Good media player for Linux Ubuntu

[b1lk1]

Well, I finally took the plunge and went to Linux. Now I need a good media player, any suggestions?

[Rob Williams]

Welcome to the Linux world man. For video, I use VLC for most everything... I haven't really found a need to use anything else, really. For DVD's though, I sometimes use Codeine, just because it's so lightweight.

http://www.videolan.org/vlc/download-ubuntu.html
http://www.methylblue.com/codeine/

Or,
sudo apt-get install vlc vlc-plugin-esd mozilla-plugin-vlc codeine

[b1lk1]

Yeah, I am thoroughly enjoying my experience so far. I even setup a dual boot with XP yesterday so I can still game easily. I am amazed as to just how easy it is to work with Linux, especially Ubuntu. I can 110% recommend it to anyone that is afraid of Linux like I was.

[Rob Williams]

Good to hear man. That's the thing... many people are wary of it, but once you use it, you can learn so much in a little span of time. You should really try Kubuntu some time though... Ubuntu uses GNOME and that's a DE really designed for people who enjoy what's given to them.

As you can see here:
http://forums.techgage.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=339&d=1184731308

You can customize KDE a lot... just from the base installation. You could also install KDE from within Ubuntu, I'm sure there are docs somewhere. Perhaps apt-get install kdebase or something.

[b1lk1]

I just downloaded Kubuntu and am gonna install that tonight. I creamed my HD today by carelessly attempting to install Nvidia drivers without really paying attention to which version. I lost my desktop, LOL!!! Anyhow, I'll keep posting with my results/questions.

[Rob Williams]

Well for one thing... I am not sure how the NVIDIA drivers installed if they were the wrong version. It shouldn't install at all if it's the wrong version, at least that's how it has been in my experience.

What you could do is just hit up the command prompt. If you boot up and nothing is on the screen, hitting CTRL+ALT+F1 or CTRL+ALT+F2 should bring you to a login screen. Then once in, you could edit your xorg.conf.

vim /etc/X11/xorg.conf

Then you would need to scroll down to find the Driver "nvidia" and change "nvidia" to "vesa". Then after rebooting, things should be fine. To edit in vi, you need to hit your 'I' key, make the edits and then hit ESC. You can then save the file by typing ':w', without quotes.

[b1lk1]

No, I managed to install the wrong drivers and that in turn would cause the GUI to not run leaving me in full command line mode only. I tried about 10 different things and then said "F-it" and just used the live CD. I was being an ass when I did it and was just not being careful at all. That's OK, It gave the chance to install Kubuntu and I am having some fun with it now.

[Rob Williams]

Still, if you were at the command prompt, you could have followed my instructions ;-) How you could install a bad driver though, I still don't understand. Did you follow some tutorial specific to Ubuntu, or did you download the driver off the official NVIDIA site?

Either way, hope you enjoy Kubuntu. But if you don't, apt-get gnome should install GNOME for you as well. Then at the login screen, you can select it from the Select Session button.. or whatever Ubuntu calls it.

[b1lk1]

No matter how I install them, the Nvidia drivers just do not work at all for me under Ubuntu. Under Kubuntu, they work like a charm. I have been using "Ubuntu Forums" to do the step by step install process. Anyhow, I am back up and running dual booting XP and Kubuntu. It is ridiculously easy to do it if you install Windows first. Step 1: Install Windows Step 2: Install Kubuntu. Step 3: Enjoy as it is all set up for you, LOL!!!!

[Rob Williams]

Haha. Yeah, it's a bigger chore to install Windows after the fact. It would require you to repartition the hard drive with GParted or install to a spare HDD, then boot up with a Live CD version of some Linux, edit and re-install GRUB to the MBR.

Glad you are liking Linux so far though... if you need any suggestions for other applications or anything like that, feel free to shout.