2Mar2009
Greetings.
Below I reproduce my posting in VLAN forum...
I am trying to find a solution for how to play video (avi/mpg etc ...)
on a very old notebook (Toshiba 4005cds) with WinXP.
The 4005 specs are here-
http://www.epinions.com/S0043036_Toshib ... full_specs
I have the max 160mb RAM installed.
The HDD is the original Toshiba HDD
MK4006MAV
Interface: 44-pin EIDE ° Data Transfer Rates: 33.3MB/s (UATA) °
Average Seek Times: 13ms ° Buffer Size: 512KB °
Rotational Speed: 4200rpm ° Height (mm): SLIM *(12.7) °
It seems to me it must be possible with some Software with some certain configuration
to properly play videos on this dinosaur of a notebook, which is only good for certain things now.
I now have VLC 0.9.4, JetAudio & WinAmp 5.5.41 installed; however, none play video properly.
I have made my own avi file of the end of
2001: Space Odyssey with Pink Floyd Echoes as the audio.
I would to play this video on the 4005 as a night time screen saver;
however, none of the installed apps
(& no of the others Media Player Classic, Real Audio 8.0, DivX Player ...) properly play the video.
VLC has various "Quick Sets", but none of them have worked for me.
There are some other "MultiMedia" quirks on this 4005.
The latest version of JetAudio will not play mp3 files on the 4005 but WinAmp 5.541 will.
I'm going to reinstall old version JetAudio 7 which used to play mp3s on the 4005
and see if the old version will still play mp3s on the 4005.
JetAudio & VLC start to play the 2001Echoes video OK, but never finish without becoming jumpy
and then freezing the video (but not the audio).
WinAmp does not really even start to play the video.
It seems to me it must be possible with some Software with some certain configuration
to properly play videos on this dinosaur of a notebook, which is only good for certain things now.
I can play any/all video/s without problems on my other two 4 or 5 year old notebooks.
I disconnected the internet connection so I could close the ZoneAlarm firewall
which really taxes the 4005 operations ...
Any replies/insights appreciated.
Thank you.
Regards,
AEN
Æ
Re: Play Video on 10 year old Notebook?
by VLC_help on Sat Dec 13, 2008 10:17 pm
CPU and Memory limitations your computer sets are too much for default Windows XP install.
One option is to encode the video to MPEG-1 format and play it using mplayer2.exe
VLC_help
Cone Master
Posts: 7465
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Re: Play Video on 10 year old Notebook?
by AEN007 on Thu Dec 25, 2008 12:25 am
24Dec2008
Greetings.
Thanks for the reply.
Before I made the original posting I actually tried
to play an mpg1 instead of an avi file on the 4005.
Although this ancient 4005 is not an optimal XP machine,
the 4005 does meet the Microsoft minimum requirements for XP»
The minimum hardware requirements for Windows XP Home Edition are:
Pentium 233-megahertz (MHz) processor or faster (300 MHz is recommended)
At least 64 megabytes (MB) of RAM (128 MB is recommended)
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/314865
I don't have the Windows Media Player installed on any of my laptops.
In any case I have been experimenting endlessly with a/v apps on the 4005.
I even swapped out the original Toshiba 4gb HDD (with 4500rpm)
for the 60 gb HTS541060G9AT00 that originally came with one of my other XP laptops.
The HTS541060G9AT00 has 5400rpm.
Multimedia performance improved (but not enough) with the new HDD.
I found that the JetAudio audio playback thread priority was set to higher than normal.
I changed the priority back to normal and audio playback improved (but not enough).
WinAmp plays audio fine but only when without visualizations.
(For those interested see my posting at the CoolPlayer forum.)
I found something called the MPlayer & SMPlayer frontend.
I demo'ed the SMPlayer (SMP) "portable" version on the 4005
and found that the SMP (when configured properly)
plays video files (with audio) on the 4005 much, much better than any other app.
