[protocol77]

with the release of xbmcbuntu i am now trying to decide which i should use

xbmcbuntu or openelec??

both are nice linux based setups


the boot time on an old 80gb seagate HDD is around 30 to 40 seconds

with openelec i am using the nightly builds i just wish it would auto update those i am not sure is xbmcbuntu auto updates when the next beta or even official release is out


what do you use and which do you like best

[DejaVu]

This is a choice only you can decide.
OpenElec is a fantastic headend (fine if you also use a server) and if that's all you need, go for it.

I need for stuff than OpenElec offers so still need XBMCBuntu (MySQL is the main one that springs to mind).

apt-get on OpenElec is non existant.

With the new builds of XBMCBuntu, supposedly "sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get upgrade" should update your version. OpenElec is still yet to auto update AFAIK.

[Bobcat37]

I do not intend to hi-jack this thread, but I was about to start one with the same title, albeit a slightly broader question...

Could someone just explain to me what the difference even is?

I've been an XBMC user for 2+ years, but I'm still running 9.10 (it's always worked great, so never bothered to upgrade). I run it as XBMC Live on an Acer Nettop with a partitioned drive so I could still keep Windows 7 as a boot option, but have XBMC running as a separate boot for optimal performance.

I am looking to upgrade my HTPC and software this summer and am also wondering what I should pick... am I using either of these (Openelec or XBMCBuntu) now with XBMC Live 9.10, or are these newer developments?

BTW, I use XBMC primarily just for TV Shows and Movies, but I also installed a few emulators on it to play SNES and N64 games... in case that helps any advice on what I should upgrade to. Thanks in advance.

[smiffy1989]

OpenElec is a total barebones just run XBMC and do nothing else OS. To make it do anything else is difficult for a linux noob.

XBMCBuntu uses more resources but its much easier to make it do more than just run XBMC. It has a desktop with a browser and you can install packages with a GUI.

For me OpenElec is the way to go because all I want my Revo to do is run XBMC. My MySql library/SickBeard/Sabnzbd/CouchPotato/Apache etc are all on my unraid server.

EDIT: Oh and boot time from cold is well under 20 seconds an my Revo 3700 and an old Acer 5930 laptop I use.

[Bobcat37]

OpenElec is a total barebones just run XBMC and do nothing else OS. To make it do anything else is difficult for a linux noob.

So is that basically what is running my XBMC Live 9.10 now? I know I had to screw with the command-line interface to setup wi-fi and install my emulators. I remember it took some work, but I figured it all out through various tutorials...

I guess then the question is whether to stick with that when I upgrade or to go with XBMCbuntu... I plan to get a Lenovo Q180 which has much better specs than my current Acer, but either way, I just want to make sure it will be a smooth running system.

[Jimmer]

So is that basically what is running my XBMC Live 9.10 now? I know I had to screw with the command-line interface to setup wi-fi and install my emulators.

No, your existing 9.10 install is based on ubuntu. So you can easily apt-get any packages you may need for your system or any extra software you want to install. For all purposes you have a standard Ubuntu install that uses xbmc as a UI.

Openelec is built from the ground up, so there are no familiar distro tools like apt-get to install packages/software that are not in a standard install. But, this comes with the benefit of an extremely fast boot and a set-top box I-don't-need-to-mess-with-it feel.

Sounds like, apart from the wi-fi issues, you never really wanted to tinker with the set-up or install extra stuff. Maybe worth your while checking out OpenELEC since it sounds like it fits with the way you want your set-up? If not, it's nothing to trash the OpenELEC install and try XBMCbuntu, instead....

Just my 2p....

[Bobcat37]

No, your existing 9.10 install is based on ubuntu. So you can easily apt-get any packages you may need for your system or any extra software you want to install. For all purposes you have a standard Ubuntu install that uses xbmc as a UI.

[...]

Sounds like, apart from the wi-fi issues, you never really wanted to tinker with the set-up or install extra stuff.

Awesome, thank you for that, the differences make much more sense now! And the only thing I would add is you might have overlooked the part where I said I installed game emulators on it as well so I could play SNES and N64... so I might want to just stick with XBMCbuntu in my next upgrade if I want to easily be able to play some games straight from XBMC again?

Thanks again, hope this has also helped you protocol77.

[lrusak]

With the new builds of XBMCBuntu, supposedly "sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get upgrade" should update your version. OpenElec is still yet to auto update AFAIK.

OpenElec does auto update, but you have to set it to do so in the OS settings

[Jimmer]

Awesome, thank you for that, the differences make much more sense now! And the only thing I would add is you might have overlooked the part where I said I installed game emulators on it as well so I could play SNES and N64... so I might want to just stick with XBMCbuntu in my next upgrade if I want to easily be able to play some games straight from XBMC again?

Thanks again, hope this has also helped you protocol77.

Yeah, sorry missed the emulators bit! According to the OpenELEC forums, emulators are not supported currently in their official builds since they're still trying to get other things perfect first. However, there is a thread on there somewhere where a post talks you through pulling down the sources of OpenELEC and then patching it to support emulators and compile the build yourself.

Now, that's probably a lot more work than trying to add the emulators to XBMCbuntu!

This really highlights the difference between a live type install and OpenELEC, if you want it then support needs to be built into it before it's compiled. With a *buntu based system it's usually a case of apt-get and you're good to go.....

[protocol77]

OpenElec does auto update, but you have to set it to do so in the OS settings

yes it does auto-update once set in settings however i have heard it only updates on official releases i am using the nightly build so will have to do them manually or wait until eden is officially release

i am curious though if you are running a nightly build if it will auto update from nightly to stable release when it does officially get released

[voochi]

I prefer OpenElec because my HTPC is just a HTPC. I don't need to do any browsing, emulation, downloading, anything.. So the simpler the better.

And because it is just a stripped-down OS in the background, OpenElec is wicked fast to boot up and has very low ram useage.

[Bottomsup]

Hey I am building an htpc and was planning to use xbmc until I saw this thread.

3 Qs

how much difference is there is in boot time? I'm going to use a new 250Mb/s SSD so im hoping that makes the difference negligible since I would prefer to use Xbmc live so I have more flexibility with plugins, the OS, and such.

Can I register repos and download plugins on openelec the same as the live version?

Is one easier than the other to configure with my Harmony 900 remote?

[jschoen]

As far as XBMC Addons they pretty much all work on openelec. The difference is if they need require you to install additional software then it can be rough with openelec. I can't think of any off the bat though to be honest.

Openelec is really fast and super easy, but it locks everything down. So if you want to tinker or install other things outside XBMC it probably is not for you.

I have no evidence, but I would think if you are running a ssd then the difference in speed would be negligible and if noticeable would just be on boot.

So my question is are you planning actually turning your system off. I usually leave my running.

[RickR]

I'm a newbie - started by using XBMC on Windows - changed to XBMCbuntu for performance reasons.

I have seen comments about performing updates from the XBMCbuntu: Eden Beta by performing an "apt-get upgrade" but how do you get to a command line to perform such commands.

I also cannot get my MCE Remote to work- I have turned on the remote send keyboard commands option with no luck i was hoping that maybe the updated Eden might help since there is supposedly a Linc fix included?

Any help for a newbie would be appreciated.
Thanks