mplayer instead of totem

[| MM |]

I think if the ubuntu team gave it a bit of a face lift, in terms of UI, i think it should be a default part of Ubuntu. In terms of UI i like the helix player interface, so maybe something similar.

From my expierience mplayer plays large HD files in wmv format (im assuming it plays any files for that matter) much better in terms of frame rates than totem.

Also scrolling through files is very fast in mplayer compared to totem.

What do people think, i know totem is part of the gnome project, but that hasnt stopped the devs using firefox over epiphany, and imo there is a clear mplayer superiority over totem.

Thoughts?

[Nonno Bassotto]

I prefer mplayer too, but totem has greatly improved. I guess a change should not be made until mplayer gets gnomeified (if it ever gets). Anyway there is another problem. Mplayer has its own internal codecs; this means that if you install mplayer you have it working with all files, and this thing could be outlaw in some countries.

[taurus]

I, too, use mplayer because it can handle everything that I throw at it. Have never used totem and don't plan to use it anytime soon... It's not that a big deal to install mplayer though.

[| MM |]

Well it would be nice if it did get gnome-afied ... this codec liscencing stuff is really frustrating ... there couldnt be away to strip the internal codecs out and offer a legit (as far as Ubuntu is concerned) player.

Because as it has been pointed out, given the option mplayer is preferable ... so cleary others would be of a simialar mind. And i do believe it handles files much much better, skipping through files is a dream in mplayer with the mouse wheel, it really is nice!

[Mathias-K]

I like both MPlayer and Totem, but in terms of the looks I think MPlayer looks really bad..

[unf]

Make Ubuntu skin for MPlayer?

[CoolGoose]

I hate mplayer. And remember ubuntu is a gnome distribution and totem is the gnome video player. If you dislike the totem-gstreamer part because it doesn't play all that you want just install totem-xine :)

[encho]

It is not just about playing, but also about the quality. Mplayer beats them all. The only app that comes even close is VLC. Just try playing hi-res video (like HD), it brings your system to a crawl with anything other. Mplayer is also the only player out there that recognizes the correct lenght of MPEG2's.

[Anthem]

I hate mplayer. And remember ubuntu is a gnome distribution and totem is the gnome video player. If you dislike the totem-gstreamer part because it doesn't play all that you want just install totem-xine :)
Yep, I truly believe it's not Totem people hate so much as Totem-gstreamer.

Totem-xine works pretty well.

[populacho]

mplayer looks plain ugly, and the playlist support is horrible. I like drag files into the playlist, but with mplayer I cant.

[dufnutz]

Ubuntu and Gnome are trying to be a tightly integrated system. Inorder to do this all apps should use the same multimedia framework with consistant interfaces that follow a human interface guideline. Totem does both of these things and Mplayer does neither. Therefore Totem is the obvious choice for inclusion.

Totem uses gstreamer which is that multimedia framework. Gstreamer started development much later than Mplayer, so if it isn't quite as capable that is to be expected. It sure is catching up though, and almost there. It is improving by leaps and bounds every release. Pretty soon it will be that multimedia framework that everyone wants. With the flexibility of the system it will be much easier to expand on gstreamer once it is declared stable and 1.0. It will also integrate much better when multiple apps rely on it, instead of every app (such as Mplayer) implementing their own multimedia backend.

Totem also uses a gnome interface and closely follows the gnome HIG. Therefore it looks and acts like other parts of gnome. Mplayer does no such thing, nor has any interest in doing this.

It really is an obvious choice from the distribution's point of view. However, if a user still prefers something different, then they are free to apt-get whatever they want. That is the beauty of the universe repositories.

[amoore]

+1 for Mplayer

I use FireFox and its not Gnome either. I think that I will use Song Bird for a audio/Mp3 player when its dev. a little more.

[| MM |]

I am not using edgy yet, but has totem improved? As far as looks, i know mplayer aint the prettiest, but i dodnt think totem is much better, i don't know how people use totem, but im my expierience i just just play individual tracks from nautilus so playlist isn't a huge consideration for me.

[eternalsword]

mplayer looks plain ugly, and the playlist support is horrible. I like drag files into the playlist, but with mplayer I cant.

How a command-line video player can be ugly I have no idea, unless you're referring to gmplayer, but you can install different skins with gmplayer, you just need to find one that suits you. I like how my skinned gmplayer looks more than totem. as for the playlist, I have never in my life had to use a playlist with a video player.