Will Linux Mint run with this setup?

[sastusbulbas]

Hi all,

I recently gave Ubuntu another go on the below system, but sadly have not enjoyed the experience, no media replay whatsoever in any useable manner, I would like DVD, CD, multi media replay out of the box, I would like a simple quick easy to get up and running alternative to Windows 7, I have tried XBMC with Ubuntu with no joy and think it looks a viable alternative to Windows Media Center.

I would like a decent media center PC, an HTPC that I can stream from my Windows PC with, music movies etc.

I cannot say I have enjoyed the Ubuntu forum experience much help or fun either.

This is the PC's spec, edit; it has been suggested that an Nvidea card may make things easier, but what sort of cost would this add for smooth 1080p playback?

Asrock 4CoreDual Sata II motherboard
Intel E5200 @2.5GHz per core cpu
Silverstone NT01 passive cpu cooler
Corsair XMS Pro PC-3500LL 2x1gb memory
HIS IceQ Pro Turbo HD3850 512mb AGP graphics
M-Audio 24/96 sound card
Asus PCI wireless card
Samsung 640gb F1 hard drive
Samsung IDE DVD drive
Corsair 450w modular psu
Silverstone Lascala LC13 PC case with Sharkoon Silent Eagle SE 80mm fans

[Carl]

:9/10 times if Ubuntu worked for you then Linux Mint will too (It's based on it ) Linux Mint has all the media codecs installed out of the box and will play almost anything you throw at it

if you've had a play around with XBMC I give Boxee a go based on XBMC but I think a bit more user friendly

a quick Google suggests that your card should be okay handling 1080p video, however bear in mind that Blu-Ray playback on Linux is in it's infancy at best and non-existent at its worst although I have a feeling these are pre-ripped HD videos

[eiver]

Well just download and boot Mint CD or Mint DVD and see how well it plays a 1080p video . The only 100% way to answer your question is to test it yourself. The only issue I ever experienced was playing 1080p + flash (on youtube), which was horrible due to very poor flash efficiency - I resolved the issue by replacing the default flash player with a custom one and now it plays like charm on the full screen and I can even rotate smoothly my compiz cube while watching.

[sastusbulbas]

Thanks for the replies ,

The above hardware had no issues playing HD1080p with Windows 7, my issues started with Linux as I have been unable to get any sort of reasonable media replay. I think the guys over on the Ubuntu forum got a bit sick of their suggestions not working as it ended up with me getting told I should stick with windows.

Someone suggested Mint may be an out of the box working sollution hence me asking, I was hoping for more experienced replies other than the try and see how you get on option which seemed to get me nowhere but frustration town with Ubuntu. (A live CD is pretty much useless, at least Ubuntu's was, as I could not load a DVD in the drive to experience media replay, nor can I install onto a live CD the likes of XBMC or Enna)

I am now guessing that if Ubuntu cannot work with my set up then Mint won't either? I still don't understand why I cannot stream media or stick a DVD in my drive and watch a movie, hence me wondering if a cheap Nvidea sollution may solve some issues if it is ATI/AGP related?

[phd7]

I have not had any problems with mint media although I have not tried 1080 HD. Apart from that I like the fact that with mint I never get any "format not recognised" crap like with windows.

you could always install from a live cd onto a USB stick (format it like you would a hard drive) and then when installed, boot from USB and you CDVD drive is free. If you have a USB external hard drive you could install there also. It will be slower operating but you will see what works or doesnt.

Its hard for people to give answers without being given specific problems and more importanly, specific error messages to work with

[eiver]

As I said before: Even if 100 people in this topic will write that 1080p plays smoothly and out-of-the-box on their machines, you will still end up in having to install Mint and see it for yourself. If you just want to test 1080p and not your DVD speed, then you can just download a sample 1080p video and see how it plays. Otherwise you can install Mint on a USB stick to free your DVD drive as suggested above. I sorry that you didn't like the answer "test it your self", but its how it works with every operating system including Windows. You installed Win7 and tested it for yourself and now you know that it works...

[sastusbulbas]

USB stick

Didn't think of that, cheers

With only 2gb of ram would 32bit or 64bit be recommended?

[eiver]

I say if your CPU supports 64-bit then choose that.

[mike555]

Mint should run just fine on that system ... for a media player I use " VLC " , you might want to try it.