VLC, JA, WinAmp & the SMP play video files that have no audio seemingly flawlessly on the 4005.
I don't know why it is so difficult for this old notebook to play audio.
I can play videos (with certain apps) on the 4005 seemingly flawlessly,
but only when I have stripped the audio out & encoded video only.
I then have to "karaoke" the/any audio to go with the video.
SMPlayer has played some short 20 minute avi files with audio
through to the end without crapping out,
although the video was not as good as it would be without the audio.
In any case I would certainly welcome hearing from anyone
at any time who could offer insights on a/v playback on this old 4005.
Thank you.
Regards,
AEN
Æ
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First, why? Also, you might have put the PC stats in text instead of a broken link, not like the post wasn't long enough, already. Amazing in all that there are no specs of any kind for any of the media files.
This would be a rare occassion where one of the Linux flavors might actually be your best option. Just don't expect any miracles, I doubt it will handle much more than VCD-type video. -
2Mar2009
Greetings.
I hope everyone in this forum is not a no-vision pin-head such as Nelson37.
I guess I'll find out.
Originally Posted by Nelson37
Maybe the 4005 dinosaur would play wmv or avi with wma? -
My Sony Vaio from 1998/9 still happily plays MPEG1 and DV AVI (and MOV DV) files. It's a 600MHz PIII with 192MB RAM.
BUT - it came with Windows Me which I quickly (the next day!) replaced with Windows 2000. XP won't install on it and, with that much RAM, I wouldn't put it on there anyway.
Does you laptop support USB2.0? If so, try an external hard drive. Using the internal one hampers your chances of smooth playback, especially if it is heavily fragmented.John Miller -
i second the pinhead. why do you want to do this? laptops are so cheap now a days. is it nostalgia?
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Originally Posted by JohnnyMalaria
I had an older 500MHz PIII Dell with 192MB RAM. I got that going with XP using a special stripped down XPLite version but that machine wasn't able to play DV or DVD with reliability. It must have been the weak laptop GPU.
http://www.litepc.com/
AEN007, we are still guessing the specs of your machine. If 10 years old, it may be a PII.Recommends: Kiva.org - Loans that change lives.
http://www.kiva.org/about -
Originally Posted by AEN007
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My lack of vision is apparently preventing my seeing any hardware specs on the device, or any useful information on the files you want to play.
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I searched for Toshiba 4005:
http://www.shopping.com/xPF-Toshiba-Portege-4005-PP400U-002G2JB-1
750 MHz P3. Borderline for DVD, I think. -
Originally Posted by jagaboRecommends: Kiva.org - Loans that change lives.
http://www.kiva.org/about -
Oh wait. I think I found the exact model. The link matches his partial link:
http://www10.epinions.com/specs/S0043036_Toshiba_Corporation_Satellite_4005CDS
233 MHz P2? Throw it away! -
Originally Posted by jagabo
But is good enough for running MS Office 2000.
///// -
Quote: "12.1 in. DSTN Passive Matrix" "2 MB" Video Memory
This would be horrible for any video playback.
Solitaire would be the ideal application to use on this unit."I will not be pushed, filed, stamped, indexed, briefed, debriefed, or numbered! My life is my own" - the Prisoner
(NO MAN IS JUST A NUMBER)
be seeing you ( RIP Patrick McGoohan ) -
You might look here http://www.oldversion.com/ for a lighter version of a media player.
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Windows Media Player 6.4 still ships with WMP. It's in the same folder as WMP named mplayer2.exe.
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192MB RAM /750MHz PIII laptop would play DVDs and DivX/XviD while running Windows 2000 no sweat, it would only choke on those using GMC and obviously it wouldn't play x264/h264 videos.
Pentium II 233MHz is bare usable minimum for Windows 2000, and not enough to play anything more than simplest VCDs (MPEG-1).
The main problem here is its video chipset and memory (really it has only 2MB of memory?!) and its display. Even with PIII CPU it'll have major problem playing anything more complicated than MPEG-1.
