MediaInfo a GSpot alternative for Linux?

[jabulon]

I'm using Linux myself and I was looking for a program like GSpot for Linux. In the FAQ section and here I couldn't find it, but on a Linux forum I found this freeware program called MediaInfo http://mediainfo.sourceforge.net/en I wonder if anybody here has any experiences with this program and its results? It is also available for Windows and Mac. Note from website: Mac OS and Linux GUI are not complete, work is under progress

I've no experience with it my self, and I'm not really a video buff - but won't VLC give you the information you require?

[jabulon]

Originally Posted by lintoni

I've no experience with it my self, and I'm not really a video buff - but won't VLC give you the information you require?

Yes VLC gives most of the required information, but I'm not sure about the video bitrate. VLC showes you the streaming bitrate (no average or nominal bitrate). MediaInfo also gives you info about colorimetry, scan type/order, ID etc.

[harpsichord]

I've used Totem, Avidemux, and VLC to gather the info I needed and double-check the specs (even GSpot thru Wine), but I'll have to check out MediaInfo. Thanks for the heads-up.

[lordsmurf]

Yeah, I'd run Gspot through Wine.

[jabulon]

Originally Posted by lordsmurf

Yeah, I'd run Gspot through Wine.

I can't get GSpot running through Wine. Every time I try to start up GSpot it immediatly crashes. I'm using Karmic and I've tried both versions of Wine with GSpot V2.70a. Any suggestions here?

[Thulani]

Run a virtual Windows machine.

[harpsichord]

I really don't like to run apps in Wine unless there's no choice, and haven't had to in a while, so I can't say whether GSpot runs okay in Karmic. Are you running it from a dual-boot, or is it installed?

Once I confirmed I could get the same info from Linux apps, that's what I used.

[jabulon]

Originally Posted by harpsichord

I really don't like to run apps in Wine unless there's no choice, and haven't had to in a while, so I can't say whether GSpot runs okay in Karmic. Are you running it from a dual-boot, or is it installed?

No dual-boot here ... yet, just Ubuntu. I followed the advice of kill_them_all1000 though and downloaded a virtual machine but I still need a (preferably legit) copy of windows, so I'll will ask my acquaintances if they don't have an obsolete version of XP flinging about.

[Thulani]

Windows 7 (I think Vista also) offers a trial version (120 days on Win7 with a small hack) and I think it can be downloaded from the internet for free (legal). I don't know what software you're running, but with VirtualBox you could do a snapshot of your virtual machine. So after you install Win7, make a snapshot and after the trial version expires just make a restore.

[harpsichord]

I'm confused.

It seems like you're going through an awful lot of contortions just to get data you already have access to, unless you just have a hardon for GSpot. The program you mentioned in your first post, mediainfo, works just fine in Karmic and provides all the data you would need to seed (as do several other open-source tools). No muss, no fuss, no Wine, no VM's needed.

I thought that was kinda the point of you bringing it up. Why all the cartwheels to get GSpot to tell you the same thing? Seems mega-redundant to me, and a shitload more work.

[randytravis]

^^^ what he said. MediaInfo works fine to provide any info that you would need. I use it on my Fedora install and it does the job well.

[jabulon]

Originally Posted by harpsichord

I'm confused.

It seems like you're going through an awful lot of contortions just to get data you already have access to, unless you just have a hardon for GSpot. The program you mentioned in your first post, mediainfo, works just fine in Karmic and provides all the data you would need to seed (as do several other open-source tools). No muss, no fuss, no Wine, no VM's needed.

I thought that was kinda the point of you bringing it up. Why all the cartwheels to get GSpot to tell you the same thing? Seems mega-redundant to me, and a shitload more work.

Haha..no hardon for GSpot here, although a 'G-Spot Tornado brings about a nice volcano'. But I do have some other apps somebody wrote for me, but they only run under windows. I like to use these, but I don't want to reboot, so therfore my interest in a VM. Thanks for all the hints, tips!

[lordsmurf]

Gspot and mediainfo don't really provide the exact same information. I can see where Gspot may be preferred in some uses.

I run Linux in a VM on a Windows system, not the other way around. This is really just a reverse case -- you need to run Windows XP in a VM. Is VirtualBox, VMWare or something similar available for Linux OS? I'd go that route.

I even have Windows VMs inside Windows, for testing software -- just in case!

Makes for a great sandbox for web browsing, too.