FAQ 10.6 KB
Newer Older
Christophe Massiot's avatar
Christophe Massiot committed
1
Frequentely Asked Questions for VideoLAN Client
Loïc Minier's avatar
Loïc Minier committed
2
$Id: FAQ,v 1.16 2003/01/08 16:40:44 lool Exp $
Christophe Massiot's avatar
Christophe Massiot committed
3 4 5

1. Using VLC

Loïc Minier's avatar
Loïc Minier committed
6
1.1 How do I read a DVD?
Christophe Massiot's avatar
Christophe Massiot committed
7 8 9
-----------------------
Just launch vlc and use the "open disc" command from the graphical
interface. In case of trouble, you may want to use the command line
Loïc Minier's avatar
Loïc Minier committed
10
interface:
Christophe Massiot's avatar
Christophe Massiot committed
11
    vlc dvd:/dev/dvd
Christophe Massiot's avatar
Christophe Massiot committed
12

Loïc Minier's avatar
Loïc Minier committed
13
1.2 How do I read an encrypted DVD?
Christophe Massiot's avatar
Christophe Massiot committed
14 15 16 17
----------------------------------
It's exactly the same as for a normal DVD. You will need write access to
/dev/dvd, because of the key negociation process.

18 19 20 21 22
If you compiled your VLC by hand, please bear in mind that you also need
to install libdvdcss. It can be downloaded from the VideoLAN website. It
used to be distributed in the same package as VLC, but now you must install
them seperately.

Loïc Minier's avatar
Loïc Minier committed
23
1.3 How do I switch to full screen display?
Christophe Massiot's avatar
Christophe Massiot committed
24 25 26 27
------------------------------------------
Press 'f' to toggle fullscreen mode. Note that not all video output
devices support full screen.

Loïc Minier's avatar
Loïc Minier committed
28
1.4 How do I hide the mouse cursor?
Christophe Massiot's avatar
Christophe Massiot committed
29 30 31 32
----------------------------------
It should disappear after a few seconds if you stop moving the mouse.

1.5 How do I use vlc if I don't want to install Gnome and all this
Loïc Minier's avatar
Loïc Minier committed
33
#@!£% *$@&§% !@# bloat?
Christophe Massiot's avatar
Christophe Massiot committed
34
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Loïc Minier's avatar
Loïc Minier committed
35
You can run:
Sam Hocevar's avatar
 
Sam Hocevar committed
36
    vlc --intf dummy myfile.mpg
Christophe Massiot's avatar
Christophe Massiot committed
37 38 39
Most commands are available from the command line, see vlc --help for
more information.

Loïc Minier's avatar
Loïc Minier committed
40
1.6 VLC eats my buffer cache, how to I use raw device?
Christophe Massiot's avatar
Christophe Massiot committed
41 42 43
-----------------------------------------------------
If you don't know what is a raw device, don't even read this answer :-).
There is an experimental support for raw devices in libdvdcss. It needs
44
that you set up a raw device pointing to your DVD device (under Linux,
Christophe Massiot's avatar
Christophe Massiot committed
45
use the "raw" utility). Then pass the raw device as second argument, for
Loïc Minier's avatar
Loïc Minier committed
46
instance:
Christophe Massiot's avatar
Christophe Massiot committed
47 48
    vlc dvd:/dev/dvd@/dev/raw0

Loïc Minier's avatar
Loïc Minier committed
49
1.7 How do I use VLC as a client for VLS/VLMS streaming?
Christophe Massiot's avatar
Christophe Massiot committed
50 51
-------------------------------------------------------
First you must set up a VLS or VLMS stream. Please refer to the
Loïc Minier's avatar
Loïc Minier committed
52
documentation of these programs. Then start VLC:
Sam Hocevar's avatar
 
Sam Hocevar committed
53
    vlc udp:
Christophe Massiot's avatar
Christophe Massiot committed
54
You shouldn't need any option. If you're paranoid and want to control
Loïc Minier's avatar
Loïc Minier committed
55
everything, here is the exact syntax:
Sam Hocevar's avatar
 
Sam Hocevar committed
56
    vlc udp:[<server>[:<server port>]][@[<bind address>][:<bind port>]]
Christophe Massiot's avatar
Christophe Massiot committed
57

Loïc Minier's avatar
Loïc Minier committed
58
1.8 How do I uninstall / reinstall VLC?
59
--------------------------------------
Loïc Minier's avatar
Loïc Minier committed
60
Why would you want to?  ;)
61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71

If you're using a source distribution of VLC, for example a tarball or
the CVS, then you have probably used "make install" to install the
compiled VLC.  To remove it just "make uninstall".  If you want to
install a newer version than the currently installed one, you should
first uninstall the first one.  If you deleted the original source tree,
a "make uninstall" in the newer tree should still work.

For binary packages, remove old packages first and install the new ones
(normally this should be handled automagically by your sytem).

