will read these files (when generated for a recorded program), and allow you to skip the commercials, leaving the original recording intact.

I'm currently trying comskip out with different settings to get it to work well with Aussie TV.