[GTALUG] Odd VLC problem

[Evan Leibovitch]

On Mon, 25 Jan 2021 at 11:25, Giles Orr via talk <talk at gtalug.org> wrote:


> If you're not tied to 'vlc', try 'mpv' as a movie player.  I have both installed
> and used vlc as my main video program for many years, but now mostly lean
> to mpv.  Can't promise it won't have issues with the layout, but I think
> it's worth a try.
>

Interesting results.

mpv works fine, but I miss having a playlist and advanced controls (ie,
speedup).
I discovered "smplayer", which gives a fuller feature set to mpv/mplayer,
but it then has the same problems as I encountered with VLC.

The "aging eyes" issue is one I'm familiar with: my desktop now has a 43"(!)
> primary monitor that's flanked by a couple vertical monitors (those are
> different computers, and not always on).  Re-arranging the login screens
> to be vertical can be a real PITA depending on which login manager it is,
> otherwise it works quite well.


It was super simple under KDE "display configuration" settings.

If money (and desk real estate) aren't an issue, I would recommend seeing
> if you can find a big-ass monitor in the 40" range - I love that thing.
> Your eyes will thank you.  I was lucky though: it's actually a "monitor" rather
> than a repurposed TV, it's 4K, and I managed to get it for under $600 a
> couple years ago.  (Looking at current prices of 40"+ monitors, I'm
> thinking I should be using the phrase "spectacularly lucky.")


The two screens in my photos are each 28" and 4K
<https://www.samsung.com/us/computing/monitors/uhd-and-wqhd/samsung-uhd-28-monitor-with-high-glossy-black-finish-lu28e590ds-za/>,
so I'm very happy with display quality. At $300 each in Xmas sales my cost
was about the same as yours and total screen size is comparable. Don't
think I have much budget to upgrade them in the near future. Current 4K
monitors of 40" or more appear upwards of $1,200.

If you're okay with a TV (I'm not clear on the disadvantages - distorted
> colour palettes, high contrast, limited ports?), those are available at
> lower prices.
>

As an alternative I had considered a high-end 42" 4K TV. They're about
$600, and the lag time on high-end units should be acceptable for most uses
except high-intensity gaming (which I don't do). The big difference in
price is because TV manufacturers get subsidized for access to TV-watching
data, which is a non-issue if the screen is not enabled for the Internet or
"smart" features.

- Evan
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