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In case you don't know what I'm talking about
https://plasma-bigscreen.org/
I am trying to find a replacement for Roku and other set top type thingies like Chromecast, FireTV ... I don't want that stuff anymore.
I do want a super easy to use interface.
And I do want casting from my phone to it.
I am currently trying Bigscreen and will try libreElec soon -- but I don't love kodi, I just don't.
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Ok so @hrast suggested Fladder and it is working pretty well (given the context of Bigscreen being pre-release still -- bugs)
So far it is fitting the bill for 10-foot interface -- can seem to do everything with remote (and presumably game controller) arrows, back, home, etc. no need for keyboard or mouse
✅ Music library works (fast)
☑️ Movie library works (some fail, need to investigate)
☑️ Show library works (some fail)
✅ Photo library works (fast)
☑️ Home videos works (some fail)
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So I bought this used Dell Optiplex 3050 for this.
Bigscreen won't show up HDMI audio so right now audio is coming out the tiny little PC speaker. Gotta sort that out.
I installed KDE Neon with Plasma Bigscreen and set it to autologin and fire up Bigscreen
Oh forgot to mention about Fladder
☑️ IPTV channels work
At least the ones that already worked previously on Roku however, owing to video failures above I suspect some may fail due to video codecs or something, too many to test all
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Looking fixing HDMI audio output on Neon and wow... maybe I should've chosen Kubuntu instead? But does that play as nice with Bigscreen? 🤷♂️
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This is all headed the right way but needs lots of love.
The Fladder TV guide UI is weird and needs fixing.
Kind of befuddled by the video playback issues with some files/streams but maybe I can throw some codec installs at it?
I also bought the stupidest air mouse/keyboard thingy and that was a mistake. Should've gone for a nicer one -- but I was hedging because I didn't know if this was going to work at all. I should've just waited but I guess $15 to find out this can work at all is ok
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Some broad issues I still see with Bigscreen are
🔙 Return and ◀️ backspace are used inconsistently with backspace routinely working more often than return (against expectations for a tv remote) some creative key remapping might patch over this
There is no filter inDiscover for 10ft compatible apps, it seems like there aren't many, but I also don't need many.
I think my video issues from before are ghosts after an update
See thread for "audio out" woes - this should just work in Neon imo
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Fladder (the 10ft Jellyfin interface) has some bugs as well
When IPTV channel fails you cannot escape and have to restart the app most of the time
The IPTV Guide and generally that whole section is probably just early days at this point, missing lots of stuff that would make it usable with large number of channels
Some menus trap you, can only escape with an off menu mouse click
Some control become unreachable with arrow keys alone on remote
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All-in-all this is *soooo* close and that might be the most maddening part
I am prepared to give libreElec another try
And @alisynthesis suggested "cachy into steam desktop with jellyfin" and maybe that is something to try.
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In fairness this is all resurrected code and beta (or earlier) so give it a year or two and it might soar.
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Oh and most importantly for me in particular, I cannot get any Owncast streams to work in the Fladder IPTV stuff. Works fine on Roku thru Jellyfin.
This is a showstopper for me because #TIBtv ... but it does make me curious about what it'd take to write a Bigscreen 10ft app (they used to be called skills just like FireTV, right? but I don't think so any more) for #TheIndieBeat
Seems early days with all of these 10ft interface apps for Linux ... maybe it could be an early winner. 😉
@limebar If this is something you explore, I'd be very curious to tag along for that ride.
@limebar You may already know the reason for the lack of HDMI audio, but I've had one case where it was a cable issue.
@elsemusic
I had the same thought, but I tried several and it didn't help.
@limebar @elsemusic are you trying to get the audio through the TV speakers? If so, you have to use HDMI ARC, which is a special cable, and you have to use the correct HDMI input on the TV. (Sorry if that's obvious!)
I have an HDMI ARC splitter + little DAC that splits the audio off from my computer's HDMI connection so that I can send it to some powered speakers and send the video on to the TV. That has been awesome!
Hmm.
My tv has a single hdmi-arc connection which i'm using to go out to a soundbar. I was assuming I could just swap this pc in place of the roku, send av to the tv and then out via arc. Maybe this is why hdmi audio doesn't even show in the neon system settings
Ugh. I can do a test and try the arc port
But also this reminds me I was relying on hdmi cec to control the soundbar with one remote... Maybe not possible given this confusion. Hmm
@limebar @elsemusic yeah hdmi audio gets complicated. I say that as a person who is totally comfortable wiring up and using 3 48-channel patchbays. :laughing:
@limebar @elsemusic I think a soundbar really complicates things. FWIW, my setup, which I find as convenient from a hardware perspective as any Roku-style streaming device, is products like these (Amazon links for convenience):
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BML42L6X
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07VDQQY95
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DZXCX73T?th=1
And some old Mackie studio monitors (why I need the analog audio).
The keyboard has a programmable IR remote on the back, so I turn the TV on with that and wake up the computer like a computer.
@limebar @elsemusic Because I can't stand not to complete the thought :laughing: :
I'm using CachyOS booting into Steam Desktop mode, which works perfectly for me for Jellyfin and games, which is pretty much all I do. Seems like the stuff you're trying to get more of a streaming stick experience would probably work very nicely with a setup like this, although the soundbar thing may be a sticking point.
@limebar ... and another thought. I have a dock in the studio into which I can plug either of my laptops to take advantage of the big screen, Keychron keyboard, mouse and studio sound system. Both laptops run Linux Mint.
Occasionally when I plug a laptop in the audio doesn't immediately switch to the USB-C connection, and I have to go into Sound Settings and redirect the laptop's standard audio out.
Again, I suspect you'll have been there already, but worth mentioning.
I think I'll need to explore the world of Linux audio because the only audio output visible anywhere is built in speaker
I think this means maybe looking into alsa, pulseaudio, mixer, etc.
lspci shows up the hdmi but somehow not mapped into neon system
but first I can't even figure out how to ssh into this box 🤣
i did not test audiobooks - we probably wouldn't use it on this device opting for mobile, specifically the weirdly named "Voice" android app which is minimal and functional
@limebar @hrast That makes sense.
I use the audio book functionality to manage podcast playback on my stereo from the android jellyfin app. I was hopeful to phase out the android app and do everything from the TV, but 1) I want to get off roku 2) the existing roku implementation fo that functionality is hella broken.
@ajroach42
yeah that is a good point, if I could do this without an app on Android (if not the device) I'd be happier