Also DSTN passive matrix lcd screen is the worst possible kind of screen you'd want to play movies on.
For modern yet light browser use K-Meleon. It is really very light on resources (for as long as you don't start using 20 tabs at once).
It worked flawlessly on a 96MB 166MHz NT4 and 48MB 133MHz Win95 crapsters when I tested it.
It might work fine on even slower junk (I just wasn't able to find anything slower than those).
lastly
@AEN007
why?!
. -
XP? That dinosaur will likely only work for DVD playback with Windows 98, or 98SE. XP should only boot with 512MB or better (256 is really pushing it).
1. Change OS to Win98 or Linux (your choice).
2. Use the machine ONLY for internet surfing - and it still may be slow.
3. Donate the machine to a needy family that is really desperate for a puter.;/ l ,[____], Its a Jeep thing,
l---L---o||||||o- you wouldn't understand.
(.)_) (.)_)-----)_) "Only In A Jeep" -
3March2009
Greetings.
I post the following for those with some technical knowledge
on the subject and some useful info to impart.
There is seemingly no reason to address anything
to the empty-headed, know nothing loud mouths.
The issue I am working to resolve is to play video (with an audio track - not DVDs)
on a 10 year old laptop with XP. The 4005cds laptop (purchased in 1998) specs are indeed-
http://www10.epinions.com/specs/S0043036_Toshiba_Corporation_Satellite_4005CDS
Some of you act like you have never seen nor made a typo or posting error before.
As I said, the 4005 now has 160mb RAM & a 60gb 5400rpm HDD
instead of the original 4gb 4200rpm HDD. As I said, JetAudio, VLC & SMPlayer
all flawlessly play video files with no audio track on the 4005.
SMPLayer is the only software that will play video files with an audio track on the 4005.
Some postings made above are totally inaccurate & worthless.
My project is to squeeze every bit of functionality out of the 4005, because I want to do that.
Any of you should feel free to junk any/all of your older hardware.
The 4005 has a USB 2.0 port, but the port is not High Speed.
I have two external HDDs, but
1- the USB port is not High Speed, so the internal HDD is probably faster
(none of my HDDs have any fragmentation
2- I live almost always "on the road", so I do not travel with the external HDDs.
I have considered that a 7200rpm HDD might (sufficiently) improve the 4005 A/V functioning,
but I have no plans to actually do that. I have been trying avi files (DivX codec).
I have lowered the video bit rate to around 501 & the FPS to 23.976.
When I try an avi file with an audio track, the audio is at 32cbr & 24Hz.
SMPlayer plays a 7min avi file of Champagne Supernova with audio flawlessly.
SMPlayer plays the end of 2001SpaceOdyssey+Echoes completely
but with video distortion during the high motion sequences.
JetAudio, VLC & SMPlayer all play the 2001SpaceOdyssey with no audio track flawlessly.
I suppose I will try 2001+Echoes at 15fps.
I certainly welcome hearing from anyone
with any accurate knowledge on the issue at hand & useful feedback.
I suppose the others have nothing better to do than manifest their forum personality disorders.
Thank you.
Regards,
AEN
Æ -
Derex888 said it all.
Well, Windows XP requires not only a bigger and faster HDD,
and not only anything above 128MB of RAM --- therefore, if the
old notebook still works @ 233MHz, you shouldn't even dream of
installing XP on it (even though the marketeers from M$ might think otherwise).
Yes, I know that even the best experts underestimate the capabilities of
the "old junk" at times --- but that's not the case in this forum thread.
For example, an 80486 @ 66MHz with 32MB of RAM indeed can play back
some short 320x240 crappy .AVIs with crappy audio flawlessly,
but it will play standalone MP3s only if these are mono, and only if there are no other
applications trying to run at the same time --- and the big question is,
what's the point of so much effort
////////
//////// -
Have you tried audio at 41 KHz, 16 bit, stereo, 128 kbps CBR? Uncompressed?
