PVR or DVR for Linux - NOT MythTV

[Tom Metro]

markw-FJ05HQ0HCKaWd6l5hS35sQ at public.gmane.org wrote:
> I don't want to run a database server just for an application. 
...
> If the application is going to embed its database, then let
> it do what it wants.

I've read that MythTV is moving towards an embedded MySQL.


> If I have to run a database server, I want to be able to chose my
> database.

This is an "old school" view of databases. I've ran into this before 
when selling a product using MySQL into large organizations. If Oracle 
is their in-house database, then they want everything to run on Oracle, 
even if that means performance will suffer.

It's easy to treat MySQL as an embedded database, even without using the 
embedded version which I believe has only recently become available. It 
requires few resources, minimal maintenance, and can be configured to 
talk to its clients over a UNIX socket, so there are no network security 
risks and no conflicts with other processes.


More generally on the MythTV vs. Freevo issue, I'd recommend looking at 
the size of the communities and support from third party projects. Yes, 
popularity does matter in the short term, unless your objective is to 
become a developer on the project. More people means more supported 
hardware, more side projects, and more answers to questions.

I like that with MythTV I can choose to use an $80, low-power front-end 
with it, and not have to develop the client software myself[1]. With the 
increasing popularity of UPnP[2], which provides a (semi) standard 
interface for media clients, this may become less of an issue, if Freevo 
supports UPnP. I've read that people are starting to use HD capable 
media clients via UPnP with MythTV.

1. http://www.mvpmc.org/
2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UPnP

  -Tom

-- 
Tom Metro
Venture Logic, Newton, MA, USA
"Enterprise solutions through open source."
Professional Profile: http://tmetro.venturelogic.com/

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