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I've been using my soft-modded Wii for many years now to wirelessly play movies and TV shows from the computers around the house using WiiMC. In the last year or so the bit rate of these formats has become too much for my Wii (mostly for TV shows) and it causes annoying lag between video and audio. So I decided months ago that I would finally just buy one of those media players when I found a reasonable.

I looked into Roku, Chromecast, and micro computers (they call them "TV boxes" in some places here) with XBMC installed. I wouldn't mind trying out the former two, but I decided what I really wanted was something with XBMC. Looking a little further I found out I could turn a laptop into one of these media centers. That's great considering I was not paying the 120$-140$+ for that little thing from the local Kijiji.

I finally came across a laptop I could use and this morning fedex brought me the power adaptor... that was more than 12 hours ago.

So I started by wiping out the hard drive, making a bootable XBMCbuntu cd, and installing XBMC Gotham OS. Things went amazingly smooth, and after 20-30 minutes of updates and downloads I was looking at a neat XBMC menu. I spent another hour or so setting up network shares and filling the film, TV, photo and music libraries. When I was satisfied that things looked great and that I had my iPad remote controls set up I connected the laptop to the TV... and nothing happened.

I know nothing of Linux so I could not, as I would with Windows, check out the display properties. Nor did I find any possible settings inside Gotham that would help sharing the display with the TV. Hours down the drain I decided on a new path.

So I downloaded and installed the laptops originally intended OS, Windows XP. Got all my settings up to date, got all my drivers in order, and installed Gotham on it's own as a program... Nope, Gotham cannot be installed to XP. So I reinstalled XBMCbuntu - Gotham, this time as a dual-boot with windows. Unfortunately I didn't enter the correct wifi password during installation and now I cannot find any place to enter it (there is no place in Gotham and I do not know how to even begin on Ubuntu). Not that wifi would help connect it to the TV, just another minor annoyance.

Laptop: Toshiba Satellite A200

So I've since tried:

• VGA cable to TV
  
• S-video to TV
  
• VGA to RGB
  
• Seeking apps that might help with switching displays
  
• Obviously pushing the "FN + F5" keys (which has done nothing in either XBMC or Windows XP
  

Now I need help!

Perhaps the laptop is just too old and cannot connect to my TV (I generally have only connected my wifes work laptop using a HDMI cable or the Wii using RGB cables)... Perhaps I have made things far too complicated by installing things I did not need or in some way I shouldn't have.... who knows.

No seriously, please, tell me who knows!

Let me know if I can do something different to get an easy interface to watch movies and TV shows wirelessly connecting my network to my TV using what I have an software/settings. Perhaps something a little less expensive than a new smart TV or the $140 equivalent of a raspberry with a few minutes worth of XBMC install effort that they are selling around here.

Hello jimconnor, welcome to the forum !!

That's a very eloquent first post, much more thought out than the ones usually seen around here.

I have a few thoughts about what you have said.

Firstly, the fact that you installed, setup and have had Gotham running on the laptop already with XBMCbuntu is good news! It means that your hardware is up to the job of running XBMC. Raw CPU power is not as important to XBMC as the capabilities of the graphics card as so much of it is hardware accelerated. Also, XBMCbuntu is a 'stripped back' version of Linux, designed to use as little system resources as possible to run XBMC. This means it's a better choice for older hardware than Windows.

So, to your issue. I think the first thing to do, before we worry about getting XBMC to display on your TV, is to determine if the output port on your laptop actually works. This will in all probability be easier for you to test in Windows as you have no Linux experience. You commented that Fn+F5 (external vga port?) didn't work under Windows. That could be because the drivers are not installed if you just put on a 'vanilla' version of XP. Toshiba's support pages would be the place to look for any drivers that may be missing. The other way would be through Windows display properties. I haven't used Windows in a while, but it would be best to boot with the cable plugged in to your TV, and the TV turned on and with its VGA input selected to give Windows the best chance of detecting the display.

As long as you can get a picture of your Windows desktop to appear on your TV, then I think that you have every chance of getting XBMC under XBMCbuntu to display on there. The first thing though, is to make sure that VGA port is working.

I would install xbmcbuntu with the laptop plugged into the TV as a first option.

But really laptops can be a bit difficult because of this dual display problem...

