s/w - based TV cards (1 Viewer)

[Taipan]

Well said Khris - I liked you parting thought.... :lol:

Just one more comment:-

You disable SW support and you will probably cut off about 50% of your user base.

Most of the users of MP have hardware analog TV cards or DVB cards, so the number of users with software TV cards is a small minority. It just doesn't make sense to hold back the enhancements to MediaPortal, just to cater to a small minority that are not willing to upgrade to a decent TV card.....

 

[jawbroken]

Indeed. I would say that it only SEEMS like 50% of people have a software card as they are the ones that have the most issues and thus are more likely to post on the forum. Thus it gives them a larger presence than is accurate.

As I said, I cannot see anybody having a good htpc experience with a SW card, regardless of frontend software. Hardware cards are not expensive and they work a lot better and they are easier to code for and support and people tend to have less issues with them in general, so I don't see why people are always defending them so vehemently.

I know it is frustrating to you, but that is no reason to be rude and ungrateful.

 

[Callifo]

Trying not to blow this out of proportion, as fighting gets us no where.

Looking at the most obvious primary reason is that usually owners of software cards, usually dont meet the other hardware requirements (sorry to generalise) set by MP. So the minority of software users arent in the right to begin with. The hardware needed for software cards is rather high considering you could spend a touch more on a hardare card and have a very fast (but slower speed) machine.

If in the first place there hadnt been such stringent complaints about speed/performance (which was the users hardware at fault not the devs fault) from software card users in the first place we might still be happy little chappies.

As said above, if your going to have to spend more on software then on a hardware card, its up to you what you want to do. If you get the hardware card, your going to be set with us here for years and MP just keeps getting better and better. If not good luck whatever software you leave to.

 

[thechad]

Look to the future and stop living in the past. A DVB-T card is only marginally more than an analogue TV card where I come from and it absolutly shits on any software card I have ever had, not to mention HDTV, Widescreen broadcast and then some.

I know DVB is not an option for everyone but it must be one for a large chunk of the 50%.

my 2cents

 

[James]

Ok before I lock this thread to stop the fighting.

I would like to add: The developers are not trying to play god or be elitest and say you must use a Hardware TV card. At the moment there is a lot of work going on to improve MP, and this requires code re-write and re-structuring. As part of this process Software TV card was removed, because no one wants to do the work to re-write it into a new form. The fact is no developer has a software card.

Like it or not I would say that most developers start working on this project for selfish reasons, because THEY want something to work a certain way to use THEMSELF. After this if other people use it and like using it then great a bonus.

/James