I preferably want to be able to replay the original tracks from the Blu-rays/DVDs that I buy, but I want to play them from my media center (Linux with XBMC). However, with the VC-1 codec, I found no other option than to transcode the video to a H.264 stream. This might cause some quality loss, but as far as I could see it was minimal. A bonus of doing the transcoding is of course reducing the size of the files to about half the size. The instructions below explains how I transcoded the files with VC-1 video streams to be able to view the on Linux.

First, I ripped the Blu-ray using AnyDVD HD.

Second, I transcoded the video using RipBot using the settings above. A lower CRF is supposed to give you the best quality (and the larges files). I selected this one, and I did not include the sound as I did not want to have just a 128 Kbs bit rate. See, for instance, MediaSmartServer.net for some more info.

To identify which streams from the blu-ray you want, you might want to have a look at BDInfo. It is normally the largest/longest playlists and streams.

Finally, I added the original HD sound track by combining the sound stream from the blu-ray, with the newly created video file from RipBot. This is easily done using TSMuxer.

1. Remove any traces of OpenJDK. See one of my earlier posts.

2. Install Sun’s Java version 6 (I have written about this before, and there are plenty of guides out there on how to do this).

This could be enough. However, I had problems getting the Java plugin started when opening BankID. To sort this out, create a symlink to the Java plugin in a mozilla plugin folder using the following code (thanks to WebUP8):
mkdir -p ~/.mozilla/plugins
ln -s /usr/lib/jvm/java-6-sun/jre/lib/amd64/libnpjp2.so ~/.mozilla/plugins/

Where the path (“/usr/lib/jvm/java-6-sun/jre/lib/amd64/libnpjp2.so”) depends on what JRE you have installed, and what CPU you have. I have an 64 bit AMD processor, and I have installed Sun’s JRE version 6.

The above is so far tested on only one computer. Please give feedback if you have tested it successfully yourself, or if you have further problems.

The fix was simple, (re)installing the ntp package made sure that some of the missing dependencies was installed. I am pretty sure this has happened to me before, so it could be a useful tips to others. If your clock runs late, try the following (one may of course use Synaptic as well):

sudo apt-get install ntp

1. Backup disk and remove copy protection

AnyDVD HD

AnyDVD HD does a good job removing the copy protection and backing up the disk to your hard drive. It is a proprietary piece of software, but I found that a lifetime license was worth the investment (about € 100).

Please note that removing copy protection may be illegal in some countries. In Norway (where I live) it is, to my best understanding, illegal to circumvent effective copy protection measures. As far as I see it, AnyDVD makes the copy protection on Blu-rays very ineffective. However, there are, to my knowledge, no court orders that defines what effective is. Removing the copy protection may therefore be in the gray area. Nevertheless, I strongly believe consumers should be able to back up their own DVDs and Blu-rays, and use software like XBMC to manage their media collection.

2. Identifying the movie streams

DBInfo

You may want to store the whole blu-ray with all its files and folders. I am however mainly interested in the main feature itself. To identify the stream(s) that contain(s) the movie I use BDInfo. The first and longest playlist normally contain the stream(s) that constitute the movie. The movie in the screenshot above was contained in only one stream (“00000.m2ts”). The streams are always located in the folder “[movie root]\BDMV\STREAM”.

If only one stream (.m2ts file) contains the whole movie, you may simply store this file where ever you like, and watch it with XBMC or any other viewer you’d like. If the movie is constituted of several streams you should use tsMuxer to join/append these streams in the order shown in BDInfo.

Please note that the .m2ts container does not contain subtitles and chapters. If you want this you could for instance use the mkv container. However, since I normally do not care about either, I just back up the .m2ts file.

3. Adding an AC3 sound track and removing unnecessary tracks (optional)

Eac3toAC3

Some players are not able to decode DTS sound tracks. As a consequence of this I normally add an AC3 (Dolby Digital) track to my .m2ts containers. This is done by first encoding the DTS to AC3 using Eac3to.

tsMuxer

Next, create a new .m2ts file by adding (muxing) the newly created .ac3 file to the .m2ts file from the blu-ray. This is done using tsMuxer.

While muxing the two files I normally remove tracks that I do not need. This may be languages, presentation graphics, or video tracks with lower resolution. To remove them, simply uncheck the tracks that you do not want.

• Specific
• Measurable
• Attainable
• Relevant
• Time-bound

Please also enjoy The Simpsons – I Am So Smart.

