Install proprietary codecs from usb or cd?

Asked by jbradway

Hi.

My daughter's been enjoying Qimo 2 on an old desktop for a week or so, unconnected to the Internet. Is there a way to install codecs to play mp3's, wmv's, and DVD's from a usb drive or cd? I was hoping not to have to invest in a network adapter for this computer.

If there's a decent way to do this that is platform dependent, I have access to Mac OSX, Windows 7, and Ubuntu 9.04.

Thanks! We're really enjoying this system so far!

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Michael Hall (mhall119) said :
#1

The easiest way would be to get Keryx (http://keryxproject.org/), and have it download the xubuntu-restricted-extras package and dependencies on one of your other internet-connected computers. Then put them onto a CD or USB drive to install on her computer.

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jbradway (yamel) said :
#2

Thanks, Michael. Keryx is a fascinating project that got me most of the way there. Its tutorial needs a bit of work, I'd say. (It could also be that the xubuntu-restricted-extras package simply did not encompass all that I was trying to do but that it installed just fine. I never figured that out. It helped with the mp3 playing, but not the DVD's.)

In the end, I bought a network adapter for $20 and saved some time and stress. I'm clicking 'Problem Solved' because I believe you are right that, with a bit of time, Keryx is the right solution for this query.

Thanks again.

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Michael Hall (mhall119) said :
#3

Reading https://help.ubuntu.com/community/RestrictedFormats/PlayingDVDs I think you need to also install the libdvdread4 package to get DVD playback. You will also need to install libdvdcss2 following the instructions on that page for Ubuntu 10.04 in order to play encrypted DVDs.

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jbradway (yamel) said :
#4

Sorry I didn't get back to you, Michael. Once I connected to the internet everything else fell into place - the system recognizes what is missing pretty well, finds it, and installs it. I see Qimo is your project and I have to say that I am extremely pleased and impressed with the work. Thanks for going the extra mile on my question!