That GPU in the A200 (Intel GMA 950) isn't going to work with VA-API (hardware accel.) on Linux.

What file(s) size, type, bitrate etc. are planning on watching?

(2014-07-10, 11:19)nickr Wrote: [ -> ]I would install xbmcbuntu with the laptop plugged into the TV as a first option.

But really laptops can be a bit difficult because of this dual display problem...

Yea, my alternatives are buy a Roku 3 for $110, get a Chromecast for $40 and hope google improves it, pay $120-140 for a "TV box with XBMC pre-installed/setup/updates with addons" and kick myself that it looks identical to the laptop I couldn't make work, or just stick with this sometimes laggy Wii and hope it doesn't get much worse.

(2014-07-10, 15:23)live4ever Wrote: [ -> ]That GPU in the A200 (Intel GMA 950) isn't going to work with VA-API (hardware accel.) on Linux.

What file(s) size, type, bitrate etc. are planning on watching?

That is exactly the type of technical info I was hoping for. Thanks and fuck that sucks.

There is no one type of file I watch; AVI, MP4, MKV, everything. For example though:

One show gives me trouble: MP4, 436 mb, 1287 kbps, 720 x 406, codec H.264
Another does not: AVI, 700 mb, 683 kbps, 640 x 272, codec XviD ISO MPEG-4

So I know where the line is, and sometimes I'll just convert a TV show to a lower bitrate before watching it rather than suffer the OOS scenes with too much action, or rainfall, or fire, etc. If it were just me I would just as soon ignore it and keep converting some shows and simply watching others right on my computer, but the entire family watches their shows on the TV through the Wii. I download everyones request shows and they're all played from my computer. So you can imagine how tedious this gets when I also then have to convert half of them so they aren't a headache to everyone else.

Why do you think those are your only alternatives? There are always NUCs or other x86 based machines.

(2014-07-10, 21:56)nickr Wrote: [ -> ]Why do you think those are your only alternatives? There are always NUCs or other x86 based machines.

Well I don't know what these "TV boxes" in my area are. They could be an x86 or NUC machine; I just mentioned that they might be Raspberry's to give an idea of size.

I'm honestly not trying to limit myself here; I just want the easiest and most reliable way to watch TV and movies, located on my computer, on the TV (and if I can manage it, something cheap). I put so much effort yesterday into making this laptop work with XMBCbunto because it looks wicked and has so many more features than just getting some wireless video transmitter (which would do essentially what I need without any flair).

If it helps, my TV has HDMI, S-video, VGA, and 2 RGB inputs, my wireless network is stable and easily accessible, and I have a bunch of spare parts in the basement (old motherboards from 2-6 years old, a couple of 160g SATA drives, a few 256-512 meg video cards, a dozen various ram sticks, a few old wireless routers, and a bunch more random things). So if you have any suggestions for what to build or buy instead of focusing on what I have been I am all ears.. or eyes I suppose on the internet.

(Although, now that I listed all that, I guess I could build a small tower with what I have, connect the output VGA to the TV and the network cable to a wireless router in bridge mode, but that's a lot of equipment under my TV stand for something that can be done by a device the size of my wallet... yes, I need to clean some crap outta my wallet, it's that big.)

I'm surprised you quote $140 for a Raspberry Pi - I'd say it should be a lot less, but then I live in UK (where most computing costs more than in USA).
You can connect to TV via HDMI (which you implied you had) or VGA/DVI with converter, and utilise the laptop as a fileserver.

(2014-07-11, 17:00)dandnsmith Wrote: [ -> ]I'm surprised you quote $140 for a Raspberry Pi - I'd say it should be a lot less, but then I live in UK (where most computing costs more than in USA).
You can connect to TV via HDMI (which you implied you had) or VGA/DVI with converter, and utilise the laptop as a fileserver.

Sorry if my being vague has again caused any confusion. I am not saying a Raspberry Pi is $140. I am saying that they sell small computing devices with XBMC installed that could be any equipment that size inside the case. My point is really that it doesn't matter what's inside; I know it is not worth $140. I'm just annoyed that it would do exactly what I want if I would just bite the bullet and pay for the convenience of not building it myself.

And I wish it was as easy as connecting the laptop to the VGA, but as mentioned by another above, apparently my video is not compatible with the OS. Even in windows XP I was not successful in sending the output through VGA or S-video. (I bet it would work if the laptop was slightly newer and had the HDMI my TV does.)