Some of the other usual suspects: make sure DMA is enabled for the hard drive. Make sure Video Overlay is enabled in the driver and the player (if there is no obvious Video Overlay setting set the video Hardware Acceleration to max). -
I can see the merit in using an old laptop that is otherwise gathering dust to play videos on the road. If it gets stolen, flies off the hood of the car, has Starbuck's spilt all over it then not much has been lost in comparison to a new laptop. And perhaps a new machine is not an option (you know - that money thing). It's actually not a bad idea - I might start doing it next time I am teaching underwater video. That way, I can playback the footage on a decent size screen on the way back to shore without fretting about it.
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All that was needed was "I want to play video on a P-II 233."
Answer - lo-res MPG1 or uncompressed AVI. NO Mpg2, NO Divx, and lo-quality is what you will get. Hardware of that type needs a boost from an accelerator card even for SVCD. These will not install into a laptop.
The "USB 2.0 ports, not Hi-Speed" are almost certainly 1.0 and NOT 2.0. The message "not a hi-speed port" MEANS not 2.0.
Multiple requests and still no specs whatsoever on resolutions attempted.
Putting XP on this machine was a serious mistake.
Now, take your name-calling along with your attitude and go demonstrate your stupidity someplace else. I'm really not in the mood. -
The XPLite referenced above would allow a stripped version of XP to run on that machine but 98SELite is more appropriate for a PII. Idea is to make the OS as small as possible to free memory and CPU for video decoding.
Read the 98SELite FAQ's to get the right files loaded for video playback and remove the rest. I used 98SELite to keep a 486/100MHz going but was also able to install a more modern display card. With a laptop you are stuck with the installed display chipset.
You could strip down Linux in the same way. Better to take that to an embedded Linux forum where they work with very small CPU/memory.
When you familiarize yourself with the embedded OS world, a PII-233MHz starts to look large and usable. Embedded design skills are in high demand for jobs. Good Luck.Recommends: Kiva.org - Loans that change lives.
http://www.kiva.org/about -
4March2009
Greetings.
Let's see ...
1) It seems to me that if one does not like what another is saying in a thread,
then one could/should stay out of that thread. I guess one is free to go into any thread and say,
"Get lost, stupid!"; but that seemingly just displays one as ineffectual.
2) The issue I am working to resolve is to play video (with an audio track - not DVDs)
on a 10 year old laptop with XP. There were many considerations
(including compatibility with my other 2 [modern] XP laptops
& number/quality of available apps/utils) when deciding to try out XP
on such an ill endowed, poorly suited for XP laptop such as the 4005 -
even though the 4005 does meet M$'s published minimum XP specs.
The 4005 came with Win98. I put WinME on the 4005 in Feb2001 and
used WinME on the 4005 until a year ago. I am pleasantly surprised and pleased
with how well XP runs on the 4005. I find some postings inaccurate & do not agree with them,
but I do not care what the opinions of remote/removed armchair analysts are.
I'm not going to try to convince anyone of anything.
I would never consider going back to Win98/ME.
I was not previously aware of the "stripped down XP" option.
I don't know if I would want to start from scratch with a clean install, however.
I have read M$ will continue to support XPsp3 until around 2014.
3) The core issue (from my perspective) is to find the right combination of all elements
to allow the 4005 to play video files (with an audio track) without sending CPU usage to 100%.
I had to (& did) find the right combination of elements to allow me to play audio files
with visualizations that do not send CPU usage to 100% on the 4005.
I have seen that doing the files at 15fps lowers the CPU usage without making the video "crappy".
I tried (again) a 2001+Echoes mp1 file & noticed that the SMPlayer playback (@ 100% CPU usage)
was less jerky than the SMPlayer playback of a 2001+Echoes avi file.
The conclusion of 2001 has some high motion graphics which seem to really tax the 4005 CPU.
It might be that the 4005 will use SMPlayer to play low motion avi files @ 15fps with an audio track.
