Mythbuntu 10.10 - Getting Started

for Mythbuntu 10.10 (32bit) version 0.23

Introduction

Mythbuntu is another way to install ubuntu and MythTV and it is designed to make it easier to setup. After installation, you will have everything you need to start using MythTV. You will have a stripped down version of ubuntu xfce which uses firefox as the default browser and several other applications.

The single most important aspect of MythTV is that it is not just one program. It consists of two programs: the Frontend and the Backend. Consider each piece one half of the whole. These two halves need to be running for MythTVto work. But note that you need to leave one to enter the other. When you are near the end of the installation process, you will be in the Frontend of the program.

Another important detail is that you don't access the backend from the frontend, and conversely you don't access the frontend from the backend. Since they are separate programs you access them using ubuntu. Ubuntu is your operating system and you must use ubuntu to get from one half of the program to the other. This is exemplified by the fact that these two programs aren't even located in the same sub-menu.

Each halve has a different purpose and is used quite differently. The backend is used to setup your hardware so you can connect all of your inputs to the appropriate outputs (sound, video, tv listings, etc) . Essentially, this part of the program brings all of the parts of your computer together so that you can get a signal into your computer and convert into a TV show on your display. While the frontend of the program is the familiar media center portion of the program which enables you to view TV listings and make selections for viewing and/or recording. The frontend is also responsible for setting up your databases, and this is one of the first steps in the installation process.

What makes MythTV so powerful is also its biggest weakness. It is simply overwhelming to comprehend how many configurations are possible with MythTV and this serves to help newcomers jump in and get their feet wet. The goal here is to show you how to move around the individual parts of MythTV.

Quick Tour

Advanced Users should skip this section. This section teaches users how to navigate back and forth between the frontend, backend, and ubuntu.

This Quick tour is to help newcomers to become familiar with MythTV's parts and is not designed to illustrate how to setup your system (that will come later in another section). It is essential for you to understand MythTv's parts so that when error messages and/or prompts appear, you'll know which part of the program to access and how to use it. This is how MythTV appears after a typical plain-vanilla installation of Mythbuntu.

File:Frontend_Main.png <IMG Frontend_Main>

After installation is complete you will see this (see above), which is MythTV's Frontend Program and bang your in MythTV. However, this doesn't mean that it works and at this point you're not ready to WatchTV or use MythTV. MythTV's default setting is to startup and run the frontend of the program. And that's where you are. So you can't use MythTV yet despite the fact that you were just dropped into it.

If you'll recall, you didn't make any changes to any settings yet. So you still have a lot of work ahead of you in reviewing the hundreds of settings/parameters to customize MythTV for your hardware and setup configuration. And this is the next step in the process of getting MythTV to work. However, this section of the Quick Tour is not going to walk you through the configuration process just yet because you are undoubtedly going to get lost. And hence, this section is dedicated to familiarizing you with the program and how to navigate it which will make using MythTV so much easier and friendlier once you understand how MythTV is constructed.

Again, you're not ready to use MythTV because their are numerous settings which still need to be set in both halves of the program. Remember, you're in the Frontend and you haven't changed one setting yet. So you might ask, how do I get to the other half of the program? The answer is you need to exit this half, and the easy way is to use the ESC key and select exit (use your keyboard's arrow keys for now)

File:Frontend_Exit.png <IMG Frontend_Exit>

But when you press ESC and select exit you'll be in another world - ubuntu. As you can see below, this is extremely bar bones version of ubuntu called xfce. But you'll notice that your mouse now works and you can use to select the various menu options. Remember, you exited out of MythTV's Frontend and landed here in ubuntu's world. The only menu option you've got is Applications. And when you select this menu, you'll see various sub-menus for you to peruse.

As a caveat, while the Frontend program has been terminated, you'll be surprised to learn that the Backend program has not. It is always running, because it is the workhorse for MythTV. It is constantly waiting for the next event, which could be a request to view a recording or to actually make a recording. It is waiting for remote users, or for the Frontend to make a request. Just know that it is always on while your computer is on even though you are in ubuntu and it looks blank/empty.

File:Ubuntu_xfceMain.png <IMG Ubuntu_xfceMain>

So to enter the second half of MythTV, the Backend, you will need to select Applications | System | MythTV Backend Setup

File:Ubuntu_Backend.png <IMG Ubuntu_Backend>

After making your selection, you'll be prompted before you get into the actual "MythTV Backend Setup" program. Simply select Yes and by selecting "Yes" you will stop the Backend program from running in the background while you make changes to the settings. Then you'll be prompted for your username's password. Enter you password and you enter the Backend program.