Loïc Minier's avatar
Loïc Minier committed
72
1.9 Debian: what should I put in my sources.list for videolan?
73
-------------------------------------------------------------
74 75
deb     http://www.videolan.org/pub/videolan/debian $(ARCH)/
deb-src http://www.videolan.org/pub/videolan/debian sources/
76

Loïc Minier's avatar
Loïc Minier committed
77
1.10 How can I save my VLC configuration?
Gildas Bazin's avatar
 
Gildas Bazin committed
78 79 80 81
----------------------------------------
Currently, the only way to save the configuration options in VLC is through
the preferences menu in one of the graphical user interface plugins.

Loïc Minier's avatar
Loïc Minier committed
82
1.11 Where does VLC store it's config file?
Gildas Bazin's avatar
 
Gildas Bazin committed
83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92
------------------------------------------
Currently, a config file is created on a per user basis (there is no global
configuration file). If you modify the available options in VLC and save the
new configuration, then a configuration file will be created in your user
directory. The precise location of this file depends on the Operating System
you are running:

- Unices (linux, etc...): "~/.videolan/vlcrc"
- Windows: "Application Data\videolan\vlcrc"

Christophe Massiot's avatar
Christophe Massiot committed
93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106

2. Troubleshooting

2.1 When I start vlc, I don't have any interface coming...
-------------------------------------------------------
If you installed a binary package, make sure you also installed an
interface package such as vlc-gtk or vlc-qt. If you installed from
source, make sure the development package for gtk or qt is correctly
installed (often gtk-dev or gtk-devel) and recompile.

2.2 Clicking on "disc" in the interface doesn't do anything
-----------------------------------------------------------
Wait a few seconds. Key cracking can take much time on some discs. If it
still doesn't work, you can have a more verbose output using "vlc -vvvvv".
Loïc Minier's avatar
Loïc Minier committed
107
Here are a few things to check for:
Loïc Minier's avatar
Loïc Minier committed
108
* Did you install the libdvdcss package?
Loïc Minier's avatar
Loïc Minier committed
109
* Do you have write access to your DVD device? For instance:
Christophe Massiot's avatar
Christophe Massiot committed
110
chmod 666 /dev/hdc
Loïc Minier's avatar
Loïc Minier committed
111 112
* Does your kernel log contain line about your DVD device?
* Do you have a link from /dev/dvd to your real DVD device? For instance
Christophe Massiot's avatar
Christophe Massiot committed
113 114
ln -s hdc /dev/dvd

Sam Hocevar's avatar
 
Sam Hocevar committed
115 116
2.3 [REMOVED]
-------------
Christophe Massiot's avatar
Christophe Massiot committed
117 118 119 120 121

2.4 The video runs but the picture is distorted...
-----------------------------------------------
There is probably a problem with the output layer. There are several
ways of troubleshooting it. First, try with another output plug-in, for
Loïc Minier's avatar
Loïc Minier committed
122
instance:
Sam Hocevar's avatar
 
Sam Hocevar committed
123 124 125
vlc --vout sdl
vlc --vout x11
Second, change your screen depth and/or definition. It quite often helps.
Christophe Massiot's avatar
Christophe Massiot committed
126 127 128 129 130 131 132
Lastly, have a look at your XFree86 video driver (nVidia for instance
releases optimized drivers for its boards).

2.5 Video is choppy...
-------------------
Your system is too slow to decode all pictures. It might be that your
CPU basically isn't fast enough. It can also be that the subsystem is
Loïc Minier's avatar
Loïc Minier committed
133 134 135
misconfigured/misdriven, this happens for example under Redhat. Here are
some elements to improve speed:
* Turn on DMA on your DVD device, for instance:
Christophe Massiot's avatar
Christophe Massiot committed
136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147
hdparm -X34 -d1 /dev/dvd
* Upgrade to the latest XFree86 version and the latest driver for your
video board ; check that the xvideo plug-in is effectively used with
vlc -vvvv
* Kill other applications running...

2.6 Audio is choppy...
-------------------
This is not normal ; it is a known problem and is being investigated.

2.7 Audio and video are out of sync
-----------------------------------
Sam Hocevar's avatar
 
Sam Hocevar committed
148
This is not normal. Try using another output plug-in (for instance --aout dsp),
Christophe Massiot's avatar
Christophe Massiot committed
149 150 151
kill esd or artsd if they are running... This is a known problem and
is being investigated.

Sam Hocevar's avatar
 
Sam Hocevar committed
152 153
2.8 [REMOVED]
-------------
Christophe Massiot's avatar
Christophe Massiot committed
154

Christophe Massiot's avatar
Christophe Massiot committed
155
2.9 Sound volume is too low
Christophe Massiot's avatar
Christophe Massiot committed
156
----------------------------
157 158 159 160 161 162 163 164 165 166 167 168 169 170 171 172 173 174
You can raise it with --volume commandline switch or in the preferences
window of your graphical interface.

2.10 I have no image under DirectX
----------------------------------
Check that your video card drivers are in their latest version and that
your DirectX is up-to-date.

