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Launchpad entry: none yet
Packages affected:
Summary
Ubuntu Media Center should provide a huge codec support in order to be able to play most (all!) of the existing media formats.
Implementation
Ubuntu Feisty will come with a package called ubuntu-restricted-extras which installs main non-free codecs (multiverse repository). This package should be included by default in Ubuntu Media Center.
Codecs
The following table shows the audio and video codecs that are expected to be supported by the UMC.
It is based upon the assumption that the UMC will rely upon the Elisa software, so will be using the gstreamer framework.
Audio Codecs
Codec name
Free
Proprietary
Xiph/Ogg Flac
X (flacdec/ffdec_flac)
X (vorbisdec)
MPEG-1 Layer 2 (DVD/DVB/MP2)
X (ffenc_mp2)
X
MPEG-1 Layer 3 (MP3)
X (mad/ffdec_mp3)
X (flump3dec)
X (faad)
X
Dolby Digital AC3
X (a52dec/ac3parse)
X (gst-fluendo-ac3dec)
Microsoft WMA
X (ffdec_wmav1,2)
X (gst-fluendo-wmadec)
Apple Lossless ALAC (m4a)
X (ffdec_alac)
X (musepackdec)
AIF
X (ffdemux_aiff)
(1)
Sony ATRAC 3
?
RealAudio (2)
?
X (gst-fluendo-realdec)
1 : Gstreamer MonkeyAudio plugin has never been ported to 0.10 . MAC isn't even packaged in Ubuntu/MediBuntu due to licencing problems : see https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+bug/119412
2 : RealAudio codecs are a mess with at least 9 variants : (dnet, atrc, raac and racp are the only 'standard' ones)
Code
Name
Minimum Version
Codec
lpcJ
IS-54 VSELP
1
28_8
G.728 LD-CELP
2
ffdec_real_288
dnet
Dolby AC3
3
a52dec/ac3parse
sipr
Sipro Lab Telecom ACELP-NET
4/5
cook
G2/Cook Codec
6
ffdec_cook
atrc
Sony ATRAC3
8
raac
MPEG-4 LC-AAC
9
faad
racp
MPEG-4 HE-AAC
10
faad
ralf
RealAudio Lossless Format
10
Video Codecs
Codec name
Free
Proprietary
X (theoradec/ffdec_theora)
Xiph/Ogg Dirac (3)
X (schrodec)
Microsoft WMV
X (ffdec_wmv1,2,3)
X (gst-fluendo-wmvdec)
MPEG2
X (mpeg2dec)
X (gst-fluendo-mpeg2video)
MPEG4-ASP (DivX/Xvid)
X (ffdec_mpeg4)
X
MPEG4-AVC/H264 (MP4)
X (ffdec_h264)
X
3 : Dirac plugin is still in the works but is available in Ubuntu repositories.
Container formats (Demuxers)
Container
Free
Proprietary
Microsoft RIFF (WAV/AVI)
X (avidemux/wavparse)
Microsoft ASF (WMA/WMV)
X (asfdemux/ffdemux_asf)
X (gst-fluendo-asf)
MPEG ES/Elementary Stream
X
MPEG SS/System Stream
X (mpegparse)
MPEG2 PS/Program Stream
X (ffdemux_mpeg)
X (flupsdemux)
MPEG2 TS/Transport Stream
X (ffdemux_mpegts)
X (flutsdemux)
MPEG4-ISO/QT/MOV/3GP/MP4
X (qtdemux)
X (gst-fluendo-isofile)
X (oggdemux)
X (ogm_audio/video/text_parse)
Matroska (MKV/MKA)
X (matroskademux/ffdemux_matroska)
Real Media (RM/RMA/RMVB)
X (rmdemux)
X (ffdemux_mxf)
DivX Media Format (DMF)
?
Network protocols
Protocol
Free
Proprietary
X (mmssrc)
X (?)
X (rtspsrc/rtpdec)
X (rtspsrc/rdtdepay)
Packages
Here is the list of packages providing codecs:
- free: gst-plugins-base-0.10, gstreamer0.10-plugins-good, gstreamer0.10-plugins-bad(-multiverse), gstreamer0.10-plugins-ugly(-multiverse), gstreamer0.10-ffmpeg, gstreamer0.10-schroedinger (Dirac)
- proprietary:
(De)muxers
gst-fluendo-mpegdemux (4), gst-fluendo-mpegmux (4), gst-fluendo-isofile, gst-fluendo-asf, gst-fluendo-asfmux
Audio Codecs
gst-fluendo-mp3 (4), gst-fluendo-ac3dec, gst-fluendo-wmadec/enc, gst-fluendo-realdec, gst-fluendo-alsaspdif
Video Codecs
gst-fluendo-wmvdec, gst-fluendo-mpeg2video
4 : available in Ubuntu repositories. Others could be bought from Fluendo site or builded from their source repository.