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How To Get Full Multimedia Support in Ubuntu

ehomeupgrade.com — This gives Ubuntu desktop users the guidance to enable full multimedia support and playback of popular media codecs and technologies in just 3 steps. Covered: DVD (CSS) movie playback support, OGG / THEORA / AAC / MP3 / WMA / WMV/ DIVX / XVID / MPEG-1/2/4 / QuickTime support, Skype, Flash, RealPlayer, JAVA, and more.

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  • SkeletaLlama, on 10/12/2007, -4/+14Much simpler than other explanations I've seen for this. This is what Ubuntu needs more of, simple instructions for people who aren't familiar with it yet.
    • shenki, on 10/12/2007, -0/+39These 'instructions' show people how to open up their system to untested software, and potentially security compromising software.

      The correct way to install support for multimedia and non-free format playback is to enable the universe and multiverse repositories, and install the relevant gstreamer plugins, as outlined on http://www.ogmaciel.com/?p=270

      for java and flash:
      sudo apt-get install flashplugin-nonfree sun-java5-plugin

      for multimedia playback:
      sudo apt-get install gstreamer0.10-plugins-bad gstreamer0.10-plugins-bad-multiverse
      sudo apt-get install gstreamer0.10-plugins-ugly gstreamer0.10-plugins-ugly-multiverse

      and finally, to get those last few codecs you need that don't have native linux versions yet:
      sudo apt-get install gstreamer0.10-pitfdll
      then download this file, and double click it:
      http://distrib-coffee.ipsl.jussieu.fr/pub/linux/plf/ubuntu/plf/pool/dapper/i386/non-free/w32codecs/w32codecs_20050412-1plf4_i386.deb

      from there, you will have a system that can play back any video/movie you throw at it, as well as being able to visit flash and java enabled websites, and run programs such as azureus. for more detailed instructions, visit http://www.ogmaciel.com/?p=270
    • FreyrVanir, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3The PLF mirrors are safe. They have been making packages for Mandrake for years and just in the last year have started to make them for other distros. They package things that ubuntu can't distribute in the US. I've never had any problems with any of their packages in the past four years.
      http://plf.zarb.org/

      The line that adds Wine is also ok, that is packages you can get off the offical wine homepage.
      http://www.winehq.com/site/download-deb
  • estvir, on 10/12/2007, -24/+7.. and i thought ubuntu was DESKTOP READY ? nope.
    • actionscripted, on 10/12/2007, -21/+5Desktop ready? Yes. If you don't need anything more than a desktop on your screen.
    • CDHarrisUSF, on 10/12/2007, -3/+19Most of those are formats which would require licensing fees to be distributed with the OS. Several of them (ogg, divx, flash, real, etc) don't work in other operating systems out of the box, either. Including them by default in Ubuntu would lead to two other options:

      1) To remain free, they would have to absorb the costs... probably through donations, ad revenue, etc.

      2) You would have to pay for Ubuntu.
    • pwill, on 10/12/2007, -6/+23Ubuntu is Desktop ready, but ***** companies like Microsoft make all of their formats proprietary, in other words, it is illegal to use them in countries with Digital Copywright laws.
    • andron, on 10/12/2007, -2/+6@iamcitizen
      No. It is illegal if you have a DMCA style law. Not ALL laws that affect the copyright of Digital items is as insanely absurd as the U.S.A's. The world would be a much better place without the US in it. (from EU human rights law: Everyone has the right to freedom of thought), unfortunately I forget where the study about the USA's laws being responsible for a large amount of violations of civil and human rights is.

      And us non USA citizens have little choice, mainly as the United States does not understand what Jurisdiction is.

      The US seems to think that "copyright" is more important than human rights, and freedom of expression.

      Ironic though because its still as easy as ever to for people willing to break he law to pirate things, it only inconveniences ordinary users.

