Not making a decision was the right decision

Well, according to an article on Slashdot, VIA just released the source for video drivers for the CLE266 / Savage / EPIA M-series systems. The improved drivers support the onboard hardware acceleration for MPEG/DVD playback and OpenGL, de-interlaced video, TV out, and hardware video overlay. Supposedly mplayer has already been updated appropriately.

So, here’s the new plan for a media PC:

  • Cooler Master ATC620 case, possibly with the fan ripped out because I’m using an…
  • EPIA M-9000 or M-10000 motherboard
  • Seagate Barracuda hard drive
  • LiteOn LTR-52246S CD-RW (currently rips any CD, even supposedly “copy-protected” discs, faster and more reliably than a Plextor)
  • (Later:) DVD-ROM or DVD-RW drive
  • (Later:) Maybe a Hauppage WinTV card, or a Sound Blaster card for better audio

Not sure which Linux distribution yet. VIA seem to like RedHat and Mandrake, and I’m also tempted to try Gentoo.

The machine will probably replace the CD changer, and maybe later the DVD player too. Possibly even the ReplayTV.