2.11 VLC crashes
----------------
Increase the verbosity level (either in the preferences or with a
"-vvvv" command-line option) and look at the debug messages (on the
terminal or in the Messages window).

2.12 I can only play a DVD as root
----------------------------------
Check that as user you have write access to your DVD drive / device.

Loïc Minier's avatar
Loïc Minier committed
175
2.13 I'm stuck with option xxx, how do I reset options?
176 177 178
------------------------------------------------------
Under unices, remove your ~/.videolan/vlcrc; for Windows, remove vlcrc
in the videolan subfolder of your "Application Data" directory.
Christophe Massiot's avatar
Christophe Massiot committed
179

Christophe Massiot's avatar
Christophe Massiot committed
180 181 182 183 184 185 186 187 188 189 190 191 192 193 194 195 196 197 198 199
2.14 I don't have access to the GUI anymore
-------------------------------------------
If you change the default interface module in the preferences menu to a non
GUI module (ie. to a command line interface) and then save the configuration,
the only way to get VLC to show a GUI again is to run it directly from the
command line.
For instance on Windows, you need to open a dos command box, go to the
directory where you installed VLC (usually
c:\Program Files\VideoLAN\VideoLAN Client) and then type "vlc --intf win32"
You will then be able to modify the configuration again and save it.

2.15 I have just upgraded to VLC 0.4.5, and now I don't have any sound
with the streams coming from the VLS !
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
This is a known problem. VLC 0.4.5 and later are now compliant to general
usage regarding A/52 sound, and the new behavior is incompatible with the
previous one. VLS version 0.4.0 and later now fixes this problem. If, for
a reason or another, you wish to keep VLS 0.3.3, you can still read those
streams if you launch VLC (0.4.5 or later) with --vls-backwards-compat.

Christophe Massiot's avatar
Christophe Massiot committed
200 201 202 203 204

3. Ports and features

3.1 MacOS X port

Loïc Minier's avatar
Loïc Minier committed
205
3.1.1 Does VLC support the ATI DVD hardware acceleration cards?
Christophe Massiot's avatar
Christophe Massiot committed
206 207 208 209
--------------------------------------------------------------
Currently it doesn't. We'd be glad to support them, but we lack technical
information on them.

210 211
3.1.2 [REMOVED]
---------------
212

Christophe Massiot's avatar
Christophe Massiot committed
213 214 215 216
3.2 Win32 port

3.2.2 When moving the focus to another window, VLC network input stops
working properly !
Loïc Minier's avatar
Loïc Minier committed
217
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Christophe Massiot's avatar
Christophe Massiot committed
218 219
This is a known problem with Win 95-class systems. Upgrade to an NT-class
system.
220 221 222

3.3 Planned ports

Loïc Minier's avatar
Loïc Minier committed
223 224
3.3.1 Do you have plans for a MacOS 9 / OS/2 / &{#!@}~ port?
-----------------------------------------------------------
225 226 227 228 229
No, nobody reported to be actually working on a MacOS 9 port.  If you
feel like you could write it, we would of course welcome it.  Currently,
the developers are more interested in supporting the latest Operating
Systems and completing the functionalities.

Loïc Minier's avatar
Loïc Minier committed
230
3.3.2 Does VLC have dxr2 / dxr3 cards support?
231 232
---------------------------------------------
This support is currently being developed.
Loïc Minier's avatar
Loïc Minier committed
233

Loïc Minier's avatar
Loïc Minier committed
234
3.3.3 Does VLC support RTP?
Loïc Minier's avatar
Loïc Minier committed
235
--------------------------
Christophe Massiot's avatar
Christophe Massiot committed
236
Yes. Just use vlc rtp:@<mcast addr>:<local port>.
Loïc Minier's avatar
Loïc Minier committed
237 238 239 240 241 242 243 244 245 246 247 248 249 250 251 252 253 254 255 256 257 258 259

4. Legal concerns

4.1 May I use the VideoLAN logo?
-------------------------------
You may use the VideoLAN logo using the following copyright:

  Copyright (c) 1996-2002 VideoLAN. This logo or a modified version
  may be used or modified by anyone to refer to the VideoLAN project
  or any product developed by the VideoLAN team, but does not indicate
  endorsement by the project.

4.2 May I reditribute VLC?
-------------------------
You may distribute an original or modified version of VideoLAN as long
as you conform to the terms of its license. It is the GNU General Public
License Version 2 (referred herein as GPL), and it is in the file named
COPYING in our products.
The simpliest way to conform to the GPL is to accompany the product you
want to distribute with its sources. For example, if you plan to
distribute the binary version in its 0.4.6 version you should include:

   http://www.videolan.org/pub/videolan/vlc/0.4.6/vlc-0.4.6.tar.gz
260
   http://www.videolan.org/pub/videolan/vlc/0.4.6/contrib/
Loïc Minier's avatar
Loïc Minier committed
261 262 263 264 265 266 267

You don't need to bother explaining where the sources are, but the
sources have to share the same media as the products.

They are other ways to conform to the GPL, but this should be the
simplest because it does not rely on a contract.