      Personally I go for XMMS and Mplayer as-well. I can make one of the media players play most things. Only thing I can't get working is the BBCs radio player. The forward and back buttons don't work. Ironically the only way to make it usable is to download the entire thing. Which is what they are trying to prevent!
      God Bless -dumpstream (read man mplayer)
    • nerd05, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3This isn't an issue of actual cost, it's a freedom issue. Ubuntu does not keep these out of the standard installation because they cost money, but rather because they aren't free (free as in freedom, not free as in beer). Ubuntu is so focused on that philosophy that they don't even use the real Firefox and Thunderbird logos (which I'm told are trademarked and somewhat restricted).
  • burke, on 10/12/2007, -3/+9perfect, I just installed Dapper on my laptop, and I was fumbling aroung trying to get wmv working.
    • cyrix, on 10/12/2007, -1/+8I as well have been trying out the latest Ubuntu and Kubuntu releases. I will admit, I've had a little more trouble with Kubuntu though. I still for some reason can't get sound playback when I go to youtube. Other than that though, it's been running great for me.
    • SimpleC, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4The problems lies in macromedia's flash support for Linux if you have another program that uses sound i.e. rhythmbox or amarok, flash won't be able to access that, there are a couple of fixes here that mention

      sudo apt-get install alsa-oss

      it doesn't hurt to ask ubuntu forums either
      http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=187752&highlight=sound+flash
    • microview, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4This worked for me...
      The problem is that Flash is old and doesn't support Ubuntu's directory structure for esd properly. It wants to use /tmp/.esd/socket for the sound connection. But Ubuntu uses /tmp/.esd-/socket for the sound (the uid for the user that installed Ubuntu is 1000). A quick hack you can do to fix this is to symbolic link that directory. To do that, go to System - Preferences - Sessions - Startup programs and add
      Code:

      ln -s /tmp/.esd-1000 /tmp/.esd

      to the list (assuming your uid is 1000, change it accordingly if it isn't), then logout and log back in. After doing this, Flash sound should work properly.
    • burke, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Holy Crap, microview, it works! Thank you very much!
  • burke, on 10/12/2007, -6/+16haha, wow, I *almost* let that realplayer part slip past me. Don't use real player on Linux. It's like going to a 5 star restaurant and ordering a bowl of ketchup.
    • pgm_01, on 10/12/2007, -1/+9Actually Real for Linux is great. It has no extra junk, there isn't even a dancing sheep, it just plays back streaming audio. VLC is a bit more cumbersome but it can handle all streams including wma/wmv.
    • iggee85, on 10/12/2007, -6/+3I don't think VLC for linux can play files in wmv9
    • madjo, on 10/12/2007, -3/+6Yes, it can. But you might have to recompile the VLC player to enable it. (it isn't enabled for VLC by default, and it supposedly isn't enabled in the repositories of Ubuntu)
  • EGOvoruhk, on 10/12/2007, -2/+4So how hard would it be to get all of that working with Fedora Core 5?

    Sorry about the Linux Newbness, but we all gotta start somewhere
  • infra172, on 10/12/2007, -3/+12Step 1:
    sudo apt-get update
    Step 2:
    sudo apt-get install vlc vlc-plugin-esd

    That's all you need.
    • Wickerman392, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5Yeah VLC can play almost anything you throw at it, and is very fast at decoding H264 video as well. It is probably the best option for playing H264. However VLC uses ffdshow, and I have noticed Xvid looks a little blocky(er) when decoded by it. For the best video quality, it is best have it decoded by the Xvid codec itself using its own postprocessing. I've got everything set up in windows so video looks schweet, and I can just imagine the the things I would have to do to get video decoded "right" in linux. Damn you linux, get easier.
    • CDHarrisUSF, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3For me, all I had to do to get rid of the blockiness was to switch the video output to OpenGL.
    • FreyrVanir, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3I always had the best luck using mplayer with w32codecs. I can play 480p files off apples trailer site and my cpu uses less then 40% of it's power. I'm using a laptop that has a 800Mhz Celeron.
  • dharm, on 10/12/2007, -4/+4"How To Get Full Multimedia Support in Ubuntu"

    the answer is the same way in any other distro... its the same packages, just replace the package manager install command, whether it be aptitude, portage... etc


    and all this info and more is available on ubuntu forums or the ubuntu guide website...