The odd thing here is that you are shutting down MythTV's server while you activating the Backend Setup program. And when you exit the Backend Setup program, you will be restarting the server in the background. This Backend Setup program is also referred to as "mythtv-setup". If you should see "mythtv-setup" in an error message, it is referring to the Backend Setup program.

File:Ubuntu_Backend_Prompt.png <IMG Ubuntu_Backend_Prompt>

Here's a look at the backend of the program. It is at this point you can enter each of the categories of settings to get MythTV to use your computer's components/hardware.

File:Backend_Main.png <IMG Backend_Main>

But for now let's exit this portion of the program. Press the ESC key. Then this prompt will appear. Press Enter.

File:Backend_Exit.png <IMG Backend_Exit>

Next will be another prompt. At this point, select no. You'll select no because nothing was changed and therefore you don't need to reset the database. However, if you do make changes in the Backend Setup program, then you need to select yes.

File:Backend_Exit2.png <IMG Backend_Exit2>

Now your back to ubuntu and this time you're going to enter the Frontend. Notice that these two halves of the program don't even use the same sub-menu. You're going to select Applications | Multimedia | MythTV Frontend

File:Ubuntu_Frontend.png <IMG Ubuntu_Frontend>

Now you're back to where you started. But now you know how to get around and what each half of the program looks like. The next step is to actually start the setup process of customization for your system. To begin this process, you need to scroll down until you see the Utilities/Setup Menu Option. You need to scroll down and find the Utilities/Setup menu which is not yet visible. But you'll most likely need to use the arrow keys because your mouse may not work. If you find that your mouse doesn't work properly, don't worry you can enable it later on. It's just another parameter that needs to be set.

NOTE: the mouse is disabled by default b/c most users will be using MythTV from the couch and they will probably have a wireless keyboard which acts as their remote control. So the mouse isn't commonly used unless you're sitting at a desktop. BTW, to show you how complicated this can get, your tuner card or satellite tuner might have a remote control and MythTV can be configured to use these remote controls. It just another set of parameters to change. Basically, if it can connect to your computer, MythTV can be configured to use it. The exception to this rule however is that not all tuner cards have drivers for linux. So check the web for compatibility (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MythTV#Supported_tuner_cards)

File:Frontend_Main.png <IMG Frontend_Main>

After you scroll down using the arrow keys you should be able to find the Utilities/Setup Menu. Press <Enter> to open it.

NOTE: the top of the screen looks different from the previous screen. It's different because the ALT+space keys were pressed simultaneously, which allows you to see ubuntu's taskbar. This is just one of the many keystroke commands that you can use to navigate between the Frontend and ubuntu. As you can see, there are several applications running besides the Frontend program. For more details with regards to keyboard shortcuts/commands:

     ubuntu = https://help.ubuntu.com/community/KeyboardShortcuts
     mythTV = http://www.keyxl.com/aaa3626/343/MythTV-keyboard-shortcuts.htm

File:Frontend_Utilities.png <IMG Frontend_Utilities>

After you selected the Utilities/Setup Menu option and pressed <Enter>, you'll see another Setup Menu. Scroll down to select Setup and press <Enter> again.

File:Frontend_Setup.png <IMG Frontend_Setup>

Now you'll see the General Menu. Before continuing, know that you you need to change settings in just two of the menus to get MythTV to work. You'll need to make changes to some of the properties within General & Appearance. To begin, select General and press <Enter>

File: Frontend_General.png <IMG Frontend_General>

Now you will see the the first page of the Database Configuration. Here's where you start to customize MythTV. As you can see, I've changed the User and Password on this page, but have left everything else "as is".

File:Frontend_General_p1.png <IMG Frontend_General_p1>

Bascially, you'll need to change some settings here and there. Just read each of the properties presented and decide which ones you'd like to change. Note that many use dropdown boxes which will reveal the relevant choices available to you. In addition, many options utilize checkboxes. You can simply check or uncheck them to enable or disable them.

If you get into trouble, don't worry.Just use the ESC key to move backwards and reverse out of where ever you are without saving any changes.

This concludes the basic quick tour of MythTV using Mythbuntu's default installation.

(1/26/11 - footnote: images were uploaded, but somehow the tags always get removed. Don't know why tags are removed since screenshots are under GPL.)

Yes. I've removed them because it's absolutely ridiculous to require a user to download 18MB of images just for a howto. Read your user talk page.