Posts by adam.h.

  • Blank screen: LE11 + RPI4 + MPEG4

    The movie starts without video, just with the sound. I see this in the log:

    Is it a known problem for MPEG4 and RPI? Changing to 'gpu_mem=256' didn't help.

  • [RPi4] Argon Remote + TSOP IR sensor

    So here is my small pet-project to create handy HTPC device for vacation travels. There are multiple sources how to setup new remote type (here and here) and how to connect TSOP receiver (here), unfortunatelly all a little bit outdated.

    So I noted all my steps into this short guide.

    Hardware:

    - RPi4 4GB

    - Argon Remote (why this one? I had a spare, and besides I like its terse design)

    - TSOP sensor (any type for 38 kHz will work, I used TSOP4838)

    Software:

    - Installed latest stable LE11 on RPi4

    - TSOP in my case was connected to GPIO pin 23, so following line needs to be added to config.txt (you can edit it directly on the SD card):

    dtoverlay=gpio-ir,gpio_pin=23

    - Connect via SSH to RPi4 and create with nano editor these 2 files (see for the contents in the attached zip file):

    /storage/.config/rc_keymaps/argon40.toml

    /storage/.config/rc_maps.cfg

    That's it, pretty simple. Attached few pictures from my setup, I used alu fanless cooling case and drilled hole in it to expose the sensor.

    Enjoy!

  • Super Cheap Android Box that supports Libreelec and x265?

    Quote from Da Flex

    Super cheap also means super cheap software, and no chance to install other OS's. Something under 50$ should be OK.

    Right, you can find some Android boxes which can run 8K video on pre-installed Kodi for around $40 (if you filter out all the really cheap crap), and they are ready to go (with remote, power supply etc).

    But still you may find hardware issues after a year, or updating to latest Kodi will be impossible etc.

    On the other hand with RPi4 you need:

    • RPi4 2GB RAM = $35
    • IR Remote = $15
    • MicroSD 1GB = $2
    • Power Supply 15W = $12
    • Micro HDMI to HDMI Adapter = $9
    • Alu case = $12

    So in total around $85.

    Buying some $40 android player and put it in the trash after 2 years when it breaks and buy again another one for $40 might not be bad strategy after all ;)

  • Argon One case

    My experiences are mixed as well. For a short time I used Argon One with M.2 NVMe expansion board, so could use small M2 SSD to boot it up. That part worked fine, however all together it drained so much energy from the power supply that I was not able to use external USB SSD where I keep my movies (tested several 3+ A power adaptors).

    I didn't want to add additional powered USB hub to that mix, so just switched to passive cooling case, where single power adaptor is running RPi and external USB SSD without issues.

  • invalid wifi key

    Quote from Airwolf

    "Do we have to blindly guess at the problem"

    if I had said something like that to a customer, if I were to blindly guess their problem, I would have been fired before a second had passed

    I start feeling sorry for your customers, as if you don't understand such simple thing like OSS support models, very likely you are failing with much serious things for them.

    Here is the simple Etiquette Guidebook for users who don't pay anything for what they are getting. Don't agree with some/all? That's fine, hire people to send them your requests and demand from them, simple as that:

    • Say thank you for the project before making an inquiry about a new feature.
    • When opening an issue, create a small, isolated, simple, reproduction of the issue.
    • When opening an issue, if you’re unable to resolve it yourself, please explain that. The expectation is that you resolve the issues you bring up. If someone else does it, that’s a gift they’re giving to you.
    • Don’t file issues that say things like “is this even maintained anymore?” A comment like this is insulting to the time they have put in, it reads as though the project is not valid anymore just because they needed a break, or were working on something else, or their dad died or they had a kid or any other myriad human reasons for not being at the beck and call of code. It’s totally ok to ask if there’s a roadmap for the future, or to decide based on past commits that it’s not maintained enough for your liking. It’s not ok to be passive aggressive to someone who created something for you for free.
    • If someone respectfully declines a PR because, though valid code, it’s not the direction they’d like to take the project, don’t keep commenting on the pull request. At that point, it might be a better idea to fork the project if you feel strongly the need for a feature.
    • When you want to submit a really large pull request to a project you’re not a core contributor on, it’s a good idea to ask via an issue if the direction you’d like to go makes sense.
    • Avoid entitlement. The maintainers of the project don’t owe you anything. When you start using the project, it becomes your responsibility to help maintain it. If you don’t like the way the project is being maintained, be respectful when you provide suggestions and offer help to improve the situation.
    • Before doing anything on a project, familiarize yourself with the contributor guidelines often found in a CONTRIBUTING.md file at the root of the repository. If one does not exist, file an issue to ask if you could help create one.