First install Sun’s java implementation. I installed it from the 10.04 repository (lucid) using the following commands (or Synaptic Package Manager):

sudo add-apt-repository "deb http://archive.canonical.com/ lucid partner"
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install sun-java6-jre sun-java6-plugin sun-java6-fonts

However, I am pretty sure using the 11.04 (natty) respository would work as well (Synaptic should already have an entry for partner software):

sudo add-apt-repository deb-src http://archive.canonical.com/ubuntu natty partner

Then remove all the packages concerning OpenJDK (my computers had six different packages). It is probably easier to find and remove the packages by using Synaptic.

Finally, select the java version to use by typing in the following command (pick the one saying “sun jre” and “auto”):

sudo update-alternatives --config java

I have tested the above on two different computers and it is working. If you have problems, leave me a comment and I’ll see if I can help.

This post shows how to use a machine with Ubuntu as a central server, how to encrypt your data, and how to back them up using Ubuntu One. The guide assumes that you have a disk (array) containing the data that is mounted outside your home folder in Ubuntu.

Encryption

There are several ways to encrypt your data. Ì chose to use a virtual, encrypted file system that encrypts my data on the fly. There are several ways to do this, but I chose encfs. It was recommended around the net, and it seems to be working great. Setting it ups is relatively easy. Just follow this great guide by HyRax1 (thanks man). Just take note on how to share the folder with samba (assuming that you already have set up file sharing/samba on your machine. Just google it if in doubt.)

The guid will ask you create two folders. One for the encrypted data, and one for decrypted data. The folder for decrypted data gives you a view that allows you to read and modify your data.

Please make sure to remember your password!

Linking the folder into your home folder

Since Ubuntu One only supports synchronization of folders within your home folder, you have to bind the folder (the encrypted one) into your home folder. Create a folder named “private_documents” in your home folder, and in a command prompt type:

sudo getdit /etc/fstab

Then add a line similar to the one below into your fstab:

/path/to/encrypted_data /home/[user name]/private_documents       none    bind        0       0

Synchronize data with Ubuntu One

Right click your private_documents, select “Synchronize on Ubuntu One”. See this guide for more info. Now you are all done.

The data may now be downloaded and decrypted on another computer simply by installing encfs and mapping the folder:
encfs /path/to/encrypted_data /path/to/decrypted

Lennon against Aresenal - http://www.telegraph.co.uk

Nevertheless, C Sports has also changed a bit. The good, C Sports now support for Linux through Flash, and they provide streams from the Carling Cup. The bad, the prices are still too high. 79 NOK (10 €) for a game in the first round of the Carling Cup, is still too expensive. At least with the service quality they offer. The ugly: the image! The picture quality on my stream was very poor. Charging 10€ for it is almost a robbery. Moreover, the stream ended five minutes before the game ended!! I could at least not reconnect at the end of the game.

Nice to see more streaming services available on the Linux platform. However, the image and service quality needs to increase, and the price needs to decrease.

Step 1.Installation

First, dvdbackup may be installed through Synaptic, or by typing the following into the command line: sudo apt-get install dvdbackup

Second, you most likely have to install a CSS library to remove the copy protection. This may be done by adding the following unofficial repositories to your list of repositories (System->Administration->Synaptic Package Manager, then Settings->Repositories, and them on the “Other Software” pane):

deb http://unofficial.debian-maintainers.org/ lenny main contrib non-free restricted
deb-src http://unofficial.debian-maintainers.org/ lenny main contrib non-free restricted

You will most likely get an error message because of a missing key. Ignore this error message, or get the missing key through installing the package dmo-archive-keyring. Then you need to add the package libdvdcss2.

Third, Handbrake does not have an official stable release for Ubuntu at the moment. However, the nightly build has been working very well on my computer. To install this build follow these instructions. In short, add the following two repositories, and install the package handbrake-gtk.
deb http://ppa.launchpad.net/stebbins/handbrake-snapshots/ubuntu lucid main
deb-src http://ppa.launchpad.net/stebbins/handbrake-snapshots/ubuntu lucid main

Step 2. Ripping with dvdbackup

I use the command line tool dvdback up to make a copy of the DVD on the hard drive. The copy does not have any copy protection. To do this, start the command line, and go to the folder where you want the image to be stored. Then, type: dvdbackup -i /dev/dvd -M

dvdbackup - screenshot

I have experienced some problems with the name of the dvd drive, but /dev/dvd/ usually works. If not, find the right name under /dev or /media. As you might see from the image above, you could receive some error messages. Do not worry about these. They are ignored sectors that are part of the copy protection. Ripping a full DVD usually takes about 15 to 20 minutes on my computer.

3. Transcoding with Handbrake

Transcoding the movies and series from the DVD format (usually a VIDEO_TS folder with several VTS_**_*.VOB files) to a single video file is very simple. First, set up Handbrake the way you want. Personally, I do not include subtitles, select the MP4 file format, and use the “High quality” preset. However, you may play around with the settings any way you like.

