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VideoLAN Considering Options for VLC as Mac Developers Disappear

L

lamadude

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jan 12, 2006
432
0
Brussels, BE
I just read this article on slashdot, there are currently no devellopers working on the mac version of the VLC player.

Makes me realize how incredibly reliant we are on the work of a very small group of volunteers (for the open source projects VLC and Perian) to be able to play most codecs on a mac!
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2009/12/17/videolan-considering-options-for-vlc-as-mac-developers-disappear/
That's really a shame. I love VLC player. As much as I like to help, I don't know much about codec nor obj-c. I've always intended to learn it though, it shouldn't be that different from c, c++, java. Well, all we can do now is to spread the news and let everyone know about it. That way, we might be able to get some programmers' attention.
 
xlii said:
handbrake uses a vlc library to rip dvds... there is a ripple effect here.
Click to expand...

Yup..... I discovered that yesterday when I tried to rip a DVD using Handbrake. No VLC for 64-bits Intel-based Macs.

I ended up using Ripit and then Handbrake to convert it to m4v instead.

From the VLC downloads page:

Note: Owing to the forementioned shortage of developers, VLC will not be available for 64-bits Intel-based Macs until further notice. You can safely use the 32-bits package instead.
Click to expand...
 
VideoLAN Considering Options for VLC as Mac Developers Disappear



A notice posted earlier this month in the forums of VideoLAN, the open-source team behind the popular VLC media player, reveals that a lack of Mac volunteer developers for the software has forced the project organizers to consider new plans for the Mac version of VLC going forward. The forum post, which has since been replaced with a static page, explains that the lack of manpower on the Mac front has resulted in lagging development, primarily on the user interface.
Indeed we have a kind of lack of manpower on the Mac interface of VLC.

The VLC core (in C) and most other plugins work pretty fine, just not the OS X GUI (1% of the code of VLC) in Objective-C.

That explains the issues you have seen in latest version of VLC 1.0.x on mac, and the drop of 64bits version in 1.0.3
Click to expand...
VideoLAN hints at a couple of tactics for addressing the problem, including a possible shift to the use of an alternative Qt interface. The organizers interestingly note, however, that Apple has apparently been uncooperative in relation to the VLC project, offering roadblocks to the application's development. Aside from VLC's competition with Apple's QuickTime Player, it remains unclear exactly what Apple's objections are.

Article Link: VideoLAN Considering Options for VLC as Mac Developers Disappear
 
Interface-wise, VLC sucks big time...in fact, apart from its important functions in Handbrake, there is little else to be regarded as essential in VLC...the new QuickTime is much more versatile than before, especially with WMV and Perian.

But I have to ask anyway: where is the "thriving" Mac developer community in times like this? Or is it a matter of difficult personalities in such open source projects?

As I am NOT a developer myself, I am unable to help, sorry.
 
After reading the linked post from the developers, I believe they do not plan to use Quicktime, but the multiplatform UI framework Qt (basis of the Linux KDE desktop).
 
BRLawyer said:
...the new QuickTime is much more versatile than before, especially with WMV and Perian.
Click to expand...

However, QuickTime lacks all of the versatility that VLC has in the field of video and sound adjustments not to mention subtitles.
 
The organizers interestingly note, however, that Apple has apparently been uncooperative in relation to the VLC project, offering roadblocks to the application's development.
Click to expand...

How... surprising. (sarcasm)

Really, Apple, you're becoming more and more annoying to third party developers. Pissing off Adobe, pissing off a bunch of indie developers (and Google) with the idiotic approval process for the iTunes App Store, and now this...

And who have to suffer for it? Your loyal customers. :mad:
 
This sucks, I often have videos that work in VLC but not in Quicktime, so I don't like hearing they're struggling with this. It seems the first step in eventually dropping support altogether.
 
MacRumors said:
VideoLAN hints at a couple of tactics for addressing the problem, including a possible shift to the use of QuickTime's interface.
Click to expand...

Unless the forum post was significantly different than the current static message, then using the QuickTime interface is NOT the proposed solution. Qt is a widget toolkit used for cross-platform development, and is what VLC is written against on other OSes (particularly Linux). Switching to the Qt interface would make the application appearance less Mac-like but would presumably make development much easier as it would not require a separate team of Objective-C developers - just take the Linux version and set the compiler to Mac. (Obviously oversimplified there a little, but it's easier than maintaining a separate branch.) I was surprised at the interface differences when I switched to Mac last month; in some aspects I prefer the Windows interface, in others the Mac interface.
 
BRLawyer said:
Interface-wise, VLC sucks big time...in fact, apart from its important functions in Handbrake, there is little else to be regarded as essential in VLC...the new QuickTime is much more versatile than before, especially with WMV and Perian.

But I have to ask anyway: where are the "thriving" Mac developer community in times like this? Or is it a matter of difficult personalities in such open source projects?

As I am NOT a developer myself, I am unable to help, sorry.
Click to expand...

Would guess they all working overtime to make some more iPhone apps happen.
About the interface i agree. Also annoying with VLC that when going fullscreen, it blacks-out all screens,...
I use it only for things that quicktime fails to play.
 
Berlepsch said:
After reading the linked post from the developers, I believe they do not plan to use Quicktime, but the multiplatform UI framework Qt (basis of the Linux KDE desktop).
Click to expand...

You are correct...I've fixed the article. Thanks.
 
Could VLC's use as a player of copyrighted material (that's been downloaded illegally) partially explain Apple's lack of cooperation?
 
I think this is a real shame, I work with video and use VLC on an almost daily basis. There are so many codecs that quicktime still doesn't work with, I would be stuffed without this app!
 
BRLawyer said:
the new QuickTime is much more versatile than before, especially with WMV and Perian.
Click to expand...

Even with Perian, QuickTime still has a horrible delay whilst waiting to convert MKV files before they can be viewed, and they can't be used in Front Row at all. That's in addition to the other objections raised.
 
I've been using Movist more and more due to the better (IMO) interface but I always have VLC laying around for when something doesn't work in Movist.
In short: This sucks. Wish I could help, but I don't grok Obj-C worth a damn, and UIs were never my thing.
 
BoyRacer said:
Could VLC's use as a player of copyrighted material (that's been downloaded illegally) partially explain Apple's lack of cooperation?
Click to expand...

I think it's more Apple's control freak "WE MUST OWN EVERYTHING ON THE PLATFORM" attitude - that has grown exponentially with the success of the iPhone and App Store - kicking into overdrive.
 
It's not a great player. I use Plex for MKV's as it seems much smoother and VLC only gets love for the occasional WMV.
 
The only decent player for mac is MOVIST. Plays every codec properly, the subtitles are great (anti-aliased) and the GUI is the best. Here's a screenshot:
movist-5804-1.jpg



Detail: The icon is from VLC, but who cares ;)
 
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