I've played with a number of laptops, connecting them to external displays - and a lot depends on the hardware, as well as the software. There was at least one (cannot remember what make and model) which wouldn't switch to the external output unless you set the hardware switches right first, and another which wouldn't output video externally for any player except that provided with the machine.

I wish you well in your endeavours (a happy Pi user using XBMC)

@jimconnor:

I have a crap old laptop similar to yours (an old Acer with Intel GMA 945/950 or whatever), and I got Openelec up and running without issue hooked up via VGA. I should also mention that the laptop screen does not work (inverter is messed) so the VGA was the only option.

Double check your BIOS settings for external display.

I only play SD content on it and I have no issues with tv rips/movies. Know your hardware, and play within it.

(2014-07-11, 19:17)dandnsmith Wrote: [ -> ]I've played with a number of laptops, connecting them to external displays - and a lot depends on the hardware, as well as the software. There was at least one (cannot remember what make and model) which wouldn't switch to the external output unless you set the hardware switches right first, and another which wouldn't output video externally for any player except that provided with the machine.

I wish you well in your endeavours (a happy Pi user using XBMC)

Thanks for the well wishes.

(2014-07-11, 19:59)helta Wrote: [ -> ]@jimconnor:

I have a crap old laptop similar to yours (an old Acer with Intel GMA 945/950 or whatever), and I got Openelec up and running without issue hooked up via VGA. I should also mention that the laptop screen does not work (inverter is messed) so the VGA was the only option.

Double check your BIOS settings for external display.

I only play SD content on it and I have no issues with tv rips/movies. Know your hardware, and play within it.

OMFG you fixed it! I got a little bro-love for you right now.

I had totally forgotten to check the bios for a setting. I had done everything under the sun, including connecting it to the TV prior to turning either on, which should have automatically forced it to send out the LCD and CRT but it must not have been doing that. I switched the bios setting from "Auto" to "Always send CRT-LCD" and it friggin worked!!

So now I have 2 more problems, and when they are resolved I have everything I was looking for:

1. Like I said earlier, I messed up the Wifi password during installation of the OS so it will not connect over wifi, only wired. And there is no lan/wifi settings sections in the system settings... just "Proxy" and "Bandwidth" settings. I can click the XBMC power button, then "Exit" but then I haven't a clue where to go to enter the wireless SSID/password. I read that I should install the "Network" addon but that says it is not compatible with Gotham. Pretend I have never even opened a window in what I believe is the underlying Ubuntu, let alone entered a command.

2. The screen shuts off when I close the lid. Were there Windows underneath XBMC I would simply adjust the power settings. I cannot do that here.

Both of these issues can be resolved, I'm pretty sure, if I simply switch to Win XP which is also installed. On that side at least I know how to access the power settings and have already connected the Wifi. But I wouldn't mind sticking with XBMCbuntu if that is possible.

Not that I'm any expert, but last time I played with xbmcubuntu (and that was early noob stages of linux) I remember being able to click the quit button in the lower left hand corner of the main screen and it showing an operating system behind xbmc that you could log into and change the settings. Not sure if it's still there but could be possible. As far as the screen settings that may also be in there to adjust.

You need to log into the xbmcbuntu session.

(2014-07-11, 22:38)unplugmealready Wrote: [ -> ]Not that I'm any expert, but last time I played with xbmcubuntu (and that was early noob stages of linux) I remember being able to click the quit button in the lower left hand corner of the main screen and it showing an operating system behind xbmc that you could log into and change the settings. Not sure if it's still there but could be possible. As far as the screen settings that may also be in there to adjust.

You are right, and that is still there, but I could not figure out where to go from there. Your suggestion that I had to log in helped. I had assumed, apparently incorrectly, that like windows, that I was already in the OS, and that when I logged in and saw the XBMC screen it was like an app running on the OS.

So I clicked around and noticed in the top right hand side there was a drop down option to choose between XBMC and XBMCbuntu. So I clicked the latter, signed in again, and now I seem to have some rather easy to find GUI settings to get into the wireless. Yay!

Just trying to locate a setting for the lid now.

(2014-07-11, 22:40)nickr Wrote: [ -> ]You need to log into the xbmcbuntu session.

Done! Just didn't seem obvious to me before.