Alfred Chan 2003-03-21 02:10
Hi,
I've just purchased your UltraMon software and am currently evaluating your VideoSaver.
Can you please advise is it possible to play an MpegII file (.VOB) across two monitors?
If not, will this functionality be included in the next release?
I am unable to get an MpegII file to play on two monitors using the "full screen" and "Desktop" option within VideoSaver. Only the primary is displayed and the second monitor is blanked out.
I have resorted to reformatting the file to Mpeg-I.
Any help would be much appreciated.
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Christian Studer 2003-03-21 07:10
Hi Alfred,
.vob files usually won't work on secondary monitors, this seems to be due to a limitation of the DVD decoders and the way VideoSaver handles multi-monitor video playback. I tested with PowerDVD and WinDVD.
I don't know yet if there is a solution for this, but will certainly look into it.
Christian Studer - www.realtimesoft.com
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Alfred Chan 2003-03-21 15:57
thank you very much for your speedy reply and please keep me in the loop of your findings.
Just one more question, do you know of any good mpeg converter? I am using Tmgenc converting an MPEG II file MPEg I. In 320x240 resolution with CBR, the resulting mpeg I clip has a smooth video to it. However, the quality of the clip is rather blurry. If I use 720x480, the quality is a lot better but the video stutters. The clip is being played by your "video saver" software over two monitors (ie., using the "full screen" and "desktop" options). Am I doing anything wrong?
My desktop resolution is 1280x1024 on both monitors and I am using a Matrox DVI G550.
Will a more heavy duty display adapter help in my case? Do you have a suggestion?
Thanks again for your speedy response and look forward to hearing from you soon.
kind Rgds.,
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Christian Studer 2003-03-22 02:42
I have no experience with MPEG converters. Most likely the issue you are seeing isn't related to the converter, but rather is a performance issue.
Larger video clips will require more performance for smooth playback on multiple monitors. One issue would be that the G550 only has video overlay support on the first monitor, but the speed of the CPU will also play a role.
For example on my old 3-monitor workstation (dual P2-400) I always had performance issues with high-resolution videos. On my new system (dual Xeon 2.4 GHz, same video cards) the same videos play flawlessly.
Christian Studer - www.realtimesoft.com
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Alfred Chan 2003-03-22 18:20
Once again thank you for your speedy reply.
I am now trying to isolate my problem area, that is trying to determine whether I should upgrade my PC or my video card. Currently, I have a dual PIII 1.0G motherboard and a dvi G550 display adapter.
when I use the windows task manager (i.e., ctl-alt-del), it shows that whilst in video saver, both my CPUs are running at around 80%. Can you please tell me which process is video saver running in so that I may set the priority of that process higher to see if there's any improvements. Failing that of course, I think I might getter a faster display adapter. Most likely a Matrox Pharhelia - do you think that's okay?
Thanks.
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Christian Studer 2003-03-23 10:57
The process is VideoSaver.scr, but most likely increasing the priority won't help (unless you have CPU-intensive background applications running).
Difficult to say what would have the most significant impact on performance. Due to video overlays on both monitors, the Parhelia would certainly be a good choice.
Christian Studer - www.realtimesoft.com
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Alfred Chan 2003-03-24 11:22
Hi there, it's me again! Since we last chat,I went and purchased a Matrox 128mb parhelia and guess what... my mpeg is now playing smoothly.
Had to fiddle around with the software installation a bit before getting it to run correctly.... reinstalled my pivot and ultramon software.
Using the VideoSaver as my screen saver, I was able to play my clips but I've noticed that after playing the clips for a while (20 minutes or so) my screen resolution changed from 1280 x 1024 to a 4-bit mode. The movie is still playing and I was able to navigate around windows (ie., the machine is not hung).
I will be doing further testing with another screensaver to see if the problem persists. Meanwhile, any idea or help with this would be much much much appreciated.
rgds,
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Christian Studer 2003-03-24 11:50
Sounds like a display driver issue. The 1.03.00.043 drivers worked fine for me when I updated the Parhelia review, but I didn't do in-depth testing with VideoSaver.
Christian Studer - www.realtimesoft.com
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Alfred Chan 2003-03-25 14:28
Just an update to the endless problems I have with the Parhelia adapter.
My machine has become unstable and hung often. Although I am getting the video to play smoothly but the costs is too much. Been unable to get the PDesknet.exe running in other logins. The program keeps on crashing with unexpected errors- this apparrently been well talked about in matrox's forum and to-date, I haven't seen a solution yet...sigh. The 4-bit mode I mentioned earlier was due to the driver crashing .
I have tried ALL the previous driver versions without sucess.
Apparrently, the driver for this adapter is really unstable, this driver is written to run under the .NET framework.
My advice is for those who wants a dual monitor adapter, until Matrox get their acts together, stay clear of Parhelia.
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Alfred Chan 2003-03-25 17:04
Alas, I have given up using the Matrox Parhelia adapter... the driver is so buggy that it is not worth the effort to try and get it to work on my machine.
I have now reverted to my G550. Yes it's a slower adapter but much much much more stable.
Sigh.
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matt 2003-06-09 14:10
encodeing with tmpeg is very tricky and it takes good templets to produce good video.. i have a few of my own if ya want um i can send to you..
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DelPHiuM 2004-01-19 23:59
mpeg2 video tends not to work across multiple screens as it uses the overlay features
an overlay can only b displayed on the primary monitor.
something i wish they would sort out - propper 3 screen wide screen would b really cool.
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