I do not find the case to be that the 4005 is incapable of handling avi files.
JetAudio, VLC & SMPlayer all flawlessly play the end of 2001SpaceOdyssey avi file with no audio track.
So, in any case, I am still looking for & trying out new things that might allow the 4005
to play video (with an audio track) without sending CPU usage to 100%.
That seems to be the core issue.
Any (more) helpful replies/insights appreciated.
Thank you.
Regards,
AEN
Æ -
6March2009
Greetings.
As I said, I noticed that doing the avi files @ 15fps lowered CPU usage.
I've been working with three files-
Champagne Supernova (low motion, 15fps with audio track);
conclusion of 2001: Space Odyssey [aka Jupiter: Beyond the Infinite]
(high motion, 15fps without audio track); and
2001[JBtI]+Echoes (high motion, 15fps with Pink Floyd audio track).
I noticed that SMPlayer played Champagne Supernova without sending CPU Usage to 100%,
so I tried JetAudio & VLC. Just when I thought VLC had become superfluous,
I found that VLC played 15fps avi video (with audio) at even lower CPU Usage than SMPlayer.
I tried 2001[JBtI]+Echoes with both SMPlayer & VLC.
Both played mostly at less than 100% CPU Usage - until the high motion part started.
Then both sent CPU Usage to 100% & played with video distortion,
so I pondered how to free up CPU Usage for video playback with an audio track.
I searched the internet to see if/how an idea I had could be done and
found that/how the idea could be done. This "trick" can be done on any XP machine for sure.
The value of the trick for freeing up CPU Usage is probably limited to dinosaur machines.
Last night I tried out the idea, and VLC flawlessly played 2001[JBtI]+Echoes all night.
For the last month I've had someone else's external 17inch flat screen & speakers+subwoofer
connected to the 4005 dinosaur, so the experience was truly not "crappy".
It's a miracle.
There's a quote for situations like this-
"Too stupid to know it couldn't be done."
VLC still sends CPU Usage to 100% during the high motion parts, but CPU Usage flickers
between 99% & 100% instead of staying at 100% and causing video distortion.
This morning I wrote two scripts to automate all details of implementing the "trick",
so now toggling the 4005 between normal operational state and
being ready for high motion video playback with audio is obtainable at the "push of a button".
I always be open to other/more ways to achieve this result,
but for now it seems that I have found the/a solution.
I guess now I can move on to my next project
which would include as an end result using the 4005 as a desktop TV
(and not via WebTV but rather via an external USB video capture device ...).
I also decided today to uninstall regular VLC and start using the portable version.
The VLC un/install needed for regular VLC new releases has always been a pain.
I'm certainly glad I started this thread because
the 15fps tip from this thread has been crucial to finding a solution.
So, in any case, I am still looking for & trying out new things that might allow the 4005
to play video (with an audio track) without sending CPU usage to 100%.
That seems to be the core issue.
I also would to ask/know about partitioned HDD access speed.
Can VLC access the avi files quicker on the smaller c: partition where VLC is installed
instead of the larger d: partition?
or does it not matter? or does it only matter theoretically?
Any (more) helpful replies/insights appreciated.
Thank you.
Regards,
AEN
Æ -
"I will not be pushed, filed, stamped, indexed, briefed, debriefed, or numbered! My life is my own" - the Prisoner
(NO MAN IS JUST A NUMBER)
be seeing you ( RIP Patrick McGoohan ) -
read the posts by Nelson37, Midzuki and Number Six.
THREAD OVER -
Originally Posted by AEN007
This would actually be a useful experiment for you. Encode the video with a very low frame rate then whatever CPU usage you get will be from the audio handling. Then search for audio encodings that play without taxing the CPU. Once you have figured that out go back to normal frame rates for the video.
Also look for a "Skip frames" option in your player (VLC has this). It allows the player to skip frame when video decoding gets behind, thereby keeping audio and video in sync.
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