    (i am just tired of seeing unneeded front page articles, especially the ubuntu ones. Not that i hate ubuntu, just that i hate the "Howto do 'x' on ubuntu" guides. Most are exact same way you do it for anyother distro, besides maybe changing 1 word in the command syntax sometimes)
    • Orbatos, on 10/12/2007, -4/+6Unfortunately for you, I guess, many people are apparently without your resources or exposure and need this information.
  • eamonf, on 10/12/2007, -2/+8I put dapper on my laptop over the weekend, just used the script from this site
    http://easyubuntu.freecontrib.org/ - worked great for getting everything set up codec wise for me.
  • arizonagroove, on 10/12/2007, -0/+17Or you could follow the instructions provided on the Ubuntu Wiki which better explain what it is you are actually doing and also contain notes for Kubuntu users.

    https://wiki.ubuntu.com/RestrictedFormats
  • gnyffel, on 10/12/2007, -8/+4...
    Automatix, anyone?
    http://www.getautomatix.com/
    • goodshape, on 10/12/2007, -3/+9That link didn't work for me but Automatix is another 'full multimedia support' script that comes wrapped in a friendly(er) GUI.

      Get it here -> http://www.ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=177646
    • jonesin, on 10/12/2007, -3/+11Automatix, or EasyUbuntu, all the way
    • sgbooth, on 10/12/2007, -4/+3Don't know why you got modded down because automatix is the easiest and most secure way to get all of this stuff plus more (java, flash, etc).
    • shenki, on 10/12/2007, -2/+10sgbooth, automatix is strongly discouraged for use due it breaking systems.

      information you read on wiki.ubuntu.com and especially ubuntuforums.org is unofficial, unsupported and often breaks your system. For the real deal, see http://help.ubuntu.com/ - this documentation is official, and you are much more likely to have a working system after following the advice contained within. Also, the advantage of using official documentation is that devs and others who offer support will be more likely to help you.

      http://help.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/desktopguide/C/common-tasks-chap.html
    • Orbatos, on 10/12/2007, -2/+7The problem with Automatix is that, despite it's ease of use it does break things, sometimes badly.
    • smeager, on 10/12/2007, -2/+4I don't particularly care for automated scripts that change system settings (ie... sources.list) to get done what anybody can do if they follow the official way https://wiki.ubuntu.com/RestrictedFormats, easily at that.

      I prefer doing it they way I've done it for years, apt-get install, aptitude ...., portage....., yum....., if you get my drift. How will anybody learn to do anything if there hand his held for them. (or either compile from source (the best way to optimize software per system) or downloading a pre-compiled binary and installing it)
    • goodshape, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2That's ridiculous snobbery, to be honest.

      I'm a web developer by trade and I'm interested in advancing my PHP and MySQL skills. Not having working flash plugins and video codecs makes it harder for me to advance these skills (I'm working on multimedia oriented site at the moment).

      I don't have much interest in learning all there is to know about "apt-get install, aptitude ...., portage....., yum.....,"; I just want it to work so I can get back solving the problem I'm working on.

      Automatix suits me fine. Never broken any of my machines.
  • onket, on 10/12/2007, -7/+2anyone else getting an ubuntu overload?
  • cyberghost232, on 10/12/2007, -7/+2yeah but will it play Nada 3?
  • evilic0n, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7real player is for noobs. rock some mplayer.
  • Adross, on 10/12/2007, -10/+3If you're going to use nonfree, proprietary codecs in Ubuntu, thus taking away the open sourced-ness of it, why not just use windows?
    • pabster, on 10/12/2007, -2/+4That was my thought as well.

      If you are making the move to open source, why not use Ogg Vorbis for your music, for example? There are plenty of free formats out there that fall in line with your desire to use Linux.

      Once you start pumping your distro full of proprietary stuff... kinda reminds me of the idiots who actually pay for these 'driver packages' ...
    • M4v3R, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4Because iPods doesn't play OGG ?
    • pabster, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4You can play OGG on your iPod, just not with Apple's firmware.
  • CosmicJustice, on 10/12/2007, -7/+2How To Get Full Multimedia Support in Windows. Oh wait.. never mind.
    • M4v3R, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6There's like gazillion of codec packs for Windows out there. And try to mix them - instant boom and no video.
  • blankartist, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1Great! Now if somebody could write a script that would put my Wacom tablet into relative mode and have it not scroll backwards, I'd be in heaven. Oh, I've tried the tutorials in the Ubuntu forums, and blew-up my GUI messing in the .conf file. Luckily I made a backup first. I'm not messing with that file by hand anytime soon. :(
  • norick, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5The only problem is that the 64bits version of ubuntu don't like w32codecs and dvd playback.
    So I have ubuntu 6.06 on my amd64 but I can't read divX.

    Still a lot of work for you linux lovers!
  • radison2, on 10/12/2007, -6/+1I digg ubuntu but the fact that out of the box it sucks at playing common media formats is laughable. Even more laughable is the fact that everybody lauds it as the second coming of Christ. They say they let their grandma uses it....


    "ok grandma just do a "sudo apt-get install totem-xine totem-xine-firefox-plugin libxine-extracodecs w32codecs libdvdcss2 flashplugin-nonfree sun-java5-plugin banshee streamtuner xmms skype msttcorefonts realplay f-spot"

    You should be all good after that.......easy as pie huh?
  • vln004, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1does anyone know if these programs all work for the powerpc? when i installed ubuntu on my mac mini a while back, a little research at the ubuntu forums exposed the fact that codecs just weren't being made for the powerpc version of ubuntu.
    • neiras, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1No. All these 'w32codecs' packages contain are the standard Windows drivers provided by Apple, divx, Microsoft, etc. If those companies don't release powerpc versions of their codecs (most of them don't, since Windows doesn't run on PowerPC), there is no way any of these 'solutions' will work for you.
  • FZero, on 10/12/2007, -4/+4http://www.getautomatix.com
    http://easyubuntu.freecontrib.org

    The first is more complete, the second is easier to install. Both address the problem in a few clicks.

    And, oh yeah, no Digg.
  • ordminute, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3This is far from the easiest way. Use the lovely GUI, Easy Ubuntu. Here's a screenshot:

    http://easyubuntu.freecontrib.org/overview.html

    Now which looks easier to you? Makes Windows looks like a pain in the ass to set up in comparison.
    • Rojahon, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2I love you! Easy ubuntu is so much nicer! It makes going through those steps sound ridiculous.
  • salocinbake, on 10/12/2007, -5/+0Warning, my search pages are redirected after this install!!!
    Secondary search are redirected from google or other...

    Do not use this crap...

    • AlexGrundner, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2That's *****! salocinbake, get a life.
  • MatYadabyte, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0This is great. I was just about to put Linux back to sleep for another year. Not anymore.
  • salocinbake, on 10/12/2007, -1/+0Ok I stand corrected, my mistake, sorry. I will double check next time.

    Ciao!
  • blankartist, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0What a lot of crap. All I can say is, "Who's holding his wii spot in line at Toys 'R' Us?"
  • AlexGrundner, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Something happened to the PLF repo at ftp://ftp.free.fr/pub/Distributions_Linux/plf/ubuntu/plf/

    Update your sources list with with the following entries for the PLF repo so you can grab the same packages:
    deb http://packages.freecontrib.org/ubuntu/plf/ dapper free non-free deb-src http://packages.freecontrib.org/ubuntu/plf/ dapper free non-free

    * I'll update the sources list in the eHomeUpgrade how-to post to reflect the changes. *
  • ahildoer, on 08/02/2008, -0/+0This is a better solution anyway: http://www.hildoersystems.com/index.php/tutorials/ ...
  •  

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