HandBrake - Screenshot

Second, Select “Source” in Handbrake (see the screenshot above), browse to the source folder of one DVD, and click “OK”.

Third, Pick the “Title” you want to encode. give it a sensible name, select the folder where you want to store the transcoded file, and click “Add to Queue”. The longest title is automatically selected. For DVDs with movies, the longest title is usually the movie itself. For TV series, make sure that you add all the episodes on the disc to the queue.

Fourth, when you have added all the movies you want to transcode, simply click “Start” and let your computer do the job. On my machine (AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black with 4 GB RAM), transcoding a movie takes about 45 min to an hour with the hiqh quality settings. On an AMD Athlon X2 4850e with 4 GB RAM, it takes significantly longer.

The next step

When Handbrake finishes you will have a collection of transcoded movies and series. In future post, I will show how I manage these using another set of open source software.

Disclaimer

Ripping and transcoding (copyrighted) DVDs may be illegal in some countries. In Norway, where I live it is not illegal to break “weak” copy protections like CSS (the copy protection used on DVDs). Distribution of copyrighted material is still illegal in Norway and most other countries, so please don’t do it.

Call of Duty: Black Ops - Treyarch

I must admit that Call of Duty: Black Ops (Nov 9, 2010) is probably the game I am waiting for the most. Not so much because I believe it is going to be the greatest game ever, but mainly because I have become “totally addicted” to Modern Warfare 2. I will most likely play Black Ops quite a lot too, and I am very curious about what Treyarch is able to bring to the table this time around. Dedicated servers are said to be back, and I hope they do something to counter all those cheaters the we see in Modern Warfare 2.

Then there are a few games that most likely will have a story (as opposed to the last few Call of Duty games). We have Mafia II (Aug 24, 2010), Fallout: New Vegas (Oct 19, 2010), and Fable III (Oct 26, 2010). All of these are sequels to great games. Mafia looks quite good, and the previews I have seen are quite positive. Fallout does unfortunately look a bit dated, but I still have high hopes (Note to self: still need to complete Fallout 3). Fable, don’t know yet. I am not sure if I want it to become even less RPG than the previous. However, Fable 2 was a good and cute game. I really love that they have British voice actors.

Civilization 5 - Firaxis Games

The final tittle that I have high hopes for is the return of the undisputed strategy champion, Sid Meier’s Civilization V (Sep 21, 2010). I have unfortunately not played the last game as much as I should, but I am very much looking forward to this new game. It will most likely be great! I just hope that I have the patience to play strategy games, after way too many hours of online multi player FPS.

Worth watching

There are also a few other games that I am a bit uncertain about. However, I will be tracking them closely as they are released. First up is Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days (Aug 17, 2010). The first game was not very good, and I don’t really expect the second to be an epic game either. Nevertheless, I am found of the two player, this and the likes of Army of Two, offer. Moreover, I really enjoyed the Hitman series from IO Interactive (the developer of Kane & Lynch). Who knows, maybe they’ll get it right this time around.

Medal of Honor - EA

Then we have Halo: Reach (Sep 14, 2010). Halo will without doubt be a big game, but I am not really a hard core Halo fan boy. I prefer more realistic shooters and the game engine looks a bit dated to me. Next up is Dead Rising 2 (Sep 28, 2010). Zombie killing is always fun, but I am not 100% convinced yet. Medal of Honor (Oct 12, 2010) falls into the same category. I love modern first person shooters, but I am not sure what MoH adds to the table. We have already seen Battlefield Bad Company 2 this year (from DICE – the developer of  the multi player component of MoH), and Call of Duty Black Ops is due just a few weeks later. I have already tried the Beta, and I was unfortunately not blown away. Well actually, I was blown away in a one hour spawn rape before returning to Modern Warfare.

In addition we have Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood (Nov 16, 2010), and  Fifa 11 (Sep 28, 2010). I guess these will be just more of the same, which is a good thing as their predecessors were very good games. However, what about a bir more innovation? Finally, there is Stracraft 2 (already released). I am not really a big Starcraft fan either. I do not really have the patience to play real time strategy against people over the Internet (I would probably get pwned). However, for those who like it Starcraft is a dream come true (at least so I’ve understood).

Unrealistic dreams

Duek Nukem Forever - who knows??

Recently, rumours surfaced that Gearbox had picked up Duke Nukem Forever. I don’t believe it until the game ships, but as long as there is some hope I’ll be waiting for the duke to return. Moreover, I would also love to see a new game from Egosoft (the creators of the X3 series). Nothing has been announced yet, so I won’t hold my breath. However, X3 Terran Conflict was released about two years ago and in my eyes it is about time for something new. What are